I was standin' beside
the road in Blackjack County
Not knowing the sheriff paid a bounty
For men like me who didn't
have a penny to our names
So he locked my leg to thirty-five pounds
pounds of Blackjack County chain
And all we had to eat was
bread and water
And each day we had to build
that road a mile and a quarter
A black snake whip would cut our backs
if some poor fool complained
And you couldn't fight back wearin'
35 pounds of Blackjack County chain
And then one night when
the sheriff was a sleepin'
We gathered all round him
slowly creepin'
Heaven help me to forget that night
in the cold cold rain
When we beat him to death with thirty-five
pounds pounds of Blackjack County chain
Now the whip marks have all
healed and I am thankful
That there's nothing but these
scars around my ankles
But most of all I'm glad no
man will be a slave again
To a black snake whip and thirty-five pounds
pounds of Blackjack County chain
To a black snake whip and thirty-five pounds
pounds of Blackjack County chain