The Night Billy Died

[Intro – Spoken, Low and Weathered, guitar tuning under it] Son stepped up on the old worn down porch, I was sitting on a rocker with my head bowed down. He pulled up a seat and took a deep breath, then said "alright then... tell me what happened. I said "it was a hot July night in Fort Sumner… Moon hanging low over the town I was just a young man then in New Mexico… 1881. I was there that night. And I've never forgotten what I saw. [Guitar settles and music starts] [Verse 1] It was hot that night in Fort Sumner town, Dust on the street, moon coming down. I was seventeen, just passing through, When a young outlaw stepped into my view. Hat pulled low, walking slow, Didn't look like the legend they told. Billy the Kid with a tired man's eyes, Didn't look like a killer that night. [Pre-Chorus] Then the whole place went quiet, Like the desert held its breath. I didn't know I was watching A young man's final steps. [Chorus] I saw Billy the Kid that night, Underneath that New Mexico sky. He walked through the darkness, Never knowing why His name would live forever After that final ride. Yeah, I saw Billy the Kid that night, And I still see him when the moon gets high. [Verse 2] Well, I heard those footsteps coming down the hall, One little sound, then nothing at all. A flash in the darkness broke the still, And the legend fell silent against his will. No grand goodbye, no words left to say, Just another young soul taken away. The world moved on when the morning came, But the desert remembered his name. [Pre-Chorus] And I swear that old wind Still carries his cry, Across those cottonwoods On a cold moonlit night. [Chorus] I saw Billy the Kid that night, Underneath that New Mexico sky. He walked through the darkness, Never knowing why His name would live forever After that final ride. Yeah, I saw Billy the Kid that night, And I still see him when the moon gets high. [Bridge – Half Spoken / Country-Rap] They made him a legend, They made him a ghost, Some say he was evil, Some say he was lost. But I saw a young man With the weight of the world, Before history turned him Into Billy the Kid. And that's the part They never write down— The boy underneath The legend they crowned. [Final Chorus – Full, Soulful] I saw Billy the Kid that night, Underneath that New Mexico sky. One last shadow, one last ride, Then the legend disappeared into the night. They can tell their stories, They can say what they like, But I was there when Billy Stepped into the night. Yeah, I saw Billy the Kid that night, And I still see him When the moon gets high. [Outro – Spoken] Some legends die young… But heroes never die. [Music fades]