Not to be confused with The Sweet’s classic 1974 hit of the same name, this bluegrass gem was definitively recorded by The Country Gentleman in 1970 and has gone on to become a classic of the genre, covered by a multitude of bands.

Surprisingly, the song was written for Manfred Mann’s Earth Band (“Blinded by the Light”) and hit the charts as a pop song in 1969. (Notably, author Tony Hazard was pissed when The Sweet released its song – “Some titles you just don’t use… Imagine if I wrote a song called ‘Imagine’ or ‘Mr. Tambourine Man,’” he said).

Check out the intriguing original version HERE.

But oblivious of the Manfred Mann take, I discovered the song on a bluegrass compilation album I found in the late ‘70s as I was simultaneously developing an interest in both the genre and its homeland, the Appalachian region of the US – Kentucky, Tennessee, the Virginias and Carolinas – two loves that remain to this day.

Videos of The Country Gentlemen from those days are sketchy so we offer this cover version from 2016 by a band called North Country.
– Mike

Lyrics

(Chorus)
She walks through the corn leadin’ down to the river
Her hair shone like gold in the hot morning sun
She took all the love that a poor boy could give her
And left me to die like a fox on the run
Like a fox, like a fox, like a fox, on the run

Now everybody knows the reason for my fall
When women tempted men down in paradise’s hall
This woman tempted me, and she took me for a ride
Like a lonely fox I need a place to hide

(Chorus)

We’ll drink a glass of wine to purify our soul
We’ll talk about the world and the friends we used to know
I see a string of girls who’ll put me on the floor
The game is nearly over and the hounds are at the door

(Chorus)