[Verse 1]
She could dance that slow bandera
Shuffle to some cowboy hustle
How she made them trophy buckles shine, shine, shine
Wild-eyed and Mexican silvered
Tricking dumb old cousin Willard
Into thinking that he got her this time

[Chorus]
Hill country honky-tonking Rita Ballou
Every beer joint in town has played a fool for you
Backsliding barrel-riding Rita Ballou
Ain't a cowboy in Texas would not ride a bull for you

[Verse 2]
She's a rawhide rope and velvet mixture
Walking, talking Texas texture
High-timing barroom fixture kind of a girl
She's the queen of the cowboys
Look at old Willard grinning now, boys
You'd have thought there's less fools in this world
But there wasn't

[Chorus]
Hill country honky-tonking Rita Ballou
Every beer joint in town has played the fool for you
Backsliding barrel-riding Rita Ballou
Ain't a cowboy in Texas would not ride a bull for you
All right
[Guitar Solo]

[Bridge]
So good luck, Willard, and here's to ya
And here's to Rita and I hope she'll do ya right all night
Lord, I wished I was a fool in your jeans

[Chorus]
Hill country honky-tonking Rita Ballou
Every beer joint in town has played the fool for you
Backsliding barrel-riding Rita Ballou
Ain't a cowboy in Texas would not ride a bull for you

Hill country honky-tonking Rita Ballou
Every beer joint in town has played the fool for you
Backsliding barrel-riding Rita Ballou
There ain't a cowboy in Texas would not ride a bull for you