Branded Man
                    Merle Haggard

                                                                             
C                                  F              C
I'd like to hold my head up and be proud of who I am
                                G                                                                                 
But they won't let my secret go untold
  C                                      F         C
I paid the debt I owed them,but  they're still not satisfied
                  G              C                    
Now I'm a branded man out in the cold


C                                 F               C                     
When they let me out of prison, I held my head up high
C                                 G                     
Determined I would rise above the shame
       C                            F                  C                      
But no matter where I'm living, the black mark follows me
                   G            C   
I'm branded with a number on my name


Repeat verse 1


                                                                         
C                                        F              C
If I live to be a hundred, I guess I'll  never clear my name
                                    G 
'Cause everybody knows I've been in jail
   C                                     F                    C                   
No matter where I'm living , I've got to tell them where I've been
                           G           C               
Or they'll send me back to prison if I fail


Repeat verse 1

                  G              C                                   
Now I'm a branded man out in the cold