G                        D7
I was born in Macon, Georgia
                          D7                        G
They kept my dad in the Macon jail
                G7                                 C
Dad said Son, if you keep your hands clean
G                                  D7                               G
You won't hear them bloodhounds on your trail

I fell in with bad companions
We robbed a man in Tennessee
The sheriff caught me way up in Nashville
They locked me up and threw away the key

                       G                           D7
I washed my hands in muddy water
                     D7                                             G
Washed my hands but they didn't come clean
              G7                    C
Tried to do like Daddy told me
         G                                    D7                           G
But I must have washed my hands in a muddy stream

Asked the jailor when's my time up
He said Son, we won't forget
And if you try to keep your hands clean
We may make a good man of you yet

I couldn't wait to do my sentence
I broke out of the Nashville jail
I just crossed.    the line of Georgia
And I can hear them bloodhounds on my trail

I washed my hands in muddy water
I washed my hands but they didn't come clean
Tried to do like Daddy told me
But I must have washed my hands in a muddy stream