Lyrics The Lavender Cowboy - Burl Ives

The Lavender Cowboy

He was only a lavender cowboy
The hairs on his chest were two,
But he wished to follow the heroes
And fight like the he-men do.
But he was inwardly troubled
By a dream that gave him no rest,
That he’d go, with heroes in action
With only two hairs on his chest.
First he tried many a hair tonic,
'Twar rubbed in on him each night,
But still when he looked in the mirror
Those two hairs were ever in sight.
But with a spirit undaunted
He wandered out to fight,
Just like an old-time knight errant
To win combat for the right.
He battled for Red Nellie’s honour
And cleaned out a holdup’s nest,
He died with his six guns a-smoking
With only two hairs on chest.