Lyrics Introduction To "Hobo Bill" - Merle Haggard

Introduction To "Hobo Bill"

Introduction To Hobo Bill
The hobo was a subject that the late and great Jimmie Rogers
Sang of many times during his great career
And the freight train served a faithful means of travel for the migrant
worker or for the fella out of work or some ole boy
That just wanted to live off the fat of our great land
And of course at this time the fat was kind a scarce
Because during the period of Jimmie Rodger’s greatest popularity
Our great Nation’s economy was at all time low
And it was known as the depression days
During this time it wasn’t unusual to see 50 or 75 hobos
Jump from a moving freight train as it neared the edge of a city
This was dangerous but it was done to keep from being caught by the
train bulls that worked the great freight yards during this era
A lot of the hobos were respectable men and rode the rods
Because it provided a dependable means of travel which they could afford
And some of them made their destinations and some of them died along
the tracks and their friends and family never knew what happened to 'em
And I would imagine maybe that Hobo Bill was one of them…