"Long Black Veil" is a 1959 country ballad, written by Danny Dill and Marijohn Wilkin and originally recorded by Lefty Frizzell.
A saga song, "Long Black Veil" is told from the point of view of an executed man falsely accused of murder. He refuses to
provide an alibi, since on the night of the murder he was having an affair with his best friend's wife, and would rather
die and take their secret to his grave than admit the truth. The chorus describes the woman's mourning visits to his gravesite,
wearing a long black veil and enduring a wailing wind.
The version presented here, charted in 1999 with the Dave Matthews Band, who performed the song live with Emmylou Harris at a
Johnny Cash tribute concert.
A saga song, "Long Black Veil" is told from the point of view of an executed man falsely accused of murder. He refuses to
provide an alibi, since on the night of the murder he was having an affair with his best friend's wife, and would rather
die and take their secret to his grave than admit the truth. The chorus describes the woman's mourning visits to his gravesite,
wearing a long black veil and enduring a wailing wind.
The version presented here, charted in 1999 with the Dave Matthews Band, who performed the song live with Emmylou Harris at a
Johnny Cash tribute concert.