just a broken down cowboy all down on his luck
been through the best of his friends
on a long lonesome highway in an old pick-up truck
cross texas like a hot dusty wind

he was all around cowboy back in forty-nine
from the top it’s been a long way down
since the whiskey and the women started winning his time
they rode him high and hard to the ground

he remembers the thrill of being a winner
and the days of his first rodeo
there’s something ’bout winnin’ that don’t last forever
maybe tomorrow things will get better
if the devil lets loose of his soul
he’ll be the all around cowboy again

so he rolls up a smoke and he sips his old crow
wipes the whiskers that cover his chin
and he grins as he dreams of old rodeos
he’s the all around cowboy again

he remembers the thrill of being a winner
and the days of his first rodeo
there’s something ’bout winnin’ that don’t last forever
maybe tomorrow things will get better
if the devil lets loose of his soul
he’ll be the all around cowboy again

folks used to think that i could ride any bronc or bull alive
maybe in my younger days i could
but now i’m slowin’ down a bit friends tell me that i should quit
and if i didn’t love it so i would
i recall when folks thought i was great and all the riders used to hate
to see my name upon the enter door
cause i could ride and i could rope the others seem they have no hope
a lookin’ at a bickle that i wore
it’s that all around cowboy of nineteen sixty four
long days and lucky breaks have me alone
workin’ hard and ridin’ fast and sleepin’ in the cold
made me all around cowboy of nineteen sixty four

folks don’t seem to realize the thrill i get from every ride
that bronc feels like you’re dynamite to me
scratched and bruised my body aches from day to day to use its takes
lord only knows the way that sets me free
now my days have shorten up i’m out of breakes and out of luck
and the things will never be the same old way
as i look back and shed a tear sometimes i can almost hear
the echo of the judges they would say
you’re the ll around cowboy of nineteen sixty four
long days and lucky breaks helped me along
working hard and riding fast and sleeping in the cold
made me ll around cowboy of nineteen sixty four
yes i’m the ll around cowboy of nineteen sixty four

amarillo by morning up from san antone
everything that i got is just what i’ve got on
oh when the sun is high in the texas sky i’ll be buckin’ in the country fair
amarillo my morning amarillo i’ll be there

they took my saddle in houston broke my leg in santa fe
i lost my wife and a girl friend somewhere along the way
but i’ll be looking for eight when they pull that gate and i hope the judge ain’t blind
amarillo by morning amarillo on my mind

amarillo by morning up from san antone
everything that i got is just what i’ve got on
i ain’t got a dime and what i got is mine i ain’t rich but lord i’m free
amarillo by morning amarillo’s where i’ll be
amarillo by morning amarillo’s where i’ll be

well i grew up in the shadow of the rockies in the grand old west yes sir i did
and dammed if we didn’t have us a bunch of fun back when we was kids
yea there was manure on our britches snuff pouchin’ out our lip
and hat’s so big you can almost tell who’s under it
yea we all had horses it was always a race
it was real important who got there first
we sneak along some of the old man’s whisky just to quench our little thirst
yeah we looked like a bunch of hon yaks but we could ride like casy tibbs
and we still had to learn how far we could go before we learned when to quit

yea we scratched where it itches and clowned around
there wasn’t nobody who could kick our hound
just throwin’ knives and shootin’ guns generally have in a bunch of fun
well the mommas all thought we were angels and hell we let ‘em go right ahead
but the old man had a hew more savvy in him
and a feller had to be careful around him
yea wars were fought on contact and the wild seeds were sown
and we always spent our money like we found it in the road
well one thing lead to another and before we knowned it it was gone
but i’ll give you a hundred dollars just to have some more of them goings on
cause we looked like a bunch…
yea it’s a lot of fun learning how far you can go
it’s kinda hard learning when to quit but i’ll bet you already know

i was snappin out broncs at the old flyin’ u
at fourty a month a plum good buckaroo
well the boss came around and he says
hey my lad well you look pretty good ridin’ horses that’s bad
you see, i in’t got no more outlaws to break
but i’ll buy you a ticket and give you a stake
at ridin’ them bad ones well you ain’t slow
and you might do some good at the big rodeo

while they’re puttin’ the bull in the chute
i’m strappin’ my spurs to the heels of my boots
i looks that bull over and to my suprise
well he’s a foot and a half in between his two eyes
on top of his shoulders he’s got a big hump
i lands in his middle and i lets out a scream
he comes out with a beller and the rest is a dream

well he jumps to the left and jumps towards the right
but i ain’t no green horn i’m still sittin’ tight
the dust starts to foggin’ right out of his skin
he’s a wavin’ them horns right under my chin
at sunnin’ his belly he couldn’t be beat
he’s showin’ the buzzards the soles of his feet
he’s a dippin’ so low that my boots filled with dirt
he’s a makin’ a whip of the tail of my shirt

he’s snappin’ the buttons right off of my clothes
he’s a buckin’ and a bawlin’ and a blowin’ his nose
the crowd starts to cheerin’ both me and that bull
well he needed no help but i had my hands full
then he went to fence rowin’ and a weavin behind
my head went poppin’ i sorta went blind
he starts in high divin’ i lets out a groan
we went up together but he came back alone

up high i turns over and below i can see
he’s a pawin’ up dirt just a waitin’ for me
i can picture a grave and a big slab of wood
sayin’ here lies a twister who thought he was good
i notices somethin’ don’t seem can be true
but the brand on his hip was a big flyin’ u
when i landed he charged but i got enough sense
so i ran that old bull to the hole in the fence

i dives through that hole and i want you to know
i ain’t goin’ back to no big rodeo
at a straddlin’ them brahmas you can bet i’m all through
so i’m sore footin’ it back to the old flyin’ u