As a young man I was raised by men of the cloth   and I was tought to judge men equal and not to find their faults   until one day I witnessed a tragic thing   the men lay on the church steps, slain   and when the smoke cleared a tall man holstered his gun   the bright day ended and a cloud did cover the sun   I found hate in my heart that I'd never known before   I'll see this man hang and if that's the one thing that I know for sure      Silverado you'll hang by the hangman's tree   and you'll die in misery      His face remained in my eyes as I grew through the years   I practiced shooting every day while trying to hold back the tears   I travelled through Oklahoma and Texas to the Rio Grande   knowing when I met Silverado the Lord would steady my hand      Silverado you'll hang by the hangman's tree   and you'll die in misery      Then the day came I dreamed of for years   Silverado stood before me and my heart it pounded in fear   as he turned and saw my eyes he knew why I'd come   and without a flick of the eyes he went for his gun   and as I caused a fight tears come to my eyes   when he collapsed before me I dropped my gun an sighed      Silverado you'll hang by the hangman's tree   and you'll die in misery