[Intro] There’s a saloon out west in Abilene, Where the whiskey’s strong and the poker’s mean. Dust on the floor, smoke in the air, A man walks in like he’s got no care. Black hat low and a coat worn thin, Six-shooter hanging from his hip. He walks to the bar, says, “Whiskey, neat,” Then finds a poker game and takes a seat. [Verse 1] The dealer shuffles, the cards get dealt, Four old cowboys in a room that smelled Like smoke and whiskey, sweat and sin, And the kind of trouble a man gets in. The stranger stacks up his hard-earned pay, Says nothing as they start to play. The first hand goes, then the second one too, He keeps his eyes on the cards, not the crew. The stakes climb higher with every round, Till you could hear a pin hit the ground. The cowboy takes a whiskey shot, Sets down his glass and studies the pot. [Chorus] He played those cards with a poker face, Never let a feeling show in that place. The other man watched him, trying to see If he was bluffing or holding a king. But that cold-eyed stranger gave nothing away, So the old man raised like he owned the game. He said, “Call me, cowboy, if you think you’re tough.” The stranger smiled, said, “That’s enough.” [Verse 2] The river card fell with a slap on the felt, The old man grinned like a man who’d dealt A winning hand to himself that night, He leaned back laughing beneath the light. The stranger slowly laid his cards down, The old man laughed and looked around. “Looks like, son, I’ve taken the pot.” But the stranger stared at the cards he'd got. He looked at the deck, then looked at the dealer, Then looked at the man like he'd finally seen him clearer. He said, “Funny thing about the hand you played, Those cards ain't the ones the dealer laid.” [Chorus] He played those cards with a poker face, But something changed in that smoky place. The other man said, “Watch what you claim,” The stranger said, “I know your game.” “You can cheat a man out of his money, You can lie and laugh like it’s all funny, But there's one thing you should've known— Some debts come due when you're all alone.” [Verse 3] The old man stood and reached for his gun, Said, “Boy, you better turn and run.” The stranger just smiled and shook his head, Said, “You never knew the life you left.” He slowly raised his weathered face, And the old man's smile fell out of place. Those eyes he'd seen so long ago Were staring back through the smoke and glow. The stranger said, “Take a look at me. I’m the little boy you left at three. You walked away and left us behind, And Mom spent years trying to hold the line.” [Bridge] “You taught me how to read a man, You taught me how to play my hand. You taught me never to show fear, But you forgot one thing, Dad— Mom was standing there.” “You can cheat me out of every dime, You can fool a table every time. You can stack the deck and call it fair, But you can't cheat love and leave it there.” [Verse 4] The room went still, the piano died, The stranger had tears he couldn't hide. He pulled his six-shooter from his side, And looked at the father he despised. He said, “You can cheat me, Dad, But you don't cheat on Mom.” Then one shot rang through the night, And the old man's cheating days were gone. The cards lay scattered across the floor, The whiskey glass rolled toward the door. The son stood shaking in the smoke, Like every promise his father broke. [Final Chorus] He played those cards with a poker face, But he wasn't there just to win the game. He came looking for the man he knew, The man who left when his life was new. “You can cheat me at cards, You can cheat me for gold, You can cheat every stranger That walks through your door. But you don't cheat my mama, Not anymore.” [Outro] He walked out slow through the swinging doors, Left his father's blood on the saloon floor. The desert wind carried him into the night, Moon shining down on a man doing wrong to make things right. And they say if you gamble in Abilene, You'll hear that story when the night gets mean— About a father who cheated his son, But learned too late what he'd done. You can cheat a man at poker, You can bluff your way through the night... But you can't cheat a mother's heart And expect her boy not to fight.
