On the day you rattled up the line to work my family's
land
Mama caught us smilin' and she took me by the hand
She said “what yer young heart sees in him I'll never
understand
'Cause it's a sorry life to live, lovin' a
sharecroppin' man
His back is nearly broken by the time his day is
through
His dirty hands are empty when he brings them home to
you
So don't come runnin' back here when his soil turns to
sand
It's a sorry life to live, lovin' a sharecroppin' man”
On a cold November evening 'cross the bitter plains we
ran
Far from that ol' shotgun in our copper weddin' bands
You whispered “life without you girl is more than I can
stand
But it's a sorry life to live, lovin' a sharecroppin'
man
My back is nearly broken by the time my day is through
My dirty hands are empty when I brings them home to you
So remember that I warned you when our soil turns to
sand
It's a sorry life to live, lovin' a sharecroppin' man
On our youngest daughter's finger sets a simple copper
band
The boy we worked last summer's gone and asked her for
her hand
She said “watchin' you and daddy through the years I
understand
That I want to live my life lovin' a sharecroppin' man
He'd sooner break his back than break a promise made to
you
His empty hands are dirty but his heart is pure and
true
And the good Lord guides his steady plow through soil
or through sand
The sweetest life to live's lovin' a sharecroppin' man
The good Lord guides his steady plow through soil or
through sand
Ah, the sweetest life to live's lovin' a sharecroppin'
man