Ballad of Johnny Black

from Hymns for the Hardened Heart by Brent Loveday

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lyrics

Ballad of Johnny Black

June June gunned down Johnny Black.
Shot him in the back over a 1/4oz. sack.
A hot summer night hosted that heinous attack.
June June, Johnny raised you from a little whipper snap.
He bounced you as a baby on his long-legged lap.
You’re a Judas and a Brutus, dancing on a gallow’s trap.

Well, June June went down to Miami PD.
That’s where he told those homo-cides, “it sure wasn’t me.
I was sleeping in my bed by 12:30...
And before that I had spent all night watching TV.
And for Johnny Black, I would’ve parted the sea.
You’ve got no motive or a weapon, so go on and set me free.”

But that detective knew something June June didn’t know.
He left the room and came back with his ace in the hole.
He said, “that weed you fronted Johnny is a debt you now owe.
And the dealer you’ve been pushing for has already rolled.
You can sort it out while you wait on Death Row.
Let the record show you killed Johnny Black and not John Doe.”

credits

from Hymns for the Hardened Heart, released October 7, 2018
Brent Loveday… vocals and guitar
Andy Bercaw… bass guitar
Mark William Raynes… drums and percussion
Jeremy Lawton… pedal steel guitar, organ
Johnny “Reno” Smith… backing vocals, tambourine

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Brent Loveday Denver, Colorado

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