I See Hawks in L.A. - Byrd From West Virginia

Born in Carolina to a family of miners
The flu of 1918 took his mother away
He couldn't go to college, it was the depths of the Depression
The valedictorian pumped gasoline instead

He found himself a sweetheart
In Irma Ora James
The coal miner's daughter with the odd middle name
He labored in the shipyards during World War II
Welding Liberties and Victories
For me and for you

Byrd from West Virginia
Byrd from West Virginia
Byrd from West Virginia Senator Byrd

He burned the cross of Jesus in the West Virginia night
The darkness of America blinded his sight
Baptized in the blood of our national sin
The ghosts of the Conquest rise again and again

As a young man in Congress
He studied law at night
For ten long years he burned a different light
Presented with his J.D. by John Fitzgerald Kennedy
Just before the young president
Was escorted into history

Byrd from West Virginia
Byrd from West Virginia
Byrd from West Virginia Senator Byrd

Fifty years in Washington just passed before his eyes
The building of the empire, its burdens and delights
Did the suffering of the world or the folly of the day
Change a stubborn old heart to see a better way?

And when a reckless new President came calling for war
Old Byrd from West Virginia
Sang out the score:
"The doctrine of pre-emption is radical and deadly"

Now who will sing the song when this bird flies away
Vanished o'er the hillside
It's the end of the day

Byrd from West Virginia
Byrd from West Virginia
Byrd from West Virginia Senator Byrd
A lone voice a cryin'
A lone voice a cryin'
A lone voice a cryin'
Senator Byrd

Written by:
Paul Lacques, Robert James Waller

Publisher:
Lyrics © O/B/O DistroKid

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