Living For the City

A boy is born in hardtime Mississippi Surrounded by four walls that ain't so pretty His parents give him love and affection To keep him strong moving in the right direction Living just enough just enough for the city His father works some days for fourteen hours And you can bet he barely makes a dollar His mother goes to scrub the floors for many You'd best believe she hardly gets a penny Living just enough just enough for the city His sister's black but she is good and pretty Her skirt is short but Lord her legs are sturdy To walk to school she's got to get up early Her clothes are old but never are they dirty Living just enough just enough for the city Her brother's smart he's got more sense than many His patience's long but soon he won't have any To find a job is like a haystack needle Cause where he lives they don't use coloured people Living just enough just enough for the city His hair is long his feet are hard and gritty He spends his life walkin' the streets of New York City He's almost dead from breathing air pollution He tried to vote but to him there's no solution Living just enough just enough for the city I hope you hear inside my voice of sorrow That motivates you to make a better tomorrow This place is cruel nowhere could be much colder If we won't change the world will soon be over Living just enough stop giving just enough for the city Living just enough just enough for the city Living just enough just enough for the city