1.

    |Am           G      F          E
Some people say a man is made outta mud,
 |Am         G          F          E     |
A poor man's made outta muscle and blood,
Am         G         Dm       /
Muscle and blood and skin and bones,
Am              /          /           E      |
A mind that's a-weak and a back that's strong.

chorus:

        |Am      G     F           E
You load sixteen tons, what do you get?
 |Am         G         F         E
A-nother day older and deeper in debt,
     |Am              G               Dm      / 
Saint Peter don't you call me, 'cause I can't go,
 |Am     /           E       Am    |
I owe my soul to the company store.

2.

I was born one mornin' when the sun didn't shine,
I picked up my shovel and I walked to the mine,
I loaded sixteen tons of number nine coal,
And the store boss said: "Well, a-bless my soul!"

chorus:

3.

I was born one mornin', it was drizzlin' rain,
Fightin' and trouble are my middle name,
I was raised in the canebrake by an ol' mama lion,
Ain't no-a high-toned woman make me toe the line.

chorus:

4.

If you see me comin', better step aside,
A lotta men didn't, a lotta men died,
I’ve got one fist of iron, the other of steel,
If the right one don't a-get you, then the left one will.

chorus: