Reverend Mr. Black

[Verse 1]
He rode easy in the saddle, He was tall and lean
And at first you'd have thought nothing but a streak of mean could make a man look so down right strong
But one look in his eyes and you knew you were wrong
He was a mountain of a man, and I want you to know
He could preach hot hell or freezing snow
He carried a Bible in a canvas sack and folks just called him The Reverend Mr. Black
He was poor as a beggar, but he rode like a king
Sometimes in the evening, I'd hear him sing

[Chorus]
I've got to walk that lonesome valley
I've got to walk it by myself
Oh, nobody else can walk it for me
I got to walk it by myself
You've got to walk that lonesome valley
You've got to walk it by yourself
Oh, nobody else can walk it for you
You've got to walk it by yourself

[Verse 2]
If ever I could have thought this man in black was soft and had any yellow up his back
I gave that notion up the day a lumberjack came in and it wasn't to pray
Yeah, he kicked open the meeting house door and he cussed everybody up and down the floor
Then, when things got quiet in the place, he walked up and cusses in the preacher's face
He hit that Reverend like a kick of a mule and to my way of thinking
It took a real fool to turn the other face to that lumber jack
But that's what he did, The Reverend Mr. Black
He stood like a rock, a man among men and he let that lumberjack hit him again
And then with a voice as quiet as could be, he cut him down like a big oak tree when he said

[Chorus]

[Verse 3]
It's been many years since we had to part
And I guess I learned his ways by heart
I can still hear his sermon's ring, down in the valley where he used to sing
I followed him, yes, sir, and I don't regret it and I hope I will always be a credit to his memory
Because I want you to understand, the Reverend Mr. Black was my old man

[Chorus]