It was the third of June, another sleepy, dusty, delta{1} day. delta day
I was out choppin' cotton an' and my brother was balin' hay. hay
An'And at dinner time we stopped an' and walked back to the house to eat. eat
An' mamaAnd Mama hollered at out the back door, "Y'all remember to wipe your feet." feet"
An' thenThen she said, "I got some news this mornin' from Choctaw Ridge{2}. Ridge
Today Billie Joe MacAllister McAllister jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge{3}." Bridge"
An' papaPapa said to mama Mama as he passed around the blackeyed peas, black-eyed peas
"Well, Billie Joe never had a lick of sense. Pass o' sense, pass the biscuits, please. please
There's five more acres in the lower forty{4} forty I've got to plow." plow"
An'And Mama said, "It said it was a shame about Billie Joe, anyhow. Joe anyhow
Seems like nothin' ever comes to no good up on Choctaw Ridge, Ridge
An'And now Billie Joe MacAllister's McAllister's jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge." Bridge
An' brotherBrother said he recollected when he an' and Tom an' and Billie Joe, Joe
Put a frog down my back at the Carroll County{5} pi'ture show. County picture show
An'And wasn't I talkin' to him after church last Sunday night? night
"I'llI'll have another piece o'apple pie. You know of apple pie, you know, it don't seem right, right
I saw him at the sawmill yesterday on Choctaw Ridge, Ridge
An'And now you tell me Billie Joe's jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge." Bridge
An'Mama said to me, "Chil', "Child what's happened to your appetite?
I'veI been cookin' all mornin' an' and you haven't touched a single bite. bite
That nice young preacher, preacher Brother Taylor, Taylor dropped by today. today
Said he'd be pleased to have dinner on Sunday. Oh, Sunday, oh by the way, way
He said he saw a girl that looked a lot like you up on Choctaw Ridge, Ridge
An'And she an' and Billie Joe was throwin' somethin' off the Tallahatchie Bridge."{6} Bridge"

A year has come an' and gone since we I heard the news 'bout Billie Joe. Joe
Brother married Becky Thompson, they bought a store in Tupelo{7}. Tupelo
There was a virus goin' 'round, round, papa caught it an' and he died last spring. spring
An'And now mama Mama doesn't seem to wanna want to do much of anything. anything
An' me,And me I spend a lot of time pickin' picking flowers up on Choctaw Ridge, Ridge
An'And drop them into the muddy water, water off the Tallahatchie Bridge. Bridge