When I was just a little girl
My mama said to me
Beware of the devil my child
In the dark rocky places he'll keep
Beware of the devil my child
Beware of his charming ways
You'll fall under an evil spell
Just looking at his beautiful face
You gotta build yourself a levee deep inside
Don't go walking by the riverside
Alone in the pale moonlight
He'll come upon you girl
With no earthy body in sight
Come up upon you girl
And he'll whisper something sweet, then take you
Where the waters rise so high and run so deep
You gotta build yourself a levee deep inside
Gotta build yourself a levee deep inside
Build yourself a levee girl
When the waters run high
Now when I was just a little girl
My mama said to me
Beware of the devil my child
But if by chance you should meet
Beware of his cold dark eyes
Full of bold and unholy deceit
He'll tempt you with a whirling pool of lies
And promises he'll deny
Or that he'll never keep
You gotta build yourself a levee deep inside
Build yourself a levee deep inside
You gotta build yourself a levee deep inside
Build yourself a levee girl when the waters run high