Little Joe the Wrangler, he'll never more His days with the remuda, all done It was long about last April, he rode our camp Just a Texas stray and all alone
It was late in the evening when he rode into our camp On a little old brown pony he called In his Brogan shoes and coveralls a harder kid You never in your life seen before
His saddle was a kack built many years ago An OK spur on one idly hung his bed roll in a cotton sack, was loosely tied behind And a canteen from the saddle horn he'd
Said he had to leave his home his pa had married twice His new ma him every day or two So he saddled up old Shaw one night and lit a this way he'd try and paddle now his own canoe
Said he'd try to do the best he could if only give him work Though he know straight up about a cow So the boss he cut him out a mount and put him on And we knew he liked our stray somehow
Well, he taught him how to herd the horses, to know 'em all And to get 'em in by daylight if he And to follow the chuck and to always hitch the team And to help the carsonaro rustle
We had driven to red and the weather it was fine We camped down on the south side in a bend When a norther blowin', we called the extra guard it took all hands to hold the cattle in
Now Little Joe the Wrangler was called out all the rest And had the kid got to the herd When the cattle they stampeded a hailstorm, on they flew With all of us a for the lead
Between the streaks of lightnin' we could see a horse It was Little Joe the in the lead He was riding old Blue with a slicker o'er his head He was to check the leaders in their speed
We finally got 'em millin' and they sort of down The extra guard to the camp did go All but one of was missing and we all knew at a glance our little Texas stray boy Wrangler Joe
We found him there at sun up where old Blue Rocket In a some twenty feet below Beneath his horse smashed to a pulp, his spur had the knell For our Texas stray boy Wrangler Joe
Now Little Joe the Wrangler, he'll wrangle never His days the remuda, they're all done It was about last April he rode into our camp Just a little Texas and all alone