Take 'em Away

Take 'em away, take e'm away, Lord

Take away these chains from me

My heart is broken 'cause my spirit's not free

Lord, take away these chains from me

Some birds' feathers are too bright to be caged

I know I'm not that colorful, but a bird just the same

Open up your gate now, let me put down my load

So I can feel at ease and go back to my home

Take 'em away, take e'm away, Lord

Take away these chains from me

My heart is broken 'cause my spirit's not free

Lord, take away these chains from me

Sun beatin' down, my legs can't seem to stand

There's a boss man at a turn-row

With a rifle in his hand

I've got nine children, nothin' in the pan

My wife, she died hungry while I was plowin' land

Take 'em away, take e'm away, Lord

Take away these chains from me

My heart is broken 'cause my spirit's not free

Lord, take away these chains from me

Can't see when I go to work

Can't see when I get off

How do you expect a man not to get lost?

Every year, I just keep gettin' deeper in debt

If there's a happy day, Lord, I haven't seen one yet

Take 'em away, take e'm away, Lord

Take away these chains from me

My heart is broken 'cause my spirit's not free

Lord, take away these chains from me

Land that I love is the land that I'm workin'

But it's hard to love it all the time

When your back is a-hurtin'

Gettin' too old now to push this here plow

Please let me lay down so I can look at the clouds

Take 'em away, take e'm away, Lord

Take away these chains from me

My heart is broken 'cause my spirit's not free

Lord, take away these chains from me

Land that I know is where two rivers collide

The Brazos, the Navaso, and the big blue sky

Flood plains, freight trains, watermelon vines

Of any place on God's green earth

This is where I choose to die

Take 'em away, take e'm away, Lord

Take away these chains from me

My heart is broken 'cause my spirit's not free

Lord, take away these chains from me