I was born in Macon Georgia G hey kept my dad in the Macon jail Dad said Son if you keep your hands clean You won't hear them bloodhounds on your trail
But I fell in with bad companions We robbed a man in Tennessee The sheriff caught me way up in Nashville They locked me up and threw away the key
I washed my hands in muddy water I washed my hands but they didn't come clean I tried to do like Daddy told me But I must have washed my hands in a muddy stream
I asked the jailor When's my time up He said son we won't forget And if you try to keep your hands clean We may make a good man of you yet
I couldn't wait to do my sentence I broke out of the Nashville jail I just crossed the line of Georgia And I can hear them bloodhounds on my trail