When I was a police officer in Belle Glade in the mid-1980s, I was offered a large sum of cash to turn my head. The alligator lyin’ still is my metaphor for that trap and the choice not to fall for it.
At its heart, this is a fork-in-the-road song. Life puts our character to the test, and sometimes we have to make a conscious choice to stand by it and do what’s right.
Lyrics
I got my lesson down Belle Glade way
Where the sawgrass meets the mud
Snakes and gators and crawly things
Know how to hide in the flood
Still water don't mean nothin'
When there's hunger underneath
Some teeth don't show till you're close enough
To feel 'em when they breathe
You don't pet the alligator
Just 'cause he's layin' still
Don't shake hands with trouble
When he's grinnin' through his grill
Some teeth don't show till you're close enough
To drag you through the mill
You don't pet the alligator
Just 'cause he's layin' still
I met a man in polished boots
With a deal too good and clean
Said I could double up my money
If I'd step around one little thing
He had a Bible on the dashboard
And a devil in the till
I heard that Belle Glade PD lesson
Boy, that gator's layin' still
You don't pet the alligator
Just 'cause he's layin' still
Don't shake hands with trouble
When he's grinnin' through his grill
Some teeth don't show till you're close enough
To drag you through the mill
You don't pet the alligator
Just 'cause he's layin' still
Ain't every danger runnin' wild
Ain't every warning loud
Sometimes teeth are waitin'
Where the quiet draws a crowd
You don't pet the alligator
Just 'cause he's layin' still
Don't shake hands with trouble
When he's grinnin' through his grill
Some teeth don't show till you're close enough
To drag you through the mill
You don't pet the alligator
Just 'cause he's layin' still