The first time i saw carrie brown
She was so young and fair
A voice like spring rain fallin' down and sunlight in her hair
I'd never seen her face before so i asked all around
Her daddy owns a grocery store and she lives in bristol town

Carrie darlin' carrie carrie brown i cry
If i can't marry carrie brown believe i'd rather die

I laid my last ten dollars down
Though i didn't need a thing
Just to touch sweet carrie brown
When she handed me my change
I hung around
My darlin' walkin' arm in arm
With a boy named billy wise

I walked around in bristol town a bitter broken man
A heart that pined for carrie brown and a pistol in my hand
We met again on state street poor billy wise and me
I shot him in virginia and he died in tennessee

Now i'm down in the bristol jail and all i do is cry

I'm just a poor young mountain boy
Ain't never been to town
And i've come to ruination for the love of carrie brown