I was just a kid roamin' around
travelin' through a little old town
A man walked up and said come with me
you're broke and son that's vagrancy
I carefree lad that love to roam but Lord
I wish I'd stayed at home

The way it looks I'll prob'ly hang
'Cause there ain't no hope on a chain gang
I dig that ditch I chop that corn I curse the day that I was born
I believe it's better for a man to hang than to work
Like a dog on a chain gang

The guard stands there with a great big gun I bet he'd love to see me run
And I guess I prob'ly will some day I'd rather be dead than to live this way
He's well fed and he's six foot tall and he's a meanest of them all
He cracks that whip and he swings that cane the Sun must've touched his brain
I dig that ditch

I gat a gal back home that's sweet and kind
And she's been waitin' a long long time
I just told her to forget my name
I won't ever live down to shame

Lord deliver me from this hole before I lose my mind and soul
The place gets weak and the back gets broke
Ain't no cause to laugh and joke
I dig that ditch
Work like a dog on a chain gang work
Like a dog on a chain gang