Little jesse was a gambler, night and day He used crooked cards and dice He was a son of guy good hearted, but he had no soul Heart was hard and cold like ice Jesse was a wild reckless gambler He won a gang of change Altho' a many gambler's heart he led in pain When Jesse began to spend and loose his money He began to be blue, sad and all alone What broke jesse's heart while he was blue and all alone Sweet lorena packed up and gone The police walked up and they shot my friend jesse down Boys ya got to die someday He had a gang of gamblers and crapshooters at his bedside And here are the words he had to say I guess I ought to know Exactly how I's want to go How you wanna go, jesse? Eight crapshooters to be my pallbearers Let 'em be veiled down in black I want nine men going to the graveyard, buddy I want eight men coming back I want a gang of gamblers gathered 'round my coffin-side Crooked card printed on my hearse Don't say the crapshooters'll never grieve over me My life been a doggone curse Send poker players to the graveyard Dig my grave with the ace of spades I want twelve polices in my funeral march High sheriff blackjack, lead the parade I want the judge and solic'ter who jailed me fourteen times And a pair of dice in my shoes Let a deck of cards be my tombstone I got the dying crapshooter Sixteen real good crapshooters Sixteen bootleggers to sing a song I want sixteen racket men gamblin' Couple tend bar while I'm rollin' along He wanted twenty two womens outta the hampton hotel He wanted twenty six off-a south bell He wanted twenty nine women outta north atlanta Know little jesse didn't pass out so swell His head was aching, heart was thumping Little jesse went down bouncin' and jumpin' Folks, don't be standing 'round ol' jesse crying He wants everybody to do the charleston whiles hes dyin One foot up, and a toenail dragging Throw my friend jesse in the hoodoo wagon Come here mama with that can of booze (The dying crapshooter leavin the world) (The dying crapshooters Going down Slow!) I got the dyin’ crapshooter's blues The dyin’ crapshooter's blues!