Well now Jesse was a gambler    night and day   he used crooked cards and dice   son of a guy, good-hearted   he but had no soul   his heart was hard and cold like ice Jesse was a wild reckless gambler   the one game he could not win   Sweet Lorena 'outta north atlanta   she done stole his heart from him   and she was married to a rich man   with a house on a hill    but Jesse had to see her still   so come the shadows of night   he came around   and he cut the old man down   broke his heart   left him cold out alone   Sweet Lorena packed up and gone   and the police walked up   and shot my friend down   said "Boys, I gotta die today"    he had eight crapshooters   around his bedside   to hear the words he had to say    "guess I 'otta know exactly hows I wanna to go"   how you wanna go 'ole Jesse?   eight crapshooter to be my pallbearers   let 'em all be bailed down in black   I want nine men   going to the graveyard, buddy   but just eight men are coming back    I want gamblers   gathered around my coffin side,   a crooked card upon my hearse   don't say the crapshooters   are allowed to grieve over me   that there doggone curse   water my grave with some moonshine now dig it with the ace of spades   I want 12 polices in my funeral march high sheriff 'bout to led the parade   I want that judge who jailed me    14 times to put a,    a pair of dice in my shoes    let a deck of cards be my tombstone buddy, I got the dyin' crapshooters blues      16 real good crapshooters   16 bootlegger there to sing songs   16 hobos off the casey line   to kick up dust while im rollin' along   [all the hoes   that I used to know   from way before   kiss me from my head to my toes   give me paper and pen   so I can write about my life of sin couple bottles of gin   in case i dont get in]   or   [I want 22 women at the hampton hotel   and 26 off-a South Bell   but just 1 woman 'outta north atlanta to give me pleasure 'fore i gets to hell]    well his head was achin'   his heart was thumpin   Jesse went down bouncin' and jumpin' said, "folks don't be standin around moanin' and cryin"   he wants everybody to do the charleston whilst he dies   one foot up and a toenail draggin'   throw my buddy Jesse   in the hoodoo wagon   come here mama   with your can of booze   dyin' crapshooter's blues (help me)   the dyin' crapshooter's blues   goin down with the dyin' crapshooter's blues