Lyrics Polk Salad Annie - Tony Joe White

Now some of y'all never been down South too much
I'm gonna tell you a little bit about this
So that you'll understand what I'm talking about

Down there we have a plant that grows out in the woods and the fields
Looks somethin' like a turnip green
Everybody calls it polk salad
Polk salad, huh

Used to know a girl that lived down there
And she'd go out in the evenings and pick her a mess of it
Carry it home and cook it for supper
'Cause that's about all they had to eat
They did alright

Down in Louisiana
Where the alligators grow so mean
There lived a girl that I swear to the world
Made the alligators look tame

Polk salad Annie, polk salad Annie
Everybody said it was a shame
'Cause her mama was working on a chain gang
A mean vicious woman, huh

Now, every day 'fore supper time
She'd go down by the truck patch
And pick her a mess o' polk salad
And carry it home in a tote sack

Polk salad Annie
The gators got your granny, chomp, chomp-chomp
Everybody said it was a shame
'Cause her mama was a-workin' on a chain gang
A wretched, spiteful, straight-razor totin' woman, he-he
Lord, have mercy, pick a mess of it

Huh
Her daddy was lazy and no count
Claimed he had a bad back
All her brothers were fit for
Was stealin' watermelons out of my truck patch

Polk salad Annie
The gators got your granny, woo-hoo
Everybody said it was a shame
'Cause her mama was a-working on a chain gang

Sock a little polk salad to me
You know I need a mean mess of it
Woo-ooh, good God
Ooh-oh-oh, oh, oh, ooh
Got to have me
Hey, love
Huh