Ballad of Billie Sol - Phil Ochs

Billie sol was a man

From the giant texas land

He put the chamber of commerce on a limb

They voted him the best

And the government did no less

Until the i.o.u.'s of texas fell on him

Stand tall, billie sol, we don’t know you at all

We’ve taken down your pictures from the wall

Well, we don’t want to handle an agriculture scandal

We have got to face elections in the fall

I remember when

Bill had influential friends

He celebrated christmas every day

He filled texas banks with his fertilizer tanks

Influential friends don’t die they only fade away

Stand tall, billie sol, we don’t know you at all

We’ve taken down your pictures from the wall

Well, we don’t want to handle an agriculture scandal

We have got to face elections in the fall

The democrats deny

And orville freeman sighs

He said «everyone around was fair and square»

But he was no more convincing

Than ezra taft benson

As resignations cropped up everywhere

Stand tall, billie sol, we don’t know you at all

We’ve taken down your pictures from the wall

Well, we don’t want to handle an agriculture scandal

We have got to face elections in the fall

And now I’d like to say

That crime sure doesn’t pay

But if you want to make some money on the sly

Well you can always rent

The u.s.

government

It’s the best one that money can buy.

Stand tall, billie sol

We don’t know you at all

We’ve take down your pictures from the wall

Well, we don’t want to handle

And agriculture scandal

We have got to face elections in the fall