Jessie Clay And The 12:05

In a two room trailer down by the tracks on the edge of a Tennessee town

Jesse Clay lived with his lady and a one eyed Redbone hound

And every night at 12: 05 he'd hear that whistle whine

And Jesse knew the train from Chattanooga was comin' by on time

And we all knew old Jesse Clay got mean when he drank too much

And Jesse's lady wore the scars of his not too gentle touch

And Jesse knocked her down one night just for bustin' a bottle of gin

She hit her head when she hit the floor and she never got up again

Now Jesse Clay was crazy scared when he saw her lyin' still

He took his lady in his arms and he carried her up the hill

He's laid her down on a railroad track just an hour ahead of the train

And Jesse knew that soon the 12: 05 would take the blame

And then he went to town and he waited around till he thought the time was right

And he told the law how the 12: 05 had taken his lady's life

The sheriff just looked at Jesse hard, said you better tell the truth this time

Because the 12: 05 just jumped the track about 10 miles up the line

And no one knows what caused the train to leave the tracks that night

It never happened before or since but it served old Jesse right

You can still hear the train whistle whine as it passes by this way

But the 12: 05 won't ever take the blame for Jesse Clay

No, the 12: 05 won't ever take the blame for Jesse Clay