From Maine to San Francisco, for years, I rode the rails
Coast to coast, and border to border, I've been in about every jail
One night around the Golden Gate, I caught a freight, and layin' in the bottom of the boxcar was a man
Named Billy Jack Washburn
Through the rain and the wind the train was flyin', I knew the man was layin' there dyin'
I had to try and save a man, with nothin' but my two bare hands and I did
He was just a kid
Now me and Billy Jack, we laid around a few hobo camps for awhile
'Til Billy Jack got his strength back, and the sunshine gave him back his smile
We decided we would leave, and head on down to New Orleans, and we did
Me and the kid
I treated him like I was his dad, and gave him everything I had, which was nothin'
Just the love for a friend, and a friend he was, 'til I lost him
Billy Jack Washburn was his name
I lost him down around Jacksonville, when he fell from the train
I rolled off, and I hit the ground
I picked his body up and carried him all the way back to town
He was a friend of mine
Now here I am, in Macon, Georgia, to help lay Billy Jack in the ground
And by the way, Macon, Georgia, is my hometown
When I picked his billfold up, I saw a picture of his mama and her name
And I cried like a baby
'Cuz his mama, and my mama were the same
Well I haven't been home in twenty-six years, and when I do come home, it has to be like this
Sometimes old lady fate, she deals a terrible kiss
Billy Jack Washburn was his so-called name
I lost him down around Jacksonville, when he fell from the train
But I lost more than a friend
I'll never see my brother again