Poor Man, Rich Man

Poor Man, Rich Man-David McCarn
G position, standard tuning, w/harmonica off a rack

Let me tell you people something that's true
When you work in a mill they tell you what you have to do
You get up every morning before daylight
You labor all day until it gets night
You work a few days, get pale in the face
From standing so long in the same darn place
Along comes a boss, hard as he can tear
He wants you to think he's a grizzly bear
REFRAIN: Ashes to ashes, dust to dust
So let the poor man live and the rich man bust

When you go to dinner, you have to run
Or they'll blow the whistle before you're done
Payday comes, you won't have a penny
When you pay your bills, 'cause you got so many
Sometimes you hear a racket like a peckerwoods
But it's only fellers tryin' to sell their goods
The merchants there, all just about gray
From studyin' how to get the poor man's pay
REFRAIN: Ashes to ashes, dust to dust
So let the poor man live and the rich man bust

Now, some people run the mill man down
But the cotton mill people make the world go 'round
They take a little drink to have a little fun
Whenever they can manage to rake up the mon'
Now, I left the mountains when I was a strip
I never will forget that awful trip
I walked all the way behind a apple wagon
When I got to town the seat of my pants was a-draggin'
REFRAIN: Ashes to ashes, dust to dust
So let the poor man live and the rich man bust

When wintertime comes there's hell to pay
When you see the boss, you'll have to say,
"I want a load of wood, a ton of coal,
Take a dollar out a week, or I'll go in the hole."
You have to buy your groceries at some chain store
'Cause you can't afford to pay any more
If you don't starve I'm a son of a gun
'Cause you can't buy beans without any mon'
REFRAIN: Ashes to ashes, dust to dust
So let the poor man live and the rich man bust

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