Joan Baez The Night They Drove old Dixie Down Lyrics:
Virgil Caine is my name,
And I drove on the Danville Train.
Till so much cavalry came,
And tore up the tracks again.
In the winter of sixty-five,
We were hungry, just barely alive.
I took the train to Richmond, that fell.
It was a time I remember, oh, so well.

The night they drove Old Dixie down.
And all the bells were ringin'.
The night they drove Old Dixie down.
And all the people were singin'.
They went naaaaaa, na-na-na-na-naaaaaa
Na-na, na-na, na-na-na-na-naaaaaa.

Back with my wife in Tenessee,
And one day she said to me,
Virgil, quick come see,
There goes the Robert E. Lee.
Now, I don't mind, I'm choppin' wood,
And I don't care if the money's no good.
Just take what you need and leave the rest.
But they should never have taken the very best.

The night they drove Old Dixie down.
And all the bells were ringin'.
The night they drove Old Dixie down.
And all the people were singin'.
They went naaaaaa, na-na-na-na-naaaaaa
Na-na, na-na, na-na-na-na-naaaaaa.

Like my father before me,
I'm a working man.
And like my brother before me,
[ Find more Lyrics on http://mp3lyrics.org/9FR ]
I took a rebel stand.
Well, he was just 18, proud and brave,
But a yankee laid him in his grave.
I swear by the blood below my feet,
You can't raise the Caine back up.
When it's in defeat.

The night they drove Old Dixie down.
And all the bells were ringin'.
The night they drove Old Dixie down.
And all the people were singin'.
They went naaaaaa, na-na-na-na-naaaaaa
Na-na, na-na, na-na-na-na-naaaaaa.

[THE NIGHT THEY DROVE OLD DIXIE DOWN [1]
Written by: J. Robbie Robertson
Performed by: Joan Baez [1] -1970
Appears on: In Concert-1970, AM Gold: 1971 (Various Artists)-1990,
Imagine-1993, Ring Them Bells [Collectors Edition] -2007, et al.]

[1] The lyrics of this song tell of the last days of the American Civil
War and its aftermath. Confederate soldier Virgil Caine, who, "serves on
the Danville train," the main supply line into the Confederate capital
of Richmond, Virginia. General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia
is holding the line at the Siege of Petersburg. As part of the offensive
campaign, Union Army General George Stoneman's forces, "tore up the
track again." The siege lasted from June 1864 to April 1865, when both
Petersburg and Richmond fell, and Lee's troops were starving at the end,
"We were hungry/Just barely alive." Virgil relates and mourns the loss
of his brother, "He was just eighteen, proud and brave/But a Yankee laid
him in his grave." Virgil also tells of seeing Confederate General
Robert E. Lee after the war, whose passage is called to his attention by
his wife, "Virgil, quick, come see, there goes Robert E. Lee!" The
General was famed for his care for his men after the war was over.

[2] Originally recorded by The Band-1969. Other covers: Herbie Mann-1970,
Buck Owens-1970, John Denver-1970, Hugo Montenegro-1971, Skeeter
Davis-1972, Bob Dylan-1974, Johnny Cash-1974, Charlie Daniels-1980,
Tanya Tucker-1982, Jimmy Arnold-1983, Richie Havens-1990, Jerry Carcia
Band-1991, Big Country-1996, Swamp Boogie Queen-1998, Countdown
Singers-1999, Vikki Carr-2003, Hillside Singers-2004, The Allman
Brothers Band-2004, Jerry Garcia-2004, Professor Louis-2005, The
Bluegrass Alliance-2006, et al.]
Lyrics: The Night They Drove old Dixie Down, Joan Baez [end]