Dear John, so begins a famous old story   Goodbye,au-revoir, thanks for the memory   Keep it short and sweet if you really care      D I vor C E can be so hurtful   It makes public property of things that are personal   All the friends and family get their share      Ink is black, as black as night   Black as thoughts that shun the light   Truth will out and maybe then   You'll put down that poison pen, that poison pen      Everyone enjoys sharing a rumor   But when it's aimed at you it loses its humor   Sometimes words so innocent, cut so deep      Ink is black, as black as night   Black as thoughts that shun the light   Truth will out and maybe then   You'll put down that poison pen, that poison pen, that poison pen      Everybody's telling me, "Talk is cheap"   Sometimes words so innocent, cut so deep   Cut so deep, they cut so deep, so deep      Ink is black, as black as night   Black as thoughts that shun the light   Ink is black, as black as night   Black as thoughts that shun the light   Truth will out and maybe then   You'll put down that poison pen, poison pen   That poison pen, that poison pen, poison pen      Black as night, as black as coal   Black as thoughts that cast a shadow   Right across my soul   I thought that you were my friend   Until you picked up that poison pen, that poison pen, yeah, poison