Letter to Madeline Ian Noe

[Verse 1]
Looked like a hundred guns held on me
Hunkered by the shed of Detroit General & Company
Calling, "Boy come out, we have you jailed"
Beside the buck-shot door, I stood still
Wondering how the hell the bastards found me in those hills
And clinging to a letter that I wish I'd mailed

[Chorus]
Go rest easy, Madeline
I'm bringing down the bank across this flooded county line
And when I get home, we'll have a grand old time
But don't you shed no tears or be surprised
If you get the word that your wild man has up and died
Just set me up a stone on that high hillside

[Verse 2]
Now in the pouring snow, sad, but swift
I headed down the highway
Hoping that the burden of my blues would lift
And praying that the whiskey would keep me brave
Oh, but I got caught in the cold
Looking like a hobo without no mercy from the road
And feeling like a dead man without a grave

[Chorus]
Go rest easy, Madeline
I'm bringing down the bank across this flooded county line
And when I get home, we'll have a grand old time
But don't you shed no tears or be surprised
If you get the word that your wild man has up and died
Just set me up a stone on that high hillside
Oh my, oh my