John Henry Song Lyrics and Chords by Hank Thompson
John Henry
Written and Recorded by Hank Thompson
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John Henry was a little bitty boy
No bigger than the palm of your
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hand
His
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mammy looked down at Henry and said
John you're gonna be a steel drivin' man
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Lord
lord
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John you're gonna be a
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steel drivin'
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man
John Henry he said to his Captain
Captain I wanna hear you
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sing
I'll swing
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forty-nine pounds from my hips on down
Like to hear that cold steel ring
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Like to hear that
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cold steel
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ring
John Henry had a little woman
And her name was Polly
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Ann
John
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Henry got sick and he had to go to bed
But Polly drove steel like a man
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Polly drove the
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steel like a
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man
John Henry went to the tunnel to drive
Steam hammer by his
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side
Well he
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beat that drill to the end of the tunnel
Laid down his hammer and he cried
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Laid down his
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hammer and he
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cried
John Henry drove steel on that mountain
Till his hammer caught on
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fire
And the
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last words we heard John Henry say
Cool drink of water before I die
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cool drink of
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water before I
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die
Well they took John Henry to the graveyard
Stuck him six feet under the
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sand
Every
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time the freight train would go puffin' by
They'd say there lies a steel drivin' ma
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n Lord Lord
Yonder
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lies that
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steel drivin'
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man
FAQ
Who sang the the song John Henry?
- The song John Henry was sang by Hank Thompson.
Who is Hank Thompson?
- Henry William Thompson (September 3, 1925 - November 6, 2007) was an American country music singer-songwriter and musician whose career spanned seven decades.
Thompson's musical style, characterized as honky-tonk Western swing, was a mixture of fiddles, electric guitar, and steel guitar that featured his distinctive, smooth baritone vocals.
His backing band, The Brazos Valley Boys, was voted the top Country Western Band for 14 years in a row by Billboard. Thompson pursued a "light" version of the Western swing sound that Bob Wills and others played the primary difference between his music and that of Bob Wills was that Thompson, who used the swing beat and instrumentation to enhance his vocals, discouraged the intense instrumental soloing from his musicians that Wills encouraged however, the "Hank Thompson sound" exceeded Bob Wills in top-40 country hits.
Although not as prominent on the top country charts in later decades, Thompson remained a recording artist and concert draw well into his 80s.
The 2013 game Grand Theft Auto V featured his song "It Don't Hurt Anymore" in the fictional radio show, Rebel Radio.
The 1987 novel Crazy Heart by Thomas Cobb was inspired by Thompson's life, specifically by his practice of picking up a local band to back him when he toured. In 2009, Cobb's novel was turned into a successful film directed by Scott Cooper and starring Jeff Bridges in an Academy Award-winning performance.