Some people say a man is made out of mud
A poor man's made out of muscle and blood
Muscle and blood and skin and bone,
a mind that's weak and a back that's strong.
(Chorus:)
You load sixteen tons and what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
Oh, brother, don't you call me 'cause I can't go
I owe my soul to the company store.
I was born one morning when the sun didn't shine
I picked up my shovel and I walked to the mine
I loaded sixteen tons of number 9 coal
And the straw-boss said: "Well, bless my soul."
Chorus
I was born one morning, it was drizzling rain
Fighting and Trouble are my middle name
I was raised in the canebreak by an old mama lion
Can't no high-toned woman makes me walk the line.
Chorus
Well, if you see me coming, better step aside
A lot of men didn't, a lot of men died
One fist of iron, the other of steel
If the right one don't get you, then the left one will.
Chorus