I was saddle sore and weary
Riding silent through the night
Running from my life and the sleepy Rio Grande
Headed for the border with a posse on my trail
A bullet in my shoulder and a pistol in my hand
I’d robbed the bank in Hebronville
Things went wrong I had to kill a man standing in my way
I jumped on a horse rode out of town
With bullets raining all around
They got me, but at least I got away
And Mexico light’s shining like a diamond in the night
Gotta run like the devil or there’ll be hell to pay
Paradise is just beyond the river
And Comfort’s only 20 miles away
I don’t know why I did it
But I did it just the same
It may have been a mountain I just had to climb
It wasn’t for the money but it might have been for fame
A way to plant my footprints in the sands of time
But the blood is soaking down my shirt
I’m cold and tired, my shoulder hurts
I don’t know how much further I can go
And to hell with the sands of time, I just wanna plant these feet of mine
In the sun-baked sands of Mexico
And Mexico light’s shining like a diamond in the night
Gotta run like the devil or there’ll be hell to pay
Paradise is just beyond the river
And Comfort’s just a rifle shot away
I topped the hill and there’s the river
And the dim lights of Laredo
And I can hear my heartbeat Comfort’s just a mile away
Or is that hoofbeats in the distance? I gotta keep on goin’
Can’t take the time to catch my breath
Can’t even stop to pray
But my horse has run all he can run
The posse’s gaining here they come
Help me reach the land of the free
And I see a flash of lightning and I hear a clap of thunder
As the rocky earth comes spinning up to me
And Mexico lies waiting like a diamond in the night
Gotta run like the devil or there’ll be hell to pay
Paradise is just beyond the river
And Comfort’s only six feet away
And Comfort’s just a rifle shot away
Lyrics Submitted by Jerry Parnacott