^^^ Some people say a man is made out of mud
A poor man is made out of muscle and blood
Muscle and blood,
And skin and bones,
A mind that's weak,
And a back that's strong.

CH:

You load sixteen tons
And what do you get?
Another day older
And deeper in debt
Saint Peter, don't you call me,
'Cuz I can't go!
I owe my soul to
The company store.

I was born one morning when the sun didn't shine
Picked up a shovel and I walked to the mine
I loaded Sixteen Tons of Number Nine coal
And the straw boss hollered, Well bless my soul*

CH.

I was born one morning it was drizzling rain;
Fighting and trouble are my middle name.
I was raised in a cane brake
By an ole mammy lion.
Ain't no hog-toed woman make me walk that line.

Ch.

Now if you see me coming better step aside!
A lot men didn't, and a lot of men died.
One fist of iron, and the other of steel,
If the right one don't get you then the left one will.

Ch.

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From memory. But good!!

*In the original, the straw boss hollered "God damn your soul", I believe.

A