Cool and cloudy nights upon Boll Mountain, Alabama Flashing through my mind was Big Homer's reputation The clouds rolled by and then I saw the shadow of a lady I was stealing corn from Homer Lawson's field A man who really didn't give a damn It was Homer's lovely daughter Julie Ann The rattle of the cornstalks and the bark of Homer's hound dog They say he shot ol' Mountain Joe for just one ear of corn I smelled the perfume in her hair as she sat down beside me Made me hug the ground and lie dead still
And laughed the day they laid him in the ground Whispered, "Papa's running moonshine again" Well, I can hear the breaking of the sticks From someone's footsteps I thank God for cloudy nights and Alabama's whiskey stills But shaky legs just can't get up and run And harvest time in Homer Lawson's field And as I lay there breathless, the next thing I expected I thank God for cloudy nights and Alabama's whiskey stills Was a blast of hell from Homer Lawson's gun And harvest time in Homer Lawson's field