The Outlaw Jim McGraw

Author: Anna Russell / Labels:

No man is an outlaw when his life is begun
Jim McGraw was born just somebody's son
But his mean ol' daddy made the boy grow tough
Mad at the world for not giving him enough

Only one thing could thaw Jim's icy soul
A gal named Maggie with hair of coal
And eyes made of sky, so it was said
But to the Sheriff she was wed

One night in the bar, the Bug Juice pourin'
Jim's sense of injustice got all a' roarin'
The Sheriff was foolin' with a two bit whore
Jim's six shooter blew him straight out the door

'I'm the big, bad outlaw Jim McGraw
Meanest son of a gun y'all ever saw
But I did it for Maggie 'n' I'd do it again
The Outlaw Jim McGraw is my name.'

Maggie wept when she heard the news
Teardrops spilling on her shoes
But a pocket of her heart that she kept well hid
Thought it the sweetest thing any man ever did

Jim had to get runnin', and went for his steed
But found only cut rope, the beast had been freed
He heard the mob, began to panic
He hollered out, his voice turned manic

'I'm the big, bad outlaw Jim McGraw
Meanest son of a gun y'all ever saw
But I did it for Maggie 'n' I'd do it again
The outlaw Jim McGraw is my name.'

To the Deputy the news had been delivered
A man tired of being called lily-livered
While the mob went left, the Dep' turned right
Faced Jim McGraw in the dead of night

While Jim was dreaming of Maggie's fair face
The Deputy pulled his rifle out of its case
And gunned Jim down, right down to Hell
Maggie's name on his lips as he fell

Maggie rushed to the body in the mud
Tried in vain to stem the blood
Her eyes of sky opened and cried
And in her arms, Jim McGraw died.

And twice grieved Maggie, so sweet and fair
Heard a voice surround the air

'I'm the big, bad outlaw Jim McGraw
Meanest son of a gun y'all ever saw
But I did it for Maggie and I'd do it again
The Outlaw Jim McGraw is my name.'

7 comments:

Unknown said...

This felt a lot like "A Boy Named Sue" to me.


In fact, I heard Johnny Cash reading it as I read it.

Anna Russell said...

Bryan, I'm a huge JC fan, so I'll take that as a compliment. I actually wrote this after I found out I was related to Robert Service.

Unknown said...

It was meant as a compliment.

That Baldy Fella said...

Yeah, a Johnny Cash feel for me, too, but also with a hint of The Ballad Of Rocky Raccoon from The Beatle's White Album as well...

matt at shadow of iris said...

This poem is incredibly fantastic!

It's a neat story with the words well chosen.

Also, I can't rhyme lines worth a darn, which makes it all the more impressive to me.

Exceptional!

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