Washin' up them dirty ol' dishes
Mama's good china washed away in the flood
Ev'ry drop o' my common sense
Never was good enough
To get by to get by
To get by lord to get by
I scribbled down some grocery list
The kind on the frigidaire
Rice's grocery down on main street
We got credit there
To get by to get by
To get by lord to get by
Too young to buy cigarettes
So i stole em for a friend o' mine
He dont breathe too good these days
But aint givin' up tryin'
To get by to get by
To get by lord to get by
The power of youth runs by and by
Stuck in a revolvin' door
Some high falutin' trick in my mind
Always cries out for more
To get by to get by
Dem bells and whistles they talk money
For the suits and ties in the cubicles
Oldtime mem'ries soon forgotten
We use to jus' make do
To get by to get by
To get by lord to get by
Egyptians mummified their dead
The roman empire flourished
All them after life possessions
Makes me old and foolish
To get by to get by
To get by lord to get by
To get by to get by
Now
A dollar burns a hole in my pocket
From the magazines o' the american dream
The gra** is always greener
On my neighbor's property
To get by to get by
To get by lord to get by
To get by to get by
To get by to get by