There's a small jail in Georgia you all know
Where the sun's so hot and the daylight don't show
Where the moccasin she rests on a soft bed of sand
You can hear the hound dog howling out the land
Chorus:
It ain't the way I wanted it
But Lord that's the price you pay
I said jailer bring me water for my throat is dry
Four walls, steel bars, I've been watching pa**ersby
I've been sitting here so long I'm starting to cry
The hangman's coming, I'm surely going to die
Chorus:
It ain't the way I wanted it
But Lord that's the price you pay
Oh, honk on it, boy
A little jail cell blues here
LEAD BREAK
I shot a man in Macon over a poker game
I k**ed another in Atlanta just to build my fame
Well, now I hear the hammers they're pounding out my name
It ain't the way I wanted it
But that's the price you pay
It ain't the way I wanted it
But Lord that's the price you pay
Hey jailer, how about that water my throat's still dry
Four walls, steel bars, I've been watching pa**ersby
I've been sitting here so damn long I'm starting to cry
The hangman's coming I'm surely going to die
It ain't the way I wanted it
But Lord that's the price you pay
(REPEAT)
It ain't the way I wanted it
But Lord that's the price you pay
Oh, you done out of rope son