Vanceroger millerwords and music by bobby russell-peak billboard position # 80 in 1968spoken:he was born one mornin'it was cold and it was snowin'and from the start he never had a chanceand though the doctors said he couldn't livehis mama had some faith to give'n' they brought him to her and his mama named him vancehe was sick a long time theni used to sit by himi'd rub his head and he would squeeze my handbut he never cried, he'd grit his teeth and smile at me'cause he couldn't speakand that's when i began to respect the little manand i think vance was three right about thenhe started school and one dayhe came home and at the doorway i could tellthe little man didn't want to come insidehe had met a girl but her boyfriend smittyhad caught him walkin' home with herand nearly killed vancebut then vance never criedand the only thing that smitty hurt was prideand he said(sung)"papa do you become a man when you're twenty-one?"and i said "age doesn't make a man a man, my son"spoken:he looked at me so puzzled with eyes so young and kind'n' i think vance was seven about that time<brief instrumental interlude>i guess they say that first love is the very bestat least it was with vance'cause he'd scratched "becky" on his deskbut becky went with smitty and vance was very smalland he used to dream what it'd be like to be talland then a few years later vance came in one dayand told me and his mama that he had to go awayto be fitted for a uniformand though his mama shed a tearhe kissed her and said he'd see us in two yearsand he looked at me and said "papa, i'm gonna be a man"<brief instrumental interlude>well, two years to the dayvance came walkin' in the driveway 'n'i didn't recognize him from his size till he got nearhe came in and he hugged his mamaand said "hey, papa, little man, wanna go with me somewhere 'n' grab a beer?"so we're sittin' at this table whenthis fella at the bar started buggin' vancecallin' him "soldier"but vance kept his cooland he said "papa, that guy is smitty and he's to be pitied now""cause that's the same guy that used to bully me in school"then smitty said the wrong thingwhen he brought up becky's name 'n'vance finally stood and said "boy, what did you say?"and it did my heart so much good when vance hit ole smittyand it took two of smitty's friends to carry him awaywell, vance left the very next mornin' 'n'it was cold and it was snowin'and from the first, life hadn't been much funbut he had finally made a stand 'n'he'd become a self-made man andincidentally, he had just turned twenty-onetranscribed by ronald e. hontzronhontz@worldnet.att.net