The Black Cock

for Jim Hendrix, hoodoo from his natural born He frightens all the witches and the dragons in their lair He cues the clear blue daylight and He gives the night its dare He flaps His wings for warning and He struts atop a mare for when He crows they quiver and when He comes they flee In His coal black plumage and His bright red crown and His golden beaked fury and His calculated frown in His webbed footed glory He sends Jehovah down for when He crows they quiver and when He comes they flee O they dance around the fire and they boil the gall of wolves and they sing their strange crude melodies and play their weirder tunes and the villagers close their windows and the grave- yard starts to heave and the cross wont help their victims and the screaming fills the night and the young girls die with open eyes and the skies are lavender light but when He crows they quiver and when He comes they flee Well the sheriff is getting desperate as they go their nature’s way killing cattle smothering infants slaughtering those who block their way and the countryside swarms with numbness as their magic circle grows but when He crows they tremble and when He comes they flee Posting hex-signs on their wagons simple worried farmers pray passing laws and faking justice only feed the witches brew violet stones are rendered helpless drunken priests are helpless too but when He crows they quiver and when He comes they flee We have seen them in their ritual we have catalogued their crimes we are weary of their torture but we cannot bring them down their ancient hoodoo enemy who does the work, the trick, strikes peril in their dead fiend’s hearts and pecks their flesh to quick love Him feed Him He will never let you down for when He crows they quiver and when He comes they frown