Author: Jim

Let the Gates Swing Wide

Jim,

—Bill Monroe

We go to church on Sunday morning
With mother and dad to hear the Gospel ring
On an old dirt road in a wagon we travel
Those memories they still remain

Chorus:
I'm comin' home, oh Lord I'm comin
For my soul has been set free
All through my life I've been a sinner
But let the gates swing wide for me

Back in the hills of old Kentucky
Where as a boy I was grown
And bluegrass music belongs to America
And praise the Lord, I'm comin'home

All through the years I've sung the Gospel
The Lord has blessed me many ways
I often think back to my childhood
While here on earth I'll sing His praise

Chorus and Verse:

I I I V
I I I-V I

 

Legend of the Blue Ridge Mountains

Jim,

—Bill Monroe

There's a legend in the Blue Ridge Mountains
All the mountain folks say it is true
Of a young girl nearly every evening
Walked along the river dressed in blue.

She was on her way to meet her lover
In a lonely secret rendezvous
It was a fatal error that evening
For the young girl always dressed in blue.

Chorus (after 2 verses):
The legend of the Blue Ridge Mountains
Will live forever so they say
And every evening about sundown
She leaves her cold, cold water grave

Some say she left with her lover
Others say the river took her life
Is she now in the cold, cold river
Or is she now her lover's wife

As the legend goes that every evening
When the evening sun is sinking low
The girl in blue still meets her lover
As she did a hundred years ago

Verse

I-V I I-V I
I-V I I-V I

Chorus

IV I I V
I-V I V I

 

Just a Song of Old Kentucky

Jim,

—Bill and Charlie Monroe

Just a song of old Kentucky
Seems to linger in my memory
Await at home in old Kentucky
And a happy day that used to be

Songbirds up in the heavens
Sang this melody
Await at home in old Kentucky
And a happy day that used to be

3/4
Verse

|: I IV V I-V
I IV V I :|

Chorus

IV I I V
I IV V I

 

In Despair

Jim,

—Bill Monroe

You made me love you, you made me want you
And now I need you all the time
My heart is sad and I'm so lonely
Each night and day you're on my mind

Chorus:
You broke me heart my little darling
When I called for you, you had another there
But a broken heart will keep on crying
I know you know, I'm in despair

You made me forget of all the others
You made me forget of all the past
And I thought sweetheart you really loved me
My friends told me it would never last

Verse

I I IV I
I I I-V I

Chorus

IV I I V
IV I I-V I

 

I'm Coming Back But I Don't Know When

Jim,

—Bill Monroe

Chorus:
I'm going down this lonesome road
To see my fate or victory
God must help us there to win
I'm coming back but I don't know when

I hate to leave my mother dear
My father who is old and gray
But my true love I know you'll wait
For me to come back to me to stay

Will you be here when I come home
Or will your love fade like a rose
I could never come back should you be gone
My love for you nobody knows

Chorus and Verse:

I IV V I
I IV V I

 

I'm Travelin' On and On

Jim,

—Bill Monroe

Oh, I was lost in the darkness and I wandered astray
With no one to help me along on my way
Until I heard Jesus callin', sayin' come unto me
And I'm travelin' on and on

Chorus:
Oh Lord, I'm travelin' on by the help of my Savior
I can never astray for Jesus leads the way
And my loved one's awaitin' at the end of my journey, my journey
Oh Lord, I'm travelin' on and on

Oh, I could hear Jesus callin' and His voice sounds so sweet
And I knew that the time would come to me that He'd speak
But these trials are over for He bid me, come home
Now I'm travelin' on and on

Oh, the Lord is my savior I will walk with Him each day
He will help and protect me to the end of the way
My journey soon will be over and I'll join a happy band
Now I'm travelin' on and on

Verse

I I I V
I I I-V I

Chorus

IV I I II
I I… …I-V I

 

I'm On My Way Back To The Old Home

Jim,

—Bill Monroe

Back in the days of my childhood
In the evening when everything was still
I used to sit and listen to the foxhounds
With my dad in the old Kentucky hills

Chorus:
I'm on my way back to the old home
The road winds on up the hill
But there's no light in the window
That shined long ago where I live

Soon my childhood days were over
I had to leave my old home
For dad and mother were called to heaven
I's left in this world all alone

High in the hills of old Kentucky
Stands the fondest spot in my memory
I'm on my way back to the old home
The light in the window I long to see

Verse

I I IV IV
I I V V
I I IV IV
I V I I

 

I'm Old Kentucky Bound

Jim,

—Charlie Monroe

Somewhere among the hills of old Kentucky
There's two old folks I love with all my heart
They're praying for their boyS to come back safely
And never no more from them depart

Chorus:
There's a little sweetheart waiting for her darling
With her heart all filled with love divine
I long to hold her in my arms and kiss her
So tonight I'm old Kentucky bound

In summer when the birds are singing sweetly
And pretty flowers blooming all around
I love to climb that dear old rocky mountain
So tonight I'm old Kentucky bound

I'll soon be with the ones I love so dearly
Oh, how I wish I had them with me now
They'll greet me when I reach that little cabin
For tonight I'm old Kentucky bound

Verse

I V V I
I V V I

Chorus

IV I I V
I V V I

 

I Want to Go With You

Jim,

—Bill Monroe

I'm beggin'to you and I want to go with you
You're breakin' my heart as you say goodbye
I hope and I pray we'll soon be together
My heart is so full It's hard not to cry

What will I do when the leaves start fallin
The far distant hill will make me feel blue
So the flowers will die, dont't let love die with them
And with you gone, dear what will I do

Your sweet ruby lips and hair like an angel
And your mournful eyes, they keep haunting me
But to know that you're mine, it makes life worth living
Oh the times gone by are sweet memories

I'm trustin'in you but each hour seems longer
I'm counting the days when I'll be with you
Our hearts are entwined, their place with the future
A safe journey home I'm waiting for you

3/4
Verse

I I I I
I I V V
I I I I
I I-V I I

 

I Hope You've Learned

Jim,

—Bill Monroe

I've been away for just a year
Have you forgotten me my dear
The judge said I must pay the cost
I never knew how much I lost

Chorus:
Until they send me far away
Where each minute seems a day
But maybe someday I'll be free
Will you be waiting there for me

I'm in this cell because of you
The crime I did you drove me too
My jealous heart just could not stand
To see you with another man

I hope someday that you will learn
And broken hearted you return
But listen darlin'please don't wait
For maybe then will be too late

Verse

I I I V
I I V I

Chorus

IV I I V
I I V I