[Verse 1]
Simple as my mama said when I was very young
She told me, "Not to worry, son, one day, you'll be someone"
But here I am at twenty-one as loaded as a stagecoach shotgun
I'm sorry, Mama, please don't look at me

[Verse 2]
When I got to Oklahoma, I was seventeen
My papa taught me how to work, and Lord, he was mean
Workin' all day in that August heat
And he taught me how to fish, my uncle taught me how to drink

[Verse 3]
Well, I went to California and I had me a band
And we played in all the bars in all the southern lands
We played all night and we drank for free
All of my boys and me

[Chorus]
Now I'm twenty-three
And thеre ain't nobody who can drink like me
Soon, I'll bе twenty-four
And the Lord knows that I can't drink no more
I know I shoulda taken it slow
It's not the way that my life goes
Now I know
When you're passed out on the floor
You're sober by twenty-four
[Verse 4]
Well, I had a girl who loved me the whole damn time
And I'd drink my whiskey and she'd drink wine
But soon, my bottle was too much to company

[Verse 5]
Yeah, we'd sit on the river and we'd fish all day
And we'd drive across the country, let the radio play
Seven damn years, I never thought she'd leave

[Chorus]
Now I'm twenty-three
And there ain't nobody who can drink like me
Soon, I'll be twenty-four
And the Lord knows that I can't drink no more
I know I shoulda taken it slow
It's not the way that my life goes
Lord, I know
When you're passed out on the floor
You're sober by twenty-four

[Outro]
Simple as my mama said when I was very young
She told me, "Not to worry, son, one day, you'll be someone"
But here I am at twenty-one as loaded as a stagecoach shotgun
I'm sorry, Mama, please don't look at me