the way the west was won smoking stacks railroad tracks and broken backs and seeds that can t be sown violent eyes and troubled times that told the lives of blood upon their hands the men they came from far out west and laid down tracks of steel burnin through the barren lands on locomotive wheel lives were lost and families tossed a few that burn in fire losin land and dignity for history s desire the way the west was won smoking stacks railroad tracks and broken backs and seeds that can t be sown violent eyes and troubled times that told the lives of blood upon their hands the land was bought and sold around the rightful owner s deed strangers take the others for the consequence of greed games were played and patronized with daggers on their backs pryin on the innocent with sharpened souls of black the way the west was won smoking stacks railroad tracks and broken backs and seeds that can t be sown violent eyes and troubled times that told the lives of blood upon their hands the way the west was won smoking stacks railroad tracks and broken backs and seeds that can t be sown violent eyes and troubled times that told the lives of blood upon their hands