Robbins, Marty - Mr. Shorty Lyrics






Nobody knew where he came from
They only knew he came in
Slowly he walked to the end of the bar
And he ordered up one slug of gin.

Well, I could see that he wasn't a large man
I could tell that he wasn't too tall
I judged him to be 'bout five-foot three
And his voice was a soft Texas drawl.

Said he was needin' some wages
'Fore he could ride for the west
Said he could do most all kind of work
Said he could ride with the best.

There in his blue eyes was sadness
That comes from the need of a friend
And tho' he tried, he still couldn't hide
The loneliness there, deep within.

Said he would work thru the winter
For thirty a month and his board
I started to say where he might land a job
When a fellow came in thru the door.

And I could tell he was lookin' for trouble
From the way that he came stompin' in
He told me to leave Shorty there by himself
Come down and wait on a man.

The eyes of the little man narrowed
The smile disappeared from his face
Gone was the friendliness that I had seen
And a wild look of hate took its' place.

But the big one continued to mock him
And he told me that I'd better go
Find him a couple of glasses of milk
Then maybe Shorty would grow.

When the little man spoke, there was stillness
He made sure that everyone heard
Slowly he stepped away from the bar
And I still remember these words.

Oh! it's plain that you're lookin' for trouble
Trouble's what I try to shun
If that's what you want, then that's what you'll get
'Cause cowboy, we're both packin' guns.

His hand was already positioned
Feet wide apart on the floor
I hadn't noticed but there on his hip
Was a short-barreled Bass Forty-Four.

It was plain he was ready and waitin'
He leaned a bit forward and said
When you call me Shorty, say Mister, my friend
Maybe you'd rather be dead.

In the room was a terrible silence
As the big one stepped out on the floor
All drinkin' stopped and the tick of the clock
Said death would wait ten seconds more.

He cussed once or twice in a whisper
And he said with a snarl on his lips
Nobody's Mister to me, little man!
And he grabbed for the gun on his hips.

But the little man's hands was like lightning
The Bass Forty-Four was the same
The Forty-Four spoke and it sent lead and smoke
And seventeen inches of flame.

For the big one had never cleared leather
Beaten before he could start
A little round hole had appeared on his shirt
The bullet went clear thru his heart.

The little man stood there a moment
Then holstered the Bass Forty-Four
It's always this way so I never stay
Slowly he walked out the door.

Nobody knew where he came from
They won't forget he came by
They won't forget how a Forty-Four gun
One night made the difference in size.

As for me, I'll remember the sadness
Shown in the eyes of the man
If we meet someday, you can bet I would say
That it's me, Mr. Shorty, your friend.





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Robbins, Marty Mr. Shorty Comments
  1. C.... N....

    Marty, is still with us, and we love him for it!

  2. M.... L....

    Love the plastic strings in this song. Well played and just loud enough not to detract from Marty's voice. Awesome song!

  3. O.... ....

    Gotta say I don't think he came in there looking for work lol.

  4. P.... R....

    Ok.. i'm 5'4



    Time to go west.

  5. I.... a....

    I wish I could have met thjs man before he died

  6. C.... S....

    Why is this describing me if I was a cowboy

  7. j.... p....

    funny I never attack any but short ppl have attacked me I say 70% of the time

  8. J.... S....

    wish I could meat this guy.

  9. J.... S....

    so true

  10. J.... S....

    best song

  11. O.... K....

    I guess Mr. Shorty found a job as Arizona ranger.

  12. C.... [....

    "Fear not any man
    No matter what his size.
    For when in danger, call on me;
    And I shall, equalize."

  13. b.... n....

    Marty Robbins is great, but the guitar player understands perfectly how to compliment Martys storytelling.

  14. m.... ....

    Just a 5'3 man with a glock 32 357 sig

  15. A.... A....

    I love songs like this. Actual stories. I play RDR2 a lot and I can visualize how all this played out.

  16. G.... T....

    November 15th was my grandfather birthday (RIP) he was born in 1907. I knew he loved his westerns. I wanted to honor my grandfather's birthday so I called my mom and asked her what was my papa favorite song...she said all he would listen to is Marty Robbins and I see why!! Love you papa you will live on through me!

  17. S.... ....

    I’m thinking about PinkCupcakes Blue, my favorite channel. She has a gacha life OC named Mr.Shorty.

  18. m.... w....

    Bagelboss should have carried that short barrelled bad 44

  19. C.... D....

    There is a major loss in ALL the bands of these great singers, and that is the DOBRO There is a special sound and feel'in in this insterment. WHAT A LOSS; but especially to the listener.

