Joe Hill come from Sweden shores for some work to do And the Statue of waved him by As Joe come a through, Joe Hill As Joe come a sailing
Oh his were coarse and his hopes were high As he headed for the promised And it took a few weeks on the out-of-work Before he to understand Before he began to
And Joe got hired by a bar up the saloon As his rag would over the barroom rail Sounded he whistled on a tune You could almost him whistling on a tune
And Joe rolled on job to job From the to the railroad line And no matter how hungry the that wrote In his letters he was always doing In his he was always doing fine
Oh, the years went by the sun goin' down Slowly turn the page and Joe Looked at the sweat upon his tracks He had to show but his age He had to show but his age
So he headed out for the California There things just as bad So he joined the workers of the world the union was the only friend he had 'Cause the union was the only he had
Now, the strikes bloody and the strikes Were black as as they were long In the of night Joe would stay awake and write In the morning he would raise them a song In the morning he would raise with a song
And he his words to the tunes of the day To be passed along the vine And the were led and the songs were spread And Joe Hill was on the line Yes, Joe Hill was always on the
Now, in Salt City a murder was made There was hardly a to find Oh, the proof was poor but the sheriff was Joe was the killer of the That Joe was the of the crime
Joe raised his hands but shot him down He had nothing but to give It's a doctor I need and left him to bleed He made it 'cause he had the will to Yes, he made it he had the will to live
Then the trial was in a building of wood And there the killer would be And the days weighed more the cold copper ore 'Cause he that he was being framed 'Cause he found out that he was being
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 was appointed by the state
Oh, Utah can be had but not for a union man And Joe was warned by summer early there'd be one less singer in the land There'd be one singer in the land
Now, William Spry was Spry And a was his to hold On the appeal, fell a governor's tear "May the Lord have on your soul May the Lord mercy on your soul"
Even Wilson held up the day But even he fail For heard the soul searching words Of the soul in the Salt Lake jail Of the in the Salt Lake City jail
For 36 he lived out his days And he more played his part For his songs that he made, he was paid With a rifle bullet buried in his With a rifle bullet in his heart
Yes, they Joe Hill up against the wall Blindfold over his It's the life of a that he chose to live the death of a rebel that he died It's the death of a rebel that he
Now, say Joe was guilty as charged And some say he wasn't even And I guess nobody will know the court records all disappeared 'Cause the records all disappeared
Say wherever you go in fair land in every union hall In the dusty dark these are marked In between all the cracks upon the In between all the cracks the wall
It's the very last line that Joe Hill When he knew that his days were "Boys, this is my and final will Good to all of you, good luck to all of you"