My daddy left home when I was three
               And he didn't leave much to ma and me
               Just this old guitar and an empty bottle of booze.
               Now, I don't blame him cause he run and hid
               But the meanest thing that he ever did
               Was before he left, he went and named me "Sue."

               Well, he must o' thought that is quite a joke
               And it got a lot of laughs from a' lots of folk,
               It seems I had to fight my whole life through.
               Some gal would giggle and I'd get red
               And some guy'd laugh and I'd bust his head,
               I tell ya, life ain't easy for a boy named "Sue."

               Well, I grew up quick and I grew up mean,
               My fist got hard and my wits got keen,
               I'd roam from town to town to hide my shame.
               But I made a vow to the moon and stars
               That I'd search the honky-tonks and bars
               And kill that man who gave me that awful name.

               Well, it was Gatlinburg in mid-July
               And I just hit town and my throat was dry,
               I thought I'd stop and have myself a brew.
               At an old saloon on a street of mud,
               There at a table, dealing stud,
               Sat the dirty, mangy dog that named me "Sue."

               Well, I knew that snake was my own sweet dad
               From a worn-out picture that my mother'd had,
               And I knew that scar on his cheek and his evil eye.
               He was big and bent and gray and old,
               And I looked at him and my blood ran cold
               And I said: "My name is 'Sue!' How do you do!
               Now your gonna die!!"

               Well, I hit him hard right between the eyes
               And he went down, but to my surprise,
               He come up with a knife and cut off a piece of my ear.
               But I busted a chair right across his teeth
               And we crashed through the wall and into the street
               Kicking and a' gouging in the mud and the blood and the beer.

               I tell ya, I've fought tougher men
               But I really can't remember when,
               He kicked like a mule and he bit like a crocodile.
               I heard him laugh and then I heard him cuss,
               He went for his gun and I pulled mine first,
               He stood there lookin' at me and I saw him smile.

               And he said: "Son, this world is rough
               And if a man's gonna make it, he's gotta be tough
               And I knew I wouldn't be there to help ya along.
               So I give ya that name and I said goodbye
               I knew you'd have to get tough or die
               And it's the name that helped to make you strong."

               He said: "Now you just fought one hell of a fight
               And I know you hate me, and you got the right
               To kill me now, and I wouldn't blame you if you do.
               But ya ought to thank me, before I die,
               For the gravel in ya guts and the spit in ya eye
               Cause I'm the son-of-a-***** that named you "Sue.'"

               I got all choked up and I threw down my gun
               And I called him my pa, and he called me his son,
               And I came away with a different point of view.
               And I think about him, now and then,
               Every time I try and every time I win,
               And if I ever have a son, I think I'm gonna name him
               Bill or George! Anything but Sue! I still hate that name!