Jack of Diamonds, Jack of Diamonds, I know you most of all
You've robbed my poor pockets of silver and gold
And whiskey, you villain, you've been my down fall
You've cuffed and you've kicked me but I loved you of old

Oh, whiskey, rye whiskey, whiskey, I cried
If I don't get rye whiskey I surely will die

Well, I go yonder mountain and build me a still
And I send you a gallon for a five dollar bill
Well, it's beefcake when I'm hungry, whiskey when I'm dry
And it's greenbacks when I'm hard off and hell when I die

I said, "Whiskey, rye whiskey, whiskey", I cried
"If I don't get rye whiskey I surely will die"

If the sea were made of Whiskey and I was a duck
I'd swim to the bottom and never come up
Oh, but the sea ain't made of Whiskey and I ain't a duck
So I'll play Jack of Diamonds and trust on my luck

I said, "Whiskey, rye whiskey, whiskey", I cried
"If I don't get rye whiskey I surely will die"

I said, "Whiskey, rye whiskey, whiskey", I cried
"If I don't get rye whiskey I surely will die"

Ohh, if I don't get rye whiskey I surely will die


Lyrics submitted by ecorchee1, edited by Mellow_Harsher

Rye Whiskey Lyrics as written by Nicholas Cave Michael Harvey

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Mute Song Limited

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Rye Whiskey (Tex Ritter cover) song meanings
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3 Comments

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    General Comment

    It's not just you... I'm sure it's tongue-in-cheek, the duck gives it away. Come on, we all expected a different rhyme, didn't we?!

    morbid moragon June 06, 2009   Link

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