Mama gimme a nickel and a deck of cards Said go on and play in the back yard Walking down the alley come my Uncle Lonnie Said lemme teach ya about Three-card Monte
Take the ace of hearts and two black queens Flip 'em over so they can't be seen Spin 'em around four or five times Bet a nickel find the ace and win a dime
Ten minutes later I had thirty five dollars Singing ain't misbehaving by the great Fats Waller I believe I'm gonna count my blessings I believe I'm gonna count my blessings
Now I saw a black crow on a fence post Singing away like Sam Hopkins's ghost He sang when you see I ain't breathing no more Nail my feathers to an old barn door
Or drag my carcass out behind the shed Just make sure you're pretty sure I'm dead Ask an Ouija board if you can't quite tell Or if I start to stink like the floors in hell
Go to Navasota after I'm done dying It don't do you no good sitting around crying So I got me a pencil and a moleskin book When I heard Bertha Franklin shot and killed Sam Cooke
Wrote down December 11, 1964 Ain't gonna be twisting the night away no more It took 15 minutes for the jury to decide 'Cause of death's justified homicide
Liza Boyer wasn't called by the prosecution Later on she's arrested for prostitution La Hacienda motel had a busted down door Sam's wallet and his money was never accounted for