[Verse 1]
Well, my name's John Lee Pettimore
Same as my daddy and his daddy before
You hardly ever saw Grandaddy ’round here
He'd only come to town about twice a year
He'd buy a hundred pounds of yeast and some copper line
Everybody knew he was making moonshine
Now, the revenue man wanted Grandaddy bad
Headed up the holler with everything he had
Before my time, but I’ve been told
He never come back from Copperhead Road

[Verse 2]
Now, Daddy ran the whiskey in a big-block Dodge
Bought it at an auction at the Mason's Lodge
"Johnson County Sheriff" painted on the side
He just shot a coat of primer, then he looked inside
Well, him and my uncle tore that engine down
I still remember that rumblin' sound
When the Sheriff came around in the middle of the night
Heard Mama cryin', knew somethin' wasn't right
Headin' down to Knoxville with the weekly load
You could smell the whiskey burnin' down Copperhead Road

[Instrumental bridge]
[Verse 3]
I volunteered for the Army on my birthday
They draft the white trash first ’round here, anyway
I done two tours of duty in Vietnam
Well, I came home with a brand-new plan
I take seed from Colombia and Mexico
I just plant it up the holler down Copperhead Road
And now the DEA’s got choppers in the air
I wake up screamin' like I’m back over there
I learned a thing or two from Charlie, don't you know?
You better stay away from Copperhead Road
Aw!