Well, I hear that train a-comin'
It's rollin' around the bend
Well, I ain't seen the sunshine
Since I don't know when

And I'm stuck in Folsom Prison
And time keeps draggin' on
Well, that train keeps a-rollin'
On down to San Antone

When I was just a baby
My mama told me, son
She said, always be a good boy
Don't never play with guns

But I shot a man in Reno
Just to watch him die
When I hear that whistle blowin'
I hang my head and cry

Well, I bet there's rich folks eatin'
From a fancy dining car
Well, they're probably drinking coffee
And smoking big cigars

Well, I know I had it comin'
I know I can't be free
Now, those people keep a-movin'
That's what tortures me
If they freed me from this prison
If that railroad train was mine
I bet I'd move it all a little
Farther down the line

Yeah, far from Folsom Prison
That's where I want to stay
Lord, I here that whistle blowin'
Blow my blues away, yeah

(Spoken)
It's been thirty years now, and I know I'll never leave this godforsaken place alive. Honest to God, when I hear her words ringin' through my head as loud as that old train whistle, crying out to me night after endless night, sending a cold steel shiver through my lost soul, I close my eyes and pray that that iron horse is bound for the promised land and I'll get to ride it home to glory someday