  20. S.... D....

    The 44 spoke and it said lead and smoke.......find a lyric that good in the past 20 years

  21. g.... 6....

    That bad .44!!!

  22. A.... H....

    Always wanted to paint this song

  23. J.... ....

    But did Mr. Shorty have a big iron on his hip?
    Was the iron so big, that it was bigger than him?

    J.... ....

    Well his bad .44 was short-barrelled so it wasn't big by most men's standards. But in comparison it could probably be called a big iron.

  24. S.... o....

    Mr shorty had that smoke,and that rascal that came in really wasn't about it

  25. J.... M....

    Cheers to all you short and tough bastards in need of a friend 🍻

  26. J.... G....

    Does anyone ever “Clear Leather”

  27. R.... ....

    Is Mr. Shorty the Ranger in small man.

  28. C.... ....

    nowadays country music just talks about girls and tractors


    i wish it was like this again

  29. M.... P....

    Don’t show Edward Elric this song

  30. R.... K....

    Still loving this in 2019. Marty, one in a million!

  31. B.... F....

    "If that's what you want then that's what you'll get.. cause cowboys we both packin guns..."

    Real heavy

  32. B.... F....

    Wait is he describing Yosemite Sam from the Looney Toons?

  33. S.... L....

    Original gangster music

  34. L.... M....

    His songs could paint a STORY in your mind you could just see it as a movey

  35. E.... F....

    The Arizona ranger’s little brother

  36. Y.... ....

    Manlet cope song

  37. G.... M....

    Bruh, fallout new vegas turned me on to marty Robbins but goddamn this songs a fucking banger. Everybody knows big iron, which is good, but they need to look into it a little more

  38. D.... L....

    Probably the kak-est song Ive ever heard.

  39. J.... C....

    This song is not on this CD

  40. H.... P....

    Thank you

  41. T.... S....

    No one is probably going to read this
    I’m just gonna write it anyway because I feel at least one person will.
    Im a singer songwriter called Michael Softley
    I am a try hard chasing a dream
    I have my first few views up and could use help getting subs and likes
    If anyone who reads this could press the “thumbs up” other people will see it
    Just a simple button press could make my dreams come true
    Thank you much love.

    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaYwZ5TVvrA4q5dlviseESg?view_as=subscriber

  42. L.... M....

    A 44 was made things equal

  43. J.... N....

    One of my favorite country artists. Brought that Tex-Mex wild west feel to the music.

  44. K.... ....

    I miss read that as Mr.Shotty. I thought this was gonna be nuts. but its still pretty stunning none the less.

  45. J.... N....

    I think we're all small men in need of a friend sometimes

  46. G.... A....

    When you make a joke in a comment section and someone tries to engage you in argument

  47. D.... M....

    One of my favorite Marty songs!

  48. G.... P....

    Giants come in all sizes

  49. r.... ....

    My grandmother - a staunch Marty Robbins fan - once told me "It's best not to run your mouth. You never know when the guy you're insulting will put an end to your noise."
    I miss you, grandma.

  50. N.... ....

    he's as tall as me...

  51. F.... y....

    This song is actually pretty sad. Mr. Shorty's choices in life seems to be being mocked for being short; or feared for being a gunslinger.

  52. K.... M....

    Marty Robins could sing a ballot better than anyone. I never get tired of hearing him sing.

    K.... M....

    "Ballad" but I know what you mean. I love rap, especially the $uicideboy$. Marty is something special to me though.

  53. s.... h....

    Wow..... Amazing....

  54. w.... ....

    Love this so much. What a storyteller.

  55. I.... ....

    I've been trying to figure out the exact lyrics for this song. I've seen some debate here and elsewhere about the type of gun mentioned. It sure sounds like "bad .44" to my ears, but there is (supposedly) such a thing as a "Bat .44" , based on a custom Colt requested by Bat Masterson. It certainly doesn't sound like "Bass" as the lyrics I've seen say. Any other frequent or knowledgeable or sharp-eared listeners have an opinion or actual info on this?


    I've been listening to this song for a few years now, and I'm sure that at least 200 or so of the views here are from me, and I'm leaning heavily towards "bad". I did read a small "blurb" somewhere attributed to an interview with Marty that he couldn't say "bad-ass .44", which would imply "bad" might be correct. I'm working on ideas for some art/illustrations inspired by a few Marty songs, including some well chosen bits of lyrics, and I want to be accurate, or at least reasonably confident.

    I.... ....

