The Byrds Chestnut Mare Lyrics

(Roger McGuinn/Jacques Levy)

Always alone,
never with a herd.
Prettiest mare I've ever seen,
You'll have to take my word..

I'm gonna' catch that horse if I can,
And when I do I'll give her my brand.

Well I was up on Stony Ridge,
after this chestnut mare.
I'd been chasin' her for weeks,
Oh, I'd catch a glimpse of her every once in a while,
Takin' her meal, or bathin
A fine lady.

This one day I happened to be real close to her,
I saw her standin' over there,
So I snuck up to her nice and easy,
And I got my rope out,
And I flung it in the air..

I'm gonna' catch that horse if I can
And when I do I'll give her my brand
And we'll be friends for life
She'll be just like a wife
I'm gonna' catch that horse if I can

Well I got her, and I'm pullin' on her,
she's pullin' back like a mule goin' up a ladder,
I take this chance and I jump up on her,
d___ed if I don't land right on top of her..
Well she takes off,
runnin' up on to that ridge,
Higher than I've ever been before.
She's runnin' along just fine,
till she stops,
Something spooked her,
It's a sidewinder, all coiled and ready to strike,
She doesn't know what to do for a second,
But then she jumps off the edge,
Me holding on..

Above the hills,
Higher than eagles were gliding.
Suspended in the sky.

Over the moon,
Straight for the sun we were riding,
My eyes were filled with light.

Behind us black walls,
Below us a bottomless canyon,
Floating with no sound...

Gulls far below,
Seemed to be suddenly rising,
Exploding all around..

I'm gonna' catch that horse if I can
And when I do I'll give her my brand
And we'll be friends for life
She'll be just like a wife
I'm gonna' catch that horse if I can

And we were falling down this crevice,
about a mile down I'd say.
I look down,
and I see this red thing below us.
Comin' up real fast,
and it's our reflection in a little pool of water,
About six feet wide, and one foot deep.
Crawling down right through it,
We hit and we splashed it dry,
That's when I lost my hold,
and she got away..

But I'm gonna' try to get her again some day..

I'm gonna' catch that horse if I can
And when I do I'll give her my brand
And we'll be friends for life
She'll be just like a wife
I'm gonna' catch that horse
I'm gonna' catch that horse
I'm gonna' catch that horse if I can
I'm gonna' catch that horse if I can