Lefty Frizzell Tells a Compelling Story on His Song “Long Black Veil”

How far would you go to protect a secret? Well, this Lefty Frizzell- track sheds light on the willingness of a person to die just to protect a secret. What kind of secret could make someone can sacrifice their life just to keep it hidden?

Read below and find out what Lefty Frizzell was talking about. 

Lefty Frizzell’s “Long Black Veil”

“Long Black Veil” narrates the story of a woman in a long black veil who visits someone’s grave. This symbolizes that whoever the man at the grave is, the woman loves him so much. Well, the story behind the song was actually a bit dark. It was about the news of a priest who was murdered, and the killer was never found out.

The songwriters Danny Dill and Marijohn Wilkin decided to put a spin into it. They made the song about a man being accused of murder. He did not speak up to exonerate himself because that would mean uncovering his secret. He was actually having an affair with his best friend’s wife, and he would like to keep it as a secret even if he dies. This is also why the long veiled woman kept visiting the grave.

Lyrics Breakdown

The story is very compelling because of the willingness of someone to go through things just to keep a secret. This Lefty Frizzell- track is very convincing because the case that they have built was so good. A man is on death row, but he does not want to save his life. This means that he would not want to break his best friend’s heart even if he already did. 

It all comes down to personal judgment on whether the man did what was right or wrong. He should have admitted to the affair, but I guess no one would want to punish himself for the sins he has committed. He chose death as an easy way to get out of the mess he made.

Listen to Lefty Frizzell’s track here:

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