The Devil Wore a White Hat

The Devil Wore a White Hat [Verse 1] He came riding into town On a horse the color of snow Had a Bible in his saddlebag And nowhere he had to go He shook hands with the sheriff Bought the preacher’s Sunday meal Had a smile like salvation And a pocket full of deals [Pre-Chorus] He talked about tomorrow Like he’d seen it with his eyes Said, “Son, I know a shortcut To the other side” I was young enough to follow And too proud to ask him why By the time I saw the smoke He was already riding by [Chorus] The devil wore a white hat White hat, clean as the driven snow He talked like an angel Everywhere an angel ought to go Yeah, the devil wore a white hat And everybody called him good He looked just like the hero Till he got everything he could [Verse 2] He bought the old man’s farm For a fraction of its worth Put a fence around the water Then he poisoned all the dirt He gave the school a thousand dollars Had his name carved in the stone Then he bought the courthouse judge And made the whole town his own [Pre-Chorus] My daddy saw it coming Said, “Boy, don’t trust that man” I said, “Everybody loves him” Daddy said, “That’s how it began” Some wolves don’t show their teeth Some snakes don’t have to crawl Sometimes evil wears a Sunday suit And smiles while kingdoms fall [Chorus] The devil wore a white hat White hat, clean as the driven snow He talked like an angel Everywhere an angel ought to go Yeah, the devil wore a white hat And everybody called him good He looked just like the hero Till he got everything he could [Bridge] Years went by and I grew older And the town began to change The church lost half its people And the river lost its name One morning I found that white hat Hanging on my father’s door And underneath it in red letters Was a note that simply said— “You ain’t seen nothing yet.” [Instrumental Break] [Final Chorus] The devil wore a white hat White hat, clean as the driven snow He talked like an angel But I finally learned to know Yeah, the devil wore a white hat And we let him through the gate We called him a good man While he taught us how to hate The devil wore a white hat Lord, he looked so good in white Funny how the darkest shadows Can hide in broad daylight [Outro] So if a stranger comes smiling With a halo in his hand Don’t judge him by his white hat Judge him by what he leaves behind The devil wore a white hat… And nobody saw the horns.