[Verse 1]
Man, the meanest bastard I'd ever seen
Was that old man of mine
The back of his hand and a little Jim Beam
Kept us all in line
Well, my poor mama lived in fear
Damn near all the time
The Lord says we all got a cross to bear
That old man was mine

[Verse 2]
It didn't take much to piss him off
And he'd be on the tear
I'm still haunted by the bruises
We all had to wear
Well, late one evenin' on a cold dark night
I heard my mama cry
Everything inside me
Just wanted him to die

[Verse 3]
Well, I called him out and said, "I've had enough
Let's settle this outside"
He said, "Son, you think you're tough
Had this comin' for a long, long time"
He got both hands around my throat
Was chokin' me to death
Well, I saw evil in his eyes
And smelled the devil's breath
[Verse 4]
And one thing he never thought about
That pistol in my jeans
I put every bullet in him
That night in Abilene
My mama lied and said she did it
But on the Bible, she came clean
And every night she prays for me
From cell block seventeen

[Instrumental Break]

[Verse 5]
I wear this number on my back
It suits me just find
God knows he had it comin'
It's worth the ninety-nine
I never have felt guilty
Not one single time
The Lord says we all got a cross to bear
That old man was mine
Yeah, the Lord says we all got a cross to bear
That old man was mine