Released: March 23, 1970

Songwriter: Leon Russell

Producer: Leon Russell Denny Cordell

[Verse 1]
Woah, Junior and the drummer are fighting
About a woman in the neighborhood
Oh, the drummer never hit a bad lick in his life
And Junior never hit any good

Yeah, the colonel said that women are for loving, not fighting
But that didn't clear the air
'Cause Junior's still living in the blackboard jungle
With his Elvis Presley hair

[Chorus]
Yeah, the drummer's got the drum, the colonel's got the gun
And Junior's only got a knife, he'd better run
It's a shootout on the plantation, it's so hard to understand
Why do some people have to hurt somebody?
The firewater's not the villain
Yeah, the last one to kiss is the first to shoot
And stabbing your friends is such a drag to boot
It's a shootout on the plantation
Oh, heaven help Mister Swan, yeah

[Verse 2]
And the cold steel blade is shining
Enough to cause your blood to freeze
But the drummer is drumming a Rolling Stones' number
On Junior's head and on his knees

Oh, Oklahoma's lonesome cowboys
Are turned on in Tinsel Town
I knew there'd be some cameras rolling
If Andy was standing around

[Chorus]
Yeah, the drummer's got the drum, the colonel's got the gun
And Junior's only got a knife, he'd better run
It's a shootout on the plantation, it's so hard to understand
Why do some people have to hurt somebody?
The firewater's not the villain
Yeah, the last one to kiss is the first to shoot
And stabbing your friends is such a drag to boot
It's a shootout on the plantation
Oh, heaven help Mister Swan, help me

[Chorus]
Yeah now, the drummer's got the drum, the colonel's got the gun
And Junior's only got a knife, he'd better run
It's a shootout on the plantation, it's so hard to understand
Why do some people have to hurt somebody?
The firewater's not the villain
Yeah, the last one to kiss is the first to shoot
And stabbing your friends is such a drag to boot
It's a shootout on the plantation
Oh, heaven help Mister Swan, yeah

[Outro]
Won't somebody help me
You gotta help me, help me, help me
Help me, help me, help me, help me, help me
Whoa won't you help me, help me
Whoo why don't you help me?
Why don't you tell me about it?
Why don't you scream and shout it?
Whoa won't you help me, help me?
Mmm help me help me
Won't heaven help mister?
Won't you kiss your sister?
Whoa, won't you heaven help mister?

Leon Russell

Leon Russell (April 2, 1942–November 13, 2016) was an American musician and songwriter who was involved with numerous bestselling pop music records during his 60-year career. He recorded 33 albums and at least 430 songs. His “A Song for You”, added to the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2018, has been recorded by more than 200 artists. His recordings earned six gold records. He received two Grammy awards from seven nominations. He died in his sleep at the age of 74.