Six White Horses
Bill Monroe Lyrics

The lyrics to Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys' song, "Six White Horses," tell a story of a man ready to leave a woman who has caused him nothing but worry and trouble. He is leaving her to ease his mind and end the constant stress he has been feeling because of her. The reference to "six white horses going two by two" is a metaphor for a funeral procession, suggesting that the woman has taken his love from him and that he is saddened by her actions. The train he is riding on is sixteen coaches long, and he uses this detail to emphasize how far he is going to get away from the woman he once loved, who has now left him for another man.

The lyrics get even more ominous as the man tells the woman that if she doesn't believe he is really leaving, she should just count the days he's gone. He predicts that the next time she sees her father, it will be on "judgement morning," suggesting that there will be consequences for the woman's actions. In the final verse, the man asks the woman which way the river runs, and she tells him it runs from his back door to the set of the rising sun. This could be interpreted as a sign that he should keep moving forward and not look back at what he's left behind.

Overall, the lyrics to "Six White Horses" are a mournful reflection on lost love, betrayal, and the desire to start anew. The metaphors and imagery used throughout the song help to convey the deep sense of sadness and regret that the man is feeling as he leaves the woman who once meant everything to him.