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Seven Curses Lyrics

Old Riley stole a stallion
But they caught him and they brought him back
And they laid him down in the jailhouse bound
With an iron chain around his neck

When Riley's daughter got a message
That her father was going to hang
She rode by night and came by morning
With gold and silver in her hand

When the judge saw Riley's daughter
His old eyes deepened in his head
Saying gold will never free your father
The price my dear is you instead

Well I'm as good as dead cried Riley
It's only you that he does crave
And my skin will surely crawl
If he touches you at all
Get on your horse and ride away

Oh father, you will surely die
If I don't take the chaance to try
And pay the price, I'll not take your advise
For that reason I will have to stay

The gollows shadows shook the evening
In the night the hound dog bayed
In the night the grounds was groaning
In the night the price was paid

The next morning she had awoken
To find that the judge had never spoken
She saw the hanging branch a-bending
She saw her father's body broken

These be seven curses on the judge so cruel
That one doctor cannot save him
That two healers cannot heal him
And that three eyes can never see him

That four ears cannot hear him
That five walls cannot hide him
That six beggars cannot buy him
And that seven deaths shall never kill him
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Cover art for Seven Curses lyrics by Bob Dylan

A little-known Dylan song from when he had more of a Guthrie-type feel. I think its excellent, it really says something about Dylan when he has hundreds of songs that everybody loves, but hundreds of other songs that nobody even nows, and probably still hundreds more that nobody even remembers.

Cover art for Seven Curses lyrics by Bob Dylan

I love this song. It's like this sweet sad little story. Luckily Bootlegs really help put his little known songs out there.

Cover art for Seven Curses lyrics by Bob Dylan

wow i've had this song for a while but there are so many songs this one never really got my attention until today. i was getting dressed with dylan on shuffle and i was like "what song is THAT?" such a simple sad story

Cover art for Seven Curses lyrics by Bob Dylan

really love this song. such a little treasure on the bootleg series.

the world really is missing fables and stories like this, albeit tragic.