tommy brown lyrics

All my life I knew Tommy Brown
We grew up together in the same hometown
I never thought Tommy was such a bad guy
But folks would always whispered when he walked by

Tom, Tom, Tommy Brown meanest boy in all the town
Everybody said he'd turned out bad
They said he had stole and I guess he had
But nobody offered him a helping hand
They just went and said over again

Oh Tom, Tom, Tommy Brown meanest boy in all the town
I loved a girl named Betty Lou strange thing was Tom loved her too
She was kind to him and seemed to understand
That if somebody loved him he could be a man

The three of us were the best of friends
And stuck together through thick and thin
But we all knew that the time would come
She'd have to choose between me and Tom

Oh Tom, Tom, Tommy Brown meanest boy in all the town
Then came Pearl Harbor and the war was on
I answered the call and so did Tom
When we laughed at Betty we would plainly see
She had made her choice and the guy was me

We landed in Hadley the fighting was hard
Many were dying and the rest were tired
Every man there gave his very best
But who was the one that I'd fought to rest

Tom, Tom, Tommy Brown bravest boy in all the town
We were both in a fox hole the bullets were flying
When an enemy soldier slipped up behind
He aimed at me but Tom acted fast
He jumped between and I heard the blast

I got the soldier too late I could see
'Cause Tom stopped the bullet that was meant for me
His body crumpled the smoke cleared away
And it seemed to me he had a smile on his face

So Tom, Tom, Tommy Brown bravest boy in all the town
We buried him there and left across the sea
Where I wrote these words he died for me
And nobody knew but the one of us he died to save the boy she loved
Tom, Tom, Tommy Brown bravest boy in all the town
Tom, Tom, Tommy Brown bravest boy in all the town