They powered up the city with hydro-electric
juice.

Now we got more electricity than we canever use.

They flooded out the hollow and all the folks
down there moved out, but they

got paid so there ain’t nothin’ else to think
about.

Some of them made their living cutting the timber
down, snaking it one log at

a time up the hill and into town. T.V.A. had a
way to clear it off real fast.

Lots of men and machinary, build a dam and drown
the rest.

Uncle Frank lived in a cabin down on Cedar Creek,
bought fifteen acres when he

got back home from overseas. Fifteen rocky acres,
figured noone else would

want, till all that backed up water had to have
some place to go.

Uncle Frank couldn’t read or write. Never held
down a job, or needed one in

his life. They assured him there’d be work for
him in town building cars. It’s

already going down.

The cars never came to town and the roads never
got built and the price of all

that power kept on going straight uphill. The
banks around the hollow sold for

lake-front property where Doctors, Lawyers, and
Musicians teach their kids to

waterski.

Uncle Frank couldn’t read or write so there was
no note or letter found where

he died. Just a rope around his neck and the
kitchen table turned on it’s side

lyrics by Mike Cooley / music by Drive-by
Truckers