THE BALLAD OF WILLIE SUTTON

AN AMERICAN OUTLAW SONG

There have been many great songs about American outlaws—“Jesse James,” “Pretty Boy Floyd,” “Bonnie and Clyde.” And even few bad ones—e.g., Dylan’s “Joey.”

But, as far as I am aware, no one ever wrote or sang one about the once legendary bank robber Willie Sutton, aka “Willie the Gent.”

Sutton (1901-1980) was a headline-making stick-up man during his 1930s and 1940s heyday, known as much for maximum security prison escapes (three) as he was for his courtly hold-ups.

Unlike his better known Public Enemy #1 contemporaries, Willie never killed anyone (though he carried a gun, it wasn’t loaded). Even his victims thought he was a good guy.

But not the FBI’s J. Edgar Hoover. Hoover’s FBI finally caught up with Sutton and Willie spent the last twenty years of his life in escape-proof Attica prison. He was eventually paroled—for good behavior, of course—in 1969.

After his release, Sutton wrote a great book about his escapades and even starred in a TV commercial for American Express.

Willie Sutton—gentleman bank robber—isn’t much remembered today. Except for one statement of Sutton’s that has gained iconic status…

…When asked by a judge why he robbed banks, Sutton replied, “That’s where the money is.”

So I think Willie deserves a song of his own. This is it.