Lyrics to
Gallows Pole

This version of Gallows Pole was released by Led Zeppelin in 1970.

Our About Led Zeppelin page at Decade Lyrics includes the lyrics for Gallows Pole from 1970 as well as all of the other lyrics from Led Zeppelin that we have in our lyrics database.

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Hangman, hangman, hold it a little while,
Think I see my friends coming, Riding a many mile.
Friends, did you get some silver?
Did you get a little gold?
What did you bring me, my dear friends, To keep me from the Gallows Pole?
What did you bring me to keep me from the Gallows Pole?

I couldn’t get no silver, I couldn’t get no gold,
You know that we’re too damn poor to keep you from the Gallows Pole.
Hangman, hangman, hold it a little while,
I think I see my brother coming, riding a many mile.
Brother, did you get me some silver?
Did you get a little gold?
What did you bring me, my brother, to keep me from the Gallows Pole?

Brother, I brought you some silver,
I brought a little gold, I brought a little of everything
To keep you from the Gallows Pole.
Yes, I brought you to keep you from the Gallows Pole.

Hangman, hangman, turn your head awhile,
I think I see my sister coming, riding a many mile, mile, mile.
Sister, I implore you, take him by the hand,
Take him to some shady bower, save me from the wrath of this man,
Please take him, save me from the wrath of this man, man.

Hangman, hangman, upon your face a smile,
Pray tell me that I’m free to ride,
Ride for many mile, mile, mile.

Oh, yes, you got a fine sister, She warmed my blood from cold,
Brought my blood to boiling hot To keep you from the Gallows Pole,
Your brother brought me silver, Your sister warmed my soul,
But now I laugh and pull so hard And see you swinging on the Gallows Pole

Swingin’ on the gallows pole!

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Led Zeppelin has released many songs over the years besides Gallows Pole. Led Zeppelin released songs from 1969 to 1982 spanning across albums like Led Zeppelin I, Led Zeppelin II, Led Zeppelin III, Led Zeppelin IV, Houses Of The Holy, Physical Graffiti, Presence, In Through The Out Door, and Coda. Decade Lyrics has over lyrics & songs by Led Zeppelin.

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About Lyrics and Gallows Pole by Led Zeppelin

The lyrics for Gallows Pole are made up of the words, verses and background chorus for the popular 1970 song by Led Zeppelin. Like a lot of songs, the lyrics to Gallows Pole have both direct meanings and metaphorical context hidden within the song's words. All of the meanings are only truly known by the creators of the lyrics for Gallows Pole - Led Zeppelin and any of the writers who worked with them on the song.

If you have an interest in the structure of words and phrases, you can dissect the lyrics to Gallows Pole by Led Zeppelin in multiple ways. The word "lyric" itself derives from the Latin word lyricus, with the actual English word lyrics applied to the definition "words set to music" listed in Stainer and Barrett's 1876 Dictionary of Musical Terms. Continuing the chain, the Latin word lyricus derives from the Greek word λυρικός or lyrikós. This somewhat means "poetry accompanied by the lyre" or "words set to music." You can easily see that by looking at the background of the word lyric, that the "lyrics to Gallows Pole" means the words set to the music of Gallows Pole, or poetry accompanied by the lyre played by Led Zeppelin. The singular form "lyric" is still used to mean the complete words to a song. However, the singular form lyric is also commonly used to refer to a specific line (or phrase) within a song's lyrics. Hence, by this analysis of word structure, you could say that the lyric to Gallows Pole and the lyrics to Gallows Pole are both one and the same thing. None of this talk about the word Lyrics is really relevant to fans of Led Zeppelin who came here looking just for the lyrics to Gallows Pole, but we feel it is still fun to learn what's behind commonly used words and lyrics in songs.

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