Em            D            Em
Boom bah bah, boom bah bah boom,
              D      Em
Twelve riders in the gloom
           D           Em       A
Seven show red and the rest are dead,
        Em       D        Em
But the First Battalion's home.


[Verse 2]
Em            D            Em
Boom bah bah, boom bah bah boom,
                 D          Em
You can hear the hoof beats boom,
              D            Em      A
The drums are low, and the pace is slow,
        Em       D        Em
But the First Battalion's home.


[Verse 3]
   A                     Em
So run to your homes, Virginia gals
    A                  Em
And fix your hair with pins
    A                  Em
And give them wine and kisses,
    D                            Em
But don't ask them where they've been.


[Verse 4]
Em            D            Em
Boom bah bah, boom bah bah boom,
             D        Em
And Richmond is their tomb,
                  D        Em  D
There's a hundred still at Richmond,
      Em      D       Em    A
Three hundred dead at Gettysburg,
      Em      D          Em    A
And a hundred more we've never found,
        Em       D        Em
But the First Battalion's home.
 

[Verse 5]
   A                  Em
So hold him close and keep him warm
    A              Em
And hang his coat away
    A                   Em
And don't you mind that spot of red,
       D                     Em
That's spread in through the gray.


[Verse 6]
Em            D            Em
Boom bah bah, boom bah bah boom,
             D        Em
And Richmond is their tomb,
                  D        Em  D
There's a hundred still at Richmond,
      Em      D       Em    A
Three hundred dead at Gettysburg,
      Em      D          Em    A
And a hundred more we've never found,
        Em       D        Em    Em  Em
But the First Battalion's home.