Miles down in a holy town,
built amongst the trees,
preached a man named Pumpkin Brown
who could wash the sins from me.
Well he searched the ground
like a serpent hound
crawling through the weeds
And he combed the stills
and climbed the hills
for the good Lord's true indeed
He searched the ground
like a serpent hound
sifting through the brush
And they'd call his name
when the morning came
and he could not get enough
He was looking for the key
to the good Lord's mystery
Well he came down from a gospel town
way up in Tennessee
And he'd never pass a single chance
to call out and to preach
Well he had that spirit deep in him
and with those tongues he'd speak
He'd skip the aisles side
to side floating on his feet
The people came from miles around
and at the pulpit he was found
Shaken like thunder
while his words spit like fire
He was looking for the key
to the good lord's mystery
All right.
Well, the preacher screams
to the crowd around,
I'm gonna save your souls,
it's time to save your souls.
Well, they close their eyes
with their hands up high,
dancing with the moon
from side to side,
singing for the Lord and the devil,
do they treat?
Yeah, they close their eyes,
cast out their lies,
barking like dogs underneath the sky,
Shakin' and a -movin'
like God's holy feet
One night a soul around
saw the serpent bound
Stole the soul of Reverend John Brown
Sunk like a dagger right
through his veins
Lightnin' fast, man, it took his name
The Reverend tried to hide the pain
To the crowd did he refrain
I'm ready to go, I ain't afraid to die
Come on down from the holy sky
The people cried and they
gathered round
They fanned his brow with the
holy sounds
Showing love to this dignity
For of this life now he is free
He held the key to the
good lord's mystery
Well that's the tale of old
John Wayne Brown
And to the heavens he was duty bound
He cast out devils
and he spoke new tongues
He followed signs
and never played with guns
But this time things went a different way
And in the heavens this man'll stay
Fightin' with the devil,
castin' shadows on the ground
A whale in the heavens,
for he shall stay
Preachin' for the Lord
almost every day
Holdin' that box
and the sacred lock and key
Where the reverend, his wife,
and the good old Lord
makes three you