In Oxford Mississippi

In Oxford, Mississippi

The past is always near

Conversations and brown liquor

Faulkner is still here

Alive and well, he roams the streets

He knows everyone he meets

Shakes their hands and beats retreat

Past the bookshops in the square

Hush, hush, no rush

Stand still and fall

Stand still and fall

In Oxford, Mississippi

The past is leading in

James Meredith walks through an open door

The reasons left uncertain

In the shadow of the daughters

Of the Confederacy

All will be explained when the Civil War ends finally

Hush, hush, there's no rush

Blowing to and fro

Blowing to and fro

In Oxford, Mississippi

The past must interrupt

A drunken man on horseback

Comes galloping through the smoke

Holding a grinning skeleton

Before him as he rides

He leans in from a past that's never far behind

Hush, hush, piles of dust

Stand still and see

Stand still and see

In Oxford, Mississippi

In Oxford, Mississippi

In Oxford, Mississippi

In Oxford, Mississippi

In Oxford, Mississippi

In Oxford, Mississippi