by S. Silverstien

My daddy left home when I was three And he didn't leave much to ma and me Just this old

guitar and an empty bottle of booze. Now, I don't blame him cause he run and hid But the

meanest thing that he ever did Was before he left, he went and named me ``Sue."

Well, he must o' thought that is was quite a joke And it got a lot of laughs from a' lots of folk,

It seems I had to fight my whole life through. Some gal would giggle and I'd get red And

some guy'd laugh and I'd bust his head, I tell ya, life ain't easy for a boy named ``Sue.''

Well, I grew up quick and I grew up mean, My fist got hard and my wits got keen, I'd roam

from town to town to hide my shame. But I made me a vow to the moon and stars That I'd

search the honky-tonks and bars And kill that man that give me that awful name.

Well, it was Gatlinburg in mid-July And I just hit town and my throat was dry, I thought I'd

stop and have myself a brew. At an old saloon on a street of mud, There at a table, dealing

stud, Sat the dirty, mangy dog that named me ``Sue.''

Well, I knew that snake was my own sweet dad from a worn-out picture that my mother'd

had, And I knew that scar on his cheek and his evil eye. He was big and bent and gray and

old, And I looked at him and my blood ran cold

And I said: ``My name is `Sue!' How do you

do! Now you gonna die!!''

Well, I hit him hard right between the eyes And he went down but, to my surprise, He come

up with a knife and cut off a piece of my ear. But I busted a chair right across his teeth And

we crashed through the wall and into the street Kicking and a' gouging in the mud and the

blood and the beer.

I tell ya, I've fought tougher men But I really can't remember when, He kicked like a mule

and he bit like a crocodile. I heard him laugh and then I heard him cuss, He went for his gun

and I pulled mine first, He stood there lookin' at me and I saw him smile.

And he said: ``Son, this world is rough And if a man's gonna make it, he's gotta be tough

And I know I wouldn't be there to help ya along. So I give ya that name and I said goodbye I

knew you'd have to get tough or die And it's that name that helped to make you strong.''

He said: ``Now you just fought one hell of a fight And I know you hate me, and you got the

right To kill me now, and I wouldn't blame you if you do. But ya ought to thank me, before I

die, For the gravel in ya guts and the spit in ya eye

Cause I'm the son-of-a-bitch that named

you `Sue.'''

I got all choked up and I threw down my gun And I called him my pa, and he called me his

son, And I come away with a different point of view. And I think about him, now and then,

Every time I try and every time I win, And if I ever have a son, I think I'm gonna name him

Bill or George! Anything but Sue! I still hate that name!