There’s a cowboy feel to Jim’s choice of prompts for Song Lyric Sunday this week, and as he’s already quite rightly exercised his droit du seigneur and will write about what was my first choice, ‘Me And My Uncle”, I’ve cast my net a little further afield, while still respecting the prompt.
In much the same way that Dylan’s ‘All Along The Watchtower’ is now much more closely associated with him, Jimi Hendrix pretty much owns this song by Billy Roberts.
Hey Joe, where you goin’ with that gun in your hand?
Hey Joe, I said where you goin’ with that gun in your hand?
I’m goin’ down to shoot my old lady,
you know I caught her messin’ ’round with another man.
Yeah! I’m goin’ down to shoot my old lady,
you know I caught her messin’ ’round with another man.
Huh! And that ain’t too cool.
Uh, hey Joe, I heard you shot your woman down,
you shot her down.
Uh, hey Joe, I heard you shot you old lady down,
you shot her down to the ground. Yeah!
Yes, I did, I shot her,
you know I caught her messin’ ’round,
messin’ ’round town.
Uh, yes I did, I shot her
you know I caught my old lady messin’ ’round town.
And I gave her the gun and I shot her!
Alright
Shoot her one more time again, baby!
Yeah.
(Hey Joe!)
Ah, dig it!
(Joe where you gonna go?)
Oh, alright.
Hey Joe, said now,
uh, where you gonna run to now, where you gonna run to?
(where you gonna go?)
Hey Joe, I said,
where you goin’ to run
to now, where you, where you gonna go?
Well, dig it!
I’m goin’ way down south, way down south,
way down south to Mexico way! Alright!
I’m goin’ way down south,
way down where I can be free!
Ain’t no one gonna find me babe!
Ain’t no hangman gonna,
he ain’t gonna put a rope around me!
You better believe it right now!
I gotta go now!
Hey, hey, hey Joe,
you better run on down!
Goodbye everybody. Ow!
Hey, hey Joe, what’d I say,
run on down.
(where you gonna go?)
Written by Billy Roberts
the only deadhead in the hameau 
I used to hang out at this bar when I was younger that was owned by a man named Joe and I used to enjoy saying “He Joe” to him. Great song thanks for adding it. Nobody can play guitar behind their back like Hendrix.
Wow never knew Hey Joe wasn’t written by Hendrix. I remember the first time I heard it how “revolutionary” it seemed to me as a kid. Good choice for the prompt, Deadhead.
Good one!
A classic tune. A West Coast band named Love (it was the ’60’s, okay?) did a pretty good cover of it.