Intro :
Four and twenty y ears ago,
I come into this life
The song of a w oman,
And a man who lived in s trife
He was tired o f being po or;
And he wasn't into s elling door to d oor
And he worked like the d evil to be m ore
A different kind of p overty
Now upsets me so
Night after s leepless night,
I walk the floor and I w ant to know;
Why am I s o alone ?
Where is my w oman, can I br ing her home ?
Have I driven her aw ay ? Is she gone ?
Morning comes to s unrise,
And I'm d riven to my b ed
I see that it is e mpty,
And there's d evils in my h ead
I em brace t he many co lored beast,
I grow weary of the t orment; Can there be no peace ?
And I find myself just w ishing that my lif e would soon decease