Tom Dooley
beginner

Tom Dooley

Key: G
Chords: 3
Doc Watson

Jam Along

Chord Chart

Verse/Chorus x2

G
C
C
G
D
G
C
G
Chords used: C D G

Lyrics

Hang your head, Tom Dooley, hang your head and cry You killed poor Laurie Foster and you know you're bound to die
You left her by the roadside where you begged to be excused You left her by the roadside, then you hid her clothes and shoes You took her on the hillside for to make her your wife You took her on the hillside and there, you took her life You dug the grave four feet long and you dug it three feet deep You rolled the cold clay over her and tromped it with your feet Hang your head, Tom Dooley, hang your head and cry You killed poor Laurie Foster and you know you're bound to die Trouble, oh, it's trouble a-rollin' through my breast As long as I'm a-livin', boys, they ain't a-gonna let me rest I know they're gonna hang me, tomorrow, I'll be dead Though I never even harmed a hair on poor little Laurie's head Hang your head, Tom Dooley, hang your head and cry You killed poor Laurie Foster and you know you're bound to die In this world and one more, then reckon where I'll be If it wasn't for Sheriff Grayson, I'd be in Tennessee You can take down my old violin and play it all you please For at this time tomorrow, boys, it'll be of no use to me Hang your head, Tom Dooley, hang your head and cry You killed poor Laurie Foster and you know you're bound to die At this time tomorrow, where do you reckon I'll be? Away down yonder in the holler, hangin' on a white oak tree Hang your head, Tom Dooley, hang your head and cry You killed poor Laurie Foster and you know you're bound to die

Demo Videos

About This Song

Tom Dooley is a tragic murder ballad from North Carolina that Doc Watson made famous, though The Kingston Trio's 1958 hit brought it to mainstream audiences. Based on the real 1866 murder of Laura Foster, for which Tom Dula was hanged, it remains a popular sing-along at jams despite its dark subject matter.

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