I used to work for the New Jersey Railroad
I got laid off 'cause the times weren't good
My unemployment sixty-five dollars
Sixty-five dollars don't buy what it should

I have a-a weakness for 80-proof whiskey
Lately, I'm drinking a bottle every day
Messing my mind up
Lord, it's wrecking my body
But it helps make those long, lonely hours slip away

I used to be a railroad man
And I'm damn proud of it, too
I did more work in a working day
Than any two men could do

Foreman said I drink too much
And I guess it's half-way true
I drink half as much as my daddy did
And twice as much as you

I used to have me a good looking woman
Loved her and kept her
And called her my own

She started packing when I started drinking
Now I'm drunk and I'm busty
And I'm angry all alone
I used to be a railroad man
And I'm damn proud of it, too
I did more work in a working day
Than any two men could do

Foreman said I drink too much
And at last I know it's true
But I'm too far gone to change now
Ain't nothing I can do