Father, did you bring me the silver
Father, did you bring me the gold?
What did you bring me, dear father
Keep me from the gallows pole?

Yeah, what did you?
Yeah, what did you?
What did you bring me, keep me from the gallows pole?

[Spoken]
In olden times years ago, when you put a man in prison behind the bars in a jailhouse
If you had fifteen or twenty-five or thirty dollars
You could save him from the gallows pole cause they gonna hang him if you don't bring up a little money
Everybody would come to the jailhouse and boy would ran upside the jail; he was married, too
As for who brang him something, lot of comfort, here comes his mother

Mother, did you bring me the silver
Mother, did you bring me the gold?
What did you bring me, dear mother
Keep me from the gallows pole?

Yeah, what did you?
Yeah, what did you?
What did you bring me, keep me from the gallows pole?

Son, I brought you some silver
Son, I brought you some gold
Son, I brought you a little of everything
Keep you from the gallows pole

Yeah, I brought it
Yeah, I brought it
I brought you, keep you from the gallows pole

[Spoken]
Here come his wife. His wife brought him all kind of clock parts and trace change
Everything in the world she could to get him out of the jailhouse

Wife, did you bring me the silver
Wife, did you bring me the gold?
What did you bring me, dear wifey
Save me from the gallows pole?

Yeah, what did you?
Yeah, what did you?
What did you bring me, keep me from the gallows pole?

Friends, did you bring me the silver
Friends, did you bring me the gold?
What did you bring me, my dear friends
Keep me from the gallows pole?

Yeah, what did you?
Yeah, what did you?
What did you bring me, keep me from the gallows pole?