Virgil Caine is the name and served on the Danville train
The storeman's cavalery came and tore up the tracks again
In the summer of '65, we were hungry, just barely alive
By May the 10th Richmond had fell
The time I remember oh so well
The night they drove old Dixie down
And the bells were ringing
The night they drove old Dixie down
And the people were singing
They went la la, la, la, la, la

Back home in Tennessee my wife called out to me
Said Virgil come quick and see, there goes Robert E Lee
I don't mind chopping wood
And I don't care if the money ain't good
You take what you need and save the rest
But they should never have taken the very best
The night they drove old Dixie down
And the bells were ringing
The night they drove old Dixie down
And the people were singing
They went la la, la, la, la, la

Like my father before me, he was a workin' man
Like my brother above me, he took a rebel stand
Was just 18, proud and brave
When a Yankee laid him in his grave
I swept out the blood beneath my feet
You can't raise a Caine back up when it's in defeat
The night they drove old Dixie down
And the bells were ringing
The night they drove old Dixie down
And the people were singing
They went la la, la, la, la, la
The night they drove old Dixie down
And the bells were ringing
The night they drove old Dixie down
And the people were singing
They went la la, la, la, la, la