    I hear the same thing! Not BAT 44; but, BAD 44. There was a gun in that era that was a BADD (note 2 D's at the end) 44. It was a 44 Magnum with a short barrel. I also have bad hearing, so I could be wrong; but I'll stick with BADD 44.

    I.... ....

    @Chopper Que Thanks. While I'm still leaning towards "BAD" with a single "D", I do appreciate the feedback. I haven't heard of a "BADD" .44 before. I'll definitely Google it!

    I.... ....

    If you pull up the song with lyrics it is a badd 44...and the gun is a short nose 44, thats a 2 in barrel also that 44 throughs out lead and smoke and 17 inch's of flame, this is a black power gun

    I.... ....

    What I thought it was. Thank you Donald....

    I.... ....

    @Donald Lambert Interesting. I'm not sure I trust any lyrics posted out there too much. If you've ever seen the lyrics people have posted for Marty's "Prairie Fire" on the web you'll know what I mean, but you certainly make a compelling argument! Worth looking into. Thank you!
    Searching for "badd 44 pistol" on Google turns up nothing useful, BTW.

  56. B.... W....

    I like to think they met again.

  57. e.... ....

    If you really listen to the stories he tells you will appreciate his music so much more

  58. J.... A....

    As an English person got to say he's got to be one of the best country and Western singers

  59. C.... c....

    Was born on a cattle ranch in MT long story short I was the runt just a little fella so my father an grandfather Nick named me Shorty. Well now I'm 6'3 300 lbs may gramps rest in peace. Sure am proud to be SHORTY oh Myers are blue to

  60. S.... H....

    44 SPOKE

  61. T.... ....

    as a lonely 5 ft 3 inch man I can relate to this. Id happily drink with shorty

  62. j.... ....

    Marty Robbins knew how to tell a story through a song; that's for sure.

  63. P.... R....

    Gunfighter Ballads

  64. M.... ....

    Arizona ranger vs Mr shorty

  65. K.... E....

    Love the line....  Oh, it's plain that you're lookin' for trouble
    Trouble's what I try to shun
    If that's what you want, then that's what you'll get
    'Cause cowboy, we're both packin' guns

  66. T.... T....

    Anyone else here from Big Iron and Fallout: New Vegas?

  67. k.... 1....

    Very true.

  68. I.... ....

    I absolutely love this song. How can such a lovely, soothing, and melancholy song be so badass at the same time? And why can't anybody nowadays produce something this good?

  69. K.... A....

    A lovely man who left happy memories for me

  70. Z.... ....

    I wouldn't call the hole made by a .44 small, thats nearly half an inch.

  71. R.... C....

    Colts are great, but short, fat, thin, or tall, a Smith and Wessen stops them all!

  72. x.... ....

    I love this. His songs are such gripping stories, I can't stop listening through.

  73. F.... G....

    Nobody knew where he came from
    They only knew he came in
    Slowly he walked to the end of the bar
    And he ordered up one slug of gin.

    Well, I could see that he wasn't a large man
    I could tell that he wasn't too tall
    I judged him to be 'bout five-foot three
    And his voice was a soft Texas drawl.

    Said he was needin' some wages
    'Fore he could ride for the west
    Said he could do most all kind of work
    Said he could ride with the best.

    There in his blue eyes was sadness
    That comes from the need of a friend
    And tho' he tried, he still couldn't hide
    The loneliness there, deep within.

    Said he would work through the winter
    For thirty a month and his board
    I started to say where he might land a job
    When a fellow came in through the door.

    And I could tell he was lookin' for trouble
    From the way that he came stompin' in
    He told me to leave Shorty there by himself
    Come down and wait on a man.

    The eyes of the little man narrowed
    The smile disappeared from his face
    Gone was the friendliness that I had seen
    And a wild look of hate took its' place.

    But the big one continued to mock him
    And he told me that I'd better go
    Find him a couple of glasses of milk
    Then maybe Shorty would grow.

    When the little man spoke, there was stillness
    He made sure that everyone heard
    Slowly he stepped away from the bar
    And I still remember these words.Oh! it's plain that you're lookin' for trouble
    Trouble's what I try to shun
    If that's what you want, then that's what you'll get
    'Cause cowboy, we're both packin' guns.

    His hand was already positioned
    Feet wide apart on the floor
    I hadn't noticed but there on his hip
    Was a short-barreled Bass Forty-Four.

    It was plain he was ready and waitin'
    He leaned a bit forward and said
    When you call me Shorty, say Mister, my friend
    Maybe you'd rather be dead.

    In the room was a terrible silence
    As the big one stepped out on the floor
    All drinkin' stopped and the tick of the clock
    Said death would wait ten seconds more.

