Written in 1972, tear stained letter originally appeared on Cash’s A Thing Called Love, Tear Stained Letter was reprised on American IV: The Man Comes Around in 2002.
[Verse]
I'm going to write a tear stained letter
I'm going to mail it straight to you
I'm going to bring back to your mind
What you said about always being true
About our secret hiding places
Being daily satisfied
I can see you sitting and reading it
While you hang, you head and cry
I just hope you're not so sad
You're going to go down suicide
I'm going to write a tear stained letter
Put it special delivery
Because it's gonna be full of stuff
That's only known to you and me
About how every time I get turned on
You turn me off and bring me down
It'll be about the darkest news
That ever did arrive in your hometown
It'll be about the saddest thing
Your mailman ever did bring around
I'm going to write a tear stained letter
I'm going to tell you one more time
That you still could reconsider
And come back to being mine
And if you think about what I'm saying
It'd be hard to refuse
Just be sure you think a long time
On the answer that you choose
It will be a most important piece
Of personal, private news
I'm going to write a tear stained letter
Mark it "Personal Private News"
And I hope you'll keep it to yourself
And don't go around crying the blues
Giving off a bad impression
As to what went really wrong
When what it was was that suddenly
The music was all gone
And this man and this woman got cut off
In the middle of our song
I'm going to write a tear stained letter
I'm going to put it to a tune
So I'll be sending with it
A sweet melody for you
And not some red-hot, upbeat zinger
That'll set your body on fire
But a hunk of love included
Meant to take you a little higher
And to settle on your sweet, sweet mind
At night when you retire
[Outro]
I'm going to write a tear stained letter
Tear Stained Letter was written by Johnny Cash.
Tear Stained Letter was produced by Larry Butler & Johnny Cash & Rick Rubin.
Johnny Cash released Tear Stained Letter on Sun Apr 30 1972.