At the crack of dawn   I heard the rooster crow   Packed my bags and split   Hopped the C & O      Driftin through the South      Spent a lot a week in that town   Just searchin for a friend      If you could see me know with this ball and chain   You'd run me out of town again   You'd never believe a word I say   They're pickin at my bones   like the birds of prey      Call her out one night   on a pickup truck   lay my head in every village every town   straight drunk      One day the dog went lame   and the dog won't move no more      If you could see me know with this ball and chain   You'd run me out of town again   You'd never believe a word I say   They're pickin at my bones   like the birds of prey      Every mile I roam   Every card I play   Every bottle of whiskey I drink   Cuts my life another day      I see it in the dice   I see it in the cards