I was a boy, I was a good little boy
Wantin' in the playground fun
They said ah na ney boy you can't play
'Cause you were born a poor man's son

I met a girl, she was a pretty little girl
Would you be my only one
She said meet me where nobody can see
'Cause you were born a poor man's son

I spent all my lifetime
Thinkin' what I coulda done
While I worked my fingers to the bone

I met a man, he was business man
I said I'm a hard workin' son of a gun
He said you know the rules
You should've stayed in school
But you were born a poor man's son

I spent all my lifetime
Thinkin' what I coulda done
While I worked my fingers to the bone

I met a guy, he was a crazy guy
He said I'm goin' to get me some
Let's go across the tracks where
They keep that jack
All we need is a little black gun

They got the hounds and they
Tracked us down
They said we know what you have done
You're gonna do the time it's gonna
fit the crime
You shoulda shot a poor man's son