Standard (EADGBE)

Intro

 { } x6

Verse 1

 I'll bet you've never heard ole Marshall Dillon say

 Miss Kitty have you ever thought of running away

 Settling down, would you marry me

 If I asked you twice and begged you pretty please

 She'd have said yes in a New York minute

 They never tied the knot

His heart wasn't in it

 He just stole a kiss as he rode away

He never hung his hat up at Kitty's place

Chorus

 I should've been a cowboy

I should've learned to rope and ride

 Wearing my six-shooter, riding by pony on a cattle drive

Stealing a young girl's heart

Just like Gene and Roy

Singing those rodeo songs

Oh I should've been a cowboy

Verse 2

 I might of had a side kick with a funny name

 Running wild through the hills chasing Jesse James

Ending up on the brink of danger

Riding shotgun for the Texas Rangers

 Go west young man, haven't you been told

 California's full of whisky, women and gold

 Sleeping out all night beneath the desert stars

 A dream in my eye and a prayer in my heart

Chorus

 I should've been a cowboy

I should've learned to rope and ride

 Wearing my six-shooter, riding by pony on a cattle drive

Stealing a young girl's heart

Just like Gene and Roy

Singing those campfire songs

Oh I should've been a cowboy