Jimmy Stokes came from Alabam'
With just the shirt on his back
But with a big determination
To make it big and never come back
He said goodbye to his girl Sue
And left the farm to see what he could do
Came east to the big, hard city
Saw the sights, Lord have pity
Every move he made seemed to be right
Made some good friends, he became tight
Always played it cool, he was never a bore
Kept his eyes open always knowin' the score
He waited for his break and took his prize
And as you would assume, he was on the rise
And with a little help from his friends
Jimmy became a business head
Now Jimmy Stokes, he was selling cokes
And all the pretty ladies in town
He ran his business and was discreet
Paid every cop on his beat
He rides a big, custom-tone, purple Cadillac
With his name written on the back
If you can't get it and you don't know
All you have to do is ask Jimmy Stokes
Pretty soon, power went to his head
He started to treat his friends bad
One night while a big bash at his pad
A knock on the door, the F.B.I. said
"Come on Jimmy let's go back to Alabama
With a ball and chain, doin' time in the hole
Tou are on the chain gang
Come on, Jimmy"