Joe Hill over from Sweden shores Looking for some to do And the of Liberty waved him by As Joe come a sailing through, Joe As Joe a sailing through
Oh his were coarse and his hopes were high As he headed for the promised And it took a few on the out-of-work streets Before he began to Before he to understand
And Joe got by a Bowery bar up the saloon As his rag would over the barroom rail Sounded like he whistled on a You could hear him whistling on a tune
And Joe on from job to job From the docks to the railroad And no matter how hungry the hand that In his letters he was always fine In his letters he was always doing
Oh, the years went by the sun goin' down turn the page and when Joe Looked at the sweat upon his tracks He had to show but his age He had nothing to but his age
So he out for the California shore things were just as bad So he joined the industrial workers of the the union was the only friend he had 'Cause the union was the only he had
Now, the strikes were bloody and the Were black as hard as were long In the dark of night Joe would stay and write In the morning he would raise them with a In the morning he would raise with a song
And he his words to the tunes of the day To be passed the union vine And the strikes led and the songs were spread And Joe was always on the line Yes, Joe was always on the line
Now, in Salt Lake City a murder was There was hardly a clue to Oh, the was poor but the sheriff was sure Joe was the of the crime Joe was the killer of the crime
Joe raised his but they shot him down He had but guilt to give It's a doctor I and they left him to bleed He made it 'cause he had the to live Yes, he it 'cause he had the will to live
Then the trial was held in a of wood And there the killer be named And the weighed more than the cold copper ore 'Cause he that he was being framed 'Cause he out that he was being framed
Oh, strange are the ways of law Strange are the ways of For the crawled to the mine owner's call That the judge was appointed by the Yes, the judge was appointed by the
Oh, Utah justice can be had but not for a man And Joe was warned by summer morn That there'd be one less in the land There'd be one less singer in the
Now, Spry was Governor Spry And a life was his to On the last appeal, fell a tear "May the have mercy on your soul May the Lord mercy on your soul"
Even President held up the day But he would fail For nobody the soul searching words Of the in the Salt Lake City jail Of the soul in the Salt Lake jail
For 36 he lived out his days And he more than played his For his songs that he made, he was paid With a rifle buried in his heart a rifle bullet buried in his heart
Yes, they lined Joe Hill up against the Blindfold over his the life of a rebel that he chose to live It's the death of a rebel that he It's the death of a rebel that he
Now, some say Joe was guilty as And some say he even there And I guess nobody ever know 'Cause the court all disappeared the court records all disappeared
Say you go in this fair land in every union hall In the dusty dark words are marked In all the cracks upon the wall In between all the cracks upon the
It's the very line that Joe Hill wrote When he knew his days were through "Boys, this is my last and final luck to all of you, good luck to all of you"