(THERE WAS A) TALL OAK TREE
(Dorsey Burnette)

Dorsey Burnette

Also recorded by: Gene McDaniels


There was a tall oak tree
That loved a babblin' brook,
And the babblin' brook
Loved the mountain high,
And the mountain high
Loved the sky above.
The Creator looked down
And saw everything was love, love, love.

Now, he took a bone
And a piece of mud --
He made a man and a woman
To be flesh and blood.
 
And then along came the devil
Up out of the ground --
He tempted the woman,
And that spread sin all ‘round, all ‘round, all ‘round.

Now, if she’d left that apple
On that apple tree,
There’d be no tears or sorrow,
We’d live eternally.

And then along came Man
And chopped the oak tree down
And now the babblin' brook
Is solid ground.
And now the mountain high
Don’t stand so high,
And there’s a cloud of smoke
That covers up the clear blue sky.

There was a tall oak tree,
There was a tall oak tree,
There was a tall oak tree.