I am a reckless highway man,

Cole Younger is my name

My crimes and depredations

Have brought my life to shame

For the robbing of a Northfield bank,

That I can't deny

Now I'm here in prison, in Stillwater jail I lie

It's of a bold high robbery,

A story I will tell

Of a California miner

Whose fate to us befell

We robbed him of his money and then

Bade him go his way

For that I will be sorry until my dying day

Then we rode toward Texas,

That good old Lone Star state

On Nebraska's praries

The James boys we did meet

We saddled up our horses

And northward we did ride

Into Minnesota, our six guns at our sides

My eye was on the Northfield bank

And Brother Bob did say

"If we undertake the job

We'll surely curse the day"

But we stationed out our pickets

And up to the bank did go

It was there upon the counter

We struck our fatal blow

But the cashier, being brave and bold,

Denied our noted band

Jesse James fired the shot

That killed that noble man

In vain, we searched the money drawers

While the battle raged outside

Until we saw our safety was

A quick and desperate ride

So come on boys and ride for life

There's hundreds on our trail

We soon were overtaken

And landed right in jail

In Stillwater jail I lie

Wearing my life away

Let Frank and Jesse tell the tale

Of that sad, eventful day

I am a reckless highway man,

Cole Younger is my name