[Verse 1]
I can tell it wears you out
You deserve better now
But a loss is a loss
Any old way

[Verse 2]
You played by the rules
You kept every word
But no one ever heard
What you wanted to say

[Chorus]
It's a backwards world
It's a backwards world
Upstream is forward
In a backwards world

[Verse 3]
When a man gets your respect
You know it won't buy him much
So maybe it's not
Worth as much as it once was

[Verse 4]
If the total of it all
Doesn't add up to an ounce
So when [?], then what is it for?
Yeah, what is it all for?
[Chorus]
It's a backwards world
It's a backwards world
Upstream is forward
In our backwards world

[Bridge]
Is this truly my faith?
Pray to the Lord my soul to take around, around, around
If you don't show me sign
Then it's up to me to find

[Chorus]
It's a backwards world
It's a backwards world
Upstream is forward
In our backwards world