This classic rock staple tells the story of a man who has committed associated theft and is heading to the gallows to die. Enclosed in the lyrics are a letter to his mother.
This song was written by Tommy Shaw, who also sang lead vocals, while James Young supplied the guitar solo.
"It's one of those songs that kind of wrote itself," Tommy Shaw explained in an ESPN interview. "I was in my house in Michigan, 1978, at the piano. I came up with this slow, dirge-y thing, very dark. I just started singing, and those are the first words that came out ('Oh, mama I'm in fear for my life...'). I've never been in trouble with the law - I don't know where it came from."
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