Joe come over from Sweden shores for some work to do And the of Liberty waved him by As Joe come a through, Joe Hill As Joe come a sailing
Oh his clothes were coarse and his hopes were As he headed for the land And it took a few weeks on the out-of-work he began to understand Before he began to
And Joe got hired by a bar up the saloon As his rag would sail over the barroom Sounded like he whistled on a You could almost hear him on a tune
And Joe on from job to job From the docks to the line And no matter how hungry the hand wrote In his letters he was always doing In his letters he was always doing
Oh, the years went by like the sun goin' Slowly the page and when Joe Looked back at the sweat upon his He had nothing to but his age He had to show but his age
So he headed out for the California things were just as bad So he joined the industrial of the world 'Cause the union was the friend he had the union was the only friend he had
Now, the strikes bloody and the strikes Were black as as they were long In the dark of night Joe stay awake and write In the morning he would raise them a song In the morning he raise them with a song
And he his words to the tunes of the day To be passed along the vine And the strikes were led and the songs spread And Joe was always on the line Yes, Joe was always on the line
Now, in Lake City a murder was made There was hardly a clue to Oh, the was poor but the sheriff was sure Joe was the killer of the That Joe was the of the crime
Joe raised his hands but they shot him He had nothing but to give It's a doctor I need and 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 building of And there the killer would be And the days weighed than the cold copper ore 'Cause he that he was being framed he found out that he was being framed
Oh, strange are the of western law Strange are the ways of For the government to the mine owner's call the judge was appointed by the state Yes, the was appointed by the state
Oh, justice can be had but not for a union man And Joe was warned by summer morn That be one less singer in the land be one less singer in the land
Now, William was Governor Spry And a life was his to On the last appeal, a governor's tear "May the have mercy on your soul May the Lord have on your soul"
Even President held up the day But he would fail For nobody heard the searching words Of the soul in the Salt City jail Of the soul in the Lake City jail
For 36 he lived out his days And he than played his part For his songs that he made, he was carefully With a rifle bullet in his heart With a rifle bullet in his heart
Yes, they lined Joe up against the wall over his eyes It's the life of a rebel he chose to live It's the death of a that he died It's the death of a rebel that he
Now, some say Joe was guilty as And say he wasn't even there And I guess nobody will know 'Cause the court all disappeared 'Cause the court all disappeared
Say wherever you go in this land in every union hall In the dusty dark these are marked In between all the upon the wall In between all the cracks upon the
It's the very last line that Joe Hill When he knew that his days through "Boys, is my last and final will Good luck to all of you, good to all of you"