I'm full of pride and my heart feels good
Got news from my fam'ly up in the woods
At last I can go back where I belong
Sweated it all out for nine long years
Couldn't believe the voice in my ears
When the man saying "no hiding ,son"

So I left the only folks I had known
I was fifteen then, hardly grown
When they found me in the swamp face down in the mud
Couldn't get back and I couldn't go far
Said to myself stay right where you are
Done found yourself a ma and pa
Ev'rybody said the kid's no good

Come home johnny bride come home
Johnny bride come home
We're all wrong without you
How did we ever doubt you
He confessed to the killing
It's his role we had you filling
We didn't really mean to make you sad
But when you ran you made us think that you were twice as bad

I left the only folks I had known
I was fifteen then , hardly grown
When they found me in the swamp face down in the mud
Couldn't get back and I couldn't go far
Said to myself stay right where you are
Done found yourself a ma and pa
Ev'rybody said the kid's no good

Come home johnny bride come home
Johnny bride come home
We're all wrong without you
How did we ever doubt you
He confessed to the killing
It's his role we had you filling
We didn't really mean to make you sad
But when you ran you made us think that you were twice as bad

(repeat last verse and fade out about line 6)