Bobby Bare - Hard Time Hungrys Lyrics

(Shel Silverstein)

There's an old man sittin' in a rented room
Sittin' and watchin' the wall
Tryin' to remember the good ole days
And wonderin' why the kids don't call.

They used to go drivin' in the summer sun
When his woman was alive
Now he reads his Gideon Bible and waits
For his welfare check to arrive.

He got the hard time hungrys
Doin' the best that he can
Lord, the hard time hungrys
Are spreadin' all over the land.

There's a Tennessee housewife shoppin' in the market
Wearin' her last used jeans
She picks up a roast then changes her mind
Puts it back down and buys some more beans.

Her old man's workin' in the filling station
And what's he gonna say
When he sits down to a table full of nothin'
After workin' like a dog all day.

He got the hard time hungrys
Doin' the best that they can
I see the hard time hungrys
Spreadin' all over the land.

A Mississippi farmer he's watchin' the sky
Wondering if it's gonna rain
The payment's due on the tractor Lord
And the subsidy's been taken away.

And in New York City a taxicab driver
Screams at the world outside
'Cause it sure is hot and nobody's got
The money for a cross town ride.

Lord, they got the hard time hungrys
Doin' the best that they can
I see the hard time hungrys
Spreadin' all over the land.

Now I ain't no preacher and I ain't no teacher
But one thing's sure as the sun
If the dollar keeps a droppin' and prices keep a risin'
The worst is yet to come.

We got the hard time hungrys
I feel it touchin' my hand
Lord, I see the hard time hungrys
Spreadin' all over the land.

Yes, I see the hard time hungrys
Spreadin' all over the land...