    He cussed once or twice in a whisper
    And he said with a snarl on his lips
    Nobody's Mister to me, little man!
    And he grabbed for the gun on his hips.

    But the little man's hands was like lightning
    The Bass Forty-Four was the same
    The Forty-Four spoke and it sent lead and smoke
    And seventeen inches of flame.

    For the big one had never cleared leather
    Beaten before he could start
    A little round hole had appeared on his shirt
    The bullet went clear through his heart.

    The little man stood there a moment
    Then holstered the Bass Forty-Four
    It's always this way so I never stay
    Slowly he walked out the door.

    Nobody knew where he came from
    They won't forget he came by
    They won't forget how a Forty-Four gun
    One night made the difference in size.

    As for me, I'll remember the sadness
    Shown in the eyes of the man
    If we meet someday, you can bet I would say
    That it's me, Mr. Shorty, your friend.

  74. T.... S....

    Who's here after seeing the short bagel man fight?

  75. s.... .....

    Thanks for the upload, instant classic.

  76. R.... R....

    one of the best western songs ever written. my uncle Wayne used to rent a place across from where he recorded in Nashville and during breaks he would come sit on his porch and just shoot the breeze with him. my oldest brother Jim was there visiting when Marty came over one day.. my brother liked too have flipped he could not believe it was Marty Robbins. and also said he was one of the nicest guys he ever met. they talked about a half hour before he had too get back and record.

  77. T.... T....

    Should have been 1 foot 3 inches just for humor.

  78. d.... 2....

    What great music have I found?! Such a shame I didn't find out earlier! I mostly listen to death metal but this is just as good. Made me almost tear up! Amen

  79. L.... M....

    His songs always sounded good and told a story.

  80. B.... H....

    The term in the lyrics is "Bat 44". It was the Colt Model 44 with a 5 1/2 inch barrel, a favorite of Bat Masterson, hence the name. Standard Colt had a 7 1/2 inch barrel. Regards.

    B.... H....

    Bill Huddleston - When I hear this song, it was Bad 44? There was a BADD 44 during that era that was a 44 Magnum! With a short barrel, it would have been a trick to hold steady. What kind of round did the Colt Model 44 have???

    B.... H....

    Most likely a .44 ball. the 44 magnum came out long after that.

  81. C.... ....

    "God made men. Samuel Colt made em equal." anonymous cowboy, unknown year.

  82. S.... W....

    lesson of the day: never make fun of midgets

  83. B.... P....

    manlet cope song

  84. m.... ....

    See i like this kind of country music not the stuff today

  85. T.... ....

    Would Mr. Shorty outdraw the Arizona ranger tho

  86. A.... R....

    Could Marty write 'em or what? Such a poet. A cowboy poet indeed. My eyes get misty when I hear this song. Mr. Shorty had to go through life always defending himself from the scum who wanted to start trouble. Hmmmmm. Sure sounds familiar. Great song.

  87. A.... C....

    Can anyone tell me what album this song is from I bought gunfighte ballads and it's not there anyone know ?

  88. C.... h....

    Marty could do the gunfighter ballads lime no-one else.

  89. p.... c....

    I wish there was a modern song writer that told stories like these. Or am I just missing them?

  90. e.... j....

    Who needs to read a book when you got Marty Robbins?The lyrics are so well written.

  91. s.... ....

    This is a fantastic album! One of the greatest in music history!

  92. R.... t....

    Real cowboy music.Just like Mexican cowboys all they talk about is exactly the same stories.

  93. A.... T....

    Nothing better then this country

  94. C.... J....

    This is such a melancholy song oof. I'd like to think Mr. Narrator meets Mr. Shorty again and they keep in contact for the rest of their lives.

  95. L.... N....

    Does anyone know what kind of .44 Robbin's had in his mind when he was writing this song? I always thought it was a .44 magnum, but recently that didn't come out until the 1950s and wouldn't fit a song like this set in the wild west.

    L.... N....

    It's a 44 special. Which is to say, a rifle round being fired from a pistol.

    L.... N....

    L N they’re referring to a cap a ball revolver that takes a .44 caliber ball

  96. L.... N....

    3:37 Bill Munden confirmed. Haha!

  97. T.... K....

    beautiful story

  98. F.... T....

    This is not only music, thats pure life ! Marty Robbins is a god of this genre!!! Always if i hear his songs it get deep in my heart and i feel his words. Thank you Marty for all you give us with your great music .

  99. S.... T....

    Alright, hear me out on this one,
    _Mr. Shorty is better than Big Iron._