Manhattan Kansas ain't no place to have a baby If you got no man to give it his last name And my folks back in Manhattan didn't want me or her bundle So I took my child and caught an evening train
I got a job in Denver washing dishes in a diner At least it buys my baby milk to drink He once told me I was pretty but the only ring it got me Is the ring of grease that runs around the sink
Yes I laid beside him gentle cause he told me that he loved me And he made me dance before the music played But at least I didn't beg him I'd rather wash my dishes It makes me feel as if my hands're clean
At night I stands there thinkin' bout the men back home in Kansas And how my folks just turned away ashamed I look down through the soap suds reache down and pulls the drain plug And watches as Manhattan drains away