[Verse 1] Mine is a tale of many a man From Pikeville on west of Waco I make my living with my back and my hands Searching the caverns for coal What's left of a man too soon past his prime Most days I feel like a slave Doing my time on the company dime Down in a rock solid grave [Chorus] It's a dreary and dark, deep down in the mine But it's a life to which I am bound Where dreams of a young man just wither with time Since I never got out of this town I spend my days below the ground [Verse 2] When I was a boy about fifteen years old The mine wasn't part of my plan I had big dreams on down the road To be a doctor ora business man But then daddy, he died with a chest full of coal And a new sense of duty arrived Then I took his place down in that black hole And made sure the family survived
[Chorus] It's a dreary and dark, deep down in the mine But it's a life to which I am bound Where dreams of a young man just wither with time Since I never got out of this town I spend my days below the ground [Verse 3] As I walk out the door, I look down the hall Toward the room of my only son And of the family pictures that hang on the wall I pray someday he'll be the one Who can break down the chain of three generations And leave all the misery behind Find a new town and a good occupation And leave me with some peace of mind [Chorus] It's a dreary and dark, deep down in the mine But it's a life to which I am bound Where dreams of a young man just wither with time Since I never got out of this town I spend my days below the ground