When I was just a little girl my mamma said to me, "Beware of the devil my child in the dark rocky place he'll keep. Beware of the devil my child. Beware of his charming ways. You'll fall under an evil spell just looking at his beautiful face."

You gotta build yourself a levee deep inside.

Don't go walking by the riverside alone in the pale moonlight. He'll come up upon you girl with no earthly body in sight, come up upon you girl and he'll whisper something sweet then take you where the waters rise so high and run so deep.

You gotta build yourself a levee deep inside. Gotta build yourself a levee deep inside. Build yourself a levee girl, where the waters run high.

Now when I was just a little girl my mamma said to me, "Beware of the devil my child but if by chance you should meet, beware of his cold dark eyes full of bold and unholy deceit. He'll tempt you with a whirling pool of lies and promises that he'll deny, that he'll never keep."

You gotta build yourself a levee deep inside. Gotta build yourself a levee deep inside. Build yourself a levee girl, where the waters run high.