I am standing on the gallows
In a winter rain
But I am light as a sparrow
'Cause I'm on my way
I am standing on the gallows
And the people push and curse and gather in a ring
Like the ranks of hell their numbers swell
They come to watch somebody swing
I am standing on the gallows
It's a winter day
But I am light as a sparrow
'Cause I'm on my way
The hangman is a doctor's son
He's kept a list of those who died
But in his darkened home
When he's all alone
There's a glistening in his eyes
And he is standing on the gallows
In his heavy gloves
Staring straight as an arrow
Into the sky above
He sees a river of blood in the clouds
I see a ladder, my love, reaching down