Time of the Preacher/Long Time Gone

It was the time of the preacher when the story began
Of the choice of a lady, the love of a man
How he loved her so dearly, he went out of his mind
When she left him for someone she'd left behind

And he cried like a baby
He screamed like a panther in the middle of the night
And he saddled his pony
And he went for a ride

It was the time of the preacher in the year of '01
Now the preaching is over and the lesson's begun