Well, the bills are all due and the babies need shoes but I'm busted
And cotton is down to a quarter a pound and I'm busted
I've got a cow that went dry, I gotta hen that won't lay
A big stack of bills that's getting bigger each day
The county will haul my belongings away 'cause I'm busted

Well, I went to my brother to ask for a loan 'cause I'm busted
Oh, I hate to beg like a dog for a bone but I'm busted
Well, my brother says, "There's not a thing I can do
My wife and my kids, they are all down with the flu
And I was just thinking and just calling on you 'cause I'm busted"

Well now, I'm not thief but a man can do wrong when he's busted
And all the food that we put up last summer is gone and I'm busted
Well, the fields are all bare and the cotton won't grow
And me and my family, they gotta pack up and go
Where I'll make a livin' just where I don't know, I'm busted

I've got a cow that went dry and a hen that won't lay
A big stack of bills that's getting bigger each day
The county will haul, my belongings away 'cause I'm busted