Ballad of Oxford (Jimmy Meredith)

[Verse 1]
I'll sing you a song about a southern town
Where the devil had his rule
When marshals faced an angry mob
To send one man to school
His name was Jimmy Meredith
And the tide he helped to turn
For he chose to stay on that terrible day
The land was soon to learn

[Chorus]
There was blood, red blood, on their hands
Yellow dirt on their clothes
What they thought they were doing
Only God and the devil knows
There was hate, cold hate, in their hearts
Shot from their souls like a gun
And as they threw their stones and bricks
They screamed, "See what you have done!"

[Verse 2]
The governor made a promise
He would keep the trouble down
But when the mob got ugly
No troopers could be found
And men were filled with hate and fear
They screamed into the night
The rebel flag waved in the air
The symbol of states' rights

[Chorus]
There was blood, red blood, on their hands
Yellow dirt on their clothes
What they thought they were doing
Only God and the devil knows
There was hate, cold hate, in their hearts
Shot from their souls like a gun
And as they threw their stones and bricks
They screamed, "See what you have done!"

[Verse 3]
Gas was fired into the mob
After each attack
And though the gas was running low
They never fired back
And when the smoke had cleared
And the fury felt it's pain
Two men were dead and a hundred bled
The South had risen again

[Verse 5]
So listen Mr. Barnet
And Mr. Walker, too
The times are changing mighty fast
They'll roll right over you
But someday you'll head for the South
To the southern tip of hell
And it's hot down there, white-hot down there
Let's hear your rebel yell!

[Chorus]
There was blood, red blood, on their hands
Yellow dirt on their clothes
What they thought they were doing
Only God and the devil knows
There was hate, cold hate, in their hearts
Shot from their souls like a gun
And as they threw their stones and bricks
They screamed, "See what you have done!"
"See what you have done!"