F oggy San Francisco two t housand miles from h ome
Chasing after a lady I'd l ike to call my own
I've been o ut of work since I left my job on the B ar-K cattle ranch
Where my m amma cried "Think it o ver son bef ore you take a c hance."
And lord I sure do miss the folks and a ll those friends of m ine
The city's pretty lonely when a m an's just killing time
The p eople never stop to talk or l ook you in the eye
And the b uildings there they g row so tall they c over up the s ky
But I w ent for a job the other day the man l ooked me up and d own
He said "Y ou're a horse-riding cowboy who looks like he just hit t own
But i f you can swing a r ope I r eckon you can ring a b ell
And if a b ucking bronc can't t hrow you off youâ??ll hold the curves as well
W ell I didn't know what he was getting at 'til he t ook me to this b arn
A great big place with high brick walls not like d own on the farm
Ins tead of hay and horses it had c ement steel and tar
He said "H op on board and l et me see if y ou can drive a cable c ar"
Well it l ooked like a little house with w indows all ar ound
A l ittle room set on the back and steps down to the g round
A r oof and a porch and b enches and w heels set on a t rack
I'd n ever seen such a d oggone thing but I d idn't tell him t hat
So m amma don't you w orry things are r eally going f ine
I'm w orking now as a b rakeman on the C alifornia Line
And the f olks are mighty friendly when they h op on for a r ide
And w hen it's cold and r ainy my lady l oves to ride ins ide
You can say I'm still a cowboy it's just a d ifferent horse I r ide
I round up strays on the city streets and I s pend my days outside
These h ills of San Francisco are my o wn West Texas plains
And r inging a bell is like s inging to those d ogies on the r ange
