[Verse 1]
Crickets are chirpin', the water is high
There's a soft cotton dress on the line hangin' dry
The window's wide open, African trees
Bent over backwards in a hurricane breeze

[Refrain]
Not a word, a goodbye, not even a note
She's gone with the man in the long black coat

[Verse 2]
Somebody seen him hangin' around
At the old dance hall on the outskirts of town
He looked into her eyes when she stopped him to ask
If he wanted to dance, he had a face like a mask

[Refrain]
Somebody said, from the Bible he quote
There was dust on the man in the long black coat

[Verse 3]
Preacher was talkin', there's a sermon he gave
He said every man's conscience is vile and depraved
You cannot depend on it to be your guide
When it's you who must keep it satisfied
[Refrain]
It ain't easy to swallow, it sticks in the throat
She gave her heart to the man in the long black coat

[Bridge]
One, two
There are no mistakes in life, some people say
It's true sometimes you can see it that way
People don't live or die, people just float
She gave her heart to the man in the long black coat

[Verse 4]
There's smoke on the water, it's been there since June
Tree trunks uprooted in the high crescent moon
Hear the pulse and vibrations and the rumblin' force
Somebody's out there beating on a dead horse

[Refrain]
She never said nothin', there was nothin' she wrote
She's gone with the man in the long black coat

[Outro]
She's gone with the man in the long black coat
She's gone
She's gone
Gone with the man in the long black coat
Gone with the man in the long black coat