

Prompt / Lyrics
Leader: Handsome Pete wore silk and a diamond ring! Group: Swing that hammer, break that stone! Leader: He had the judges dancing on a golden string! Group: Swing that hammer, break that stone! Leader: He drank his gin from a crystal cup! Group: Lord, it’s a long way down when you’re looking up! Leader: He never thought the law would catch his scent! Group: Now he’s paying back every cent he spent! Leader: Oh, Pete, he was the king of the North Side docks! Group: Now he’s making little ones out of big-sized rocks! Leader: He used to order hits with a silver cane! Group: Now he’s just a link in a rusty chain! Leader: The warden told Pete, "You’re a pretty sight!" Group: But your suit’s got stripes and it fits too tight! Leader: You used to run the rackets and the gambling play! Group: Now you’re digging ditches in the Georgia clay! Leader: He looks for his crew in the morning mist! Group: But there ain’t no shooters on the warden’s list! Leader: His boys all turned or they’re in the ground! Group: And there’s no one left to buy his way out of town! Leader: So swing it high and swing it down low! Group: Handsome Pete has got nowhere to go! Leader: The sun’s going down on a broken man! Group: Working off a life on the installment plan
Tags
Rhythmic chain gang work song, heavy hammer strikes, deep male call and response, gravelly blues, stomp and holler
1:29
No
2/5/2026