On the hills outside of town,
There’s a hiding place,
Where the green fields sway with lavender,
Most dirty Queen Anne’s lace,
Where the silent clouds go sailing
In a sea of Dutchman’s blue,
And the lonesome shack,
By the railroad cutting,
Make me think of you
And the train we missed.
I loved you from the first time
I looked upon your face.
Though l didn’t know your story,
I could feel your wild grace.
Now you got yourself in trouble,
But that ain’t nothing new,
Through thick and thin,
There’s always been,
Someone watching over you.
So put down the gun,
Put down the gun,
Put down your gun,
Put down the gun,
Put down the gun,
Put down your gun.
Well you grew up on the street,
Where the cops don’t go alone.
In a town just like a wishing well,
You were cast in like a stone.
Put down the gun,
Put down the gun,
Put down your gun,
Put down your gun,
And we’ll talk.
Now your friends all throw their lives away,
Just making the rounds,
And they can’t tell the difference
Between the shepherds and the clowns,
That go knocking down doors,
By the roadside every day,
Selling something you don’t want,
For a price you don’t want to pay.
So put down the gun,
Put down the gun,
Put down your gun,
You can put down the gun,
Put down the gun,
Put down your gun.
Well it’s a lonely road you’ve travelled,
That’s led you to this wall,
It’s a road that’s come unravelled,
Like it ain’t no road at all.
So put down the gun,
Put down the gun,
Put down your gun,
Put down your gun,
And we’ll talk.
Now l don’t want to swear it,
But it’s something that l heard,
A gun in the first act,
Always goes off in the third.
Now l don’t want to hurt you,
I don’t want to fight.
But there’ll be no third act at all,
If someone’s killed tonight.
Put down the gun,
Put down the gun,
Put down your gun,
You can put down the gun,
Put down the gun,
Put down your gun,
And we’ll talk.
Peter Case