| I asked Mama many times
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| What kept Papa so far behind
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| What in the world was holding my Daddy down?
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| Papa always dropped his head
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| Lord, he seemed so afraid
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| Like he was carryin' a heavy burden all the time
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| There was a man up in the big house
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| But Papa was afraid to speak out
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| The man kept my Daddy’s nose right on the ground
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| Girl, your Papa he was mighty good
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| He was doin' the best he could
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| All his life he lived just for you
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| But twelve kids, he had a heavy load
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| He couldn’t walk the front road
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| On his face he always wore a frown
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| It was for you and the others too
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| He was tryin' to make it through
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| He had to take the back road into town
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| Every year your Papa would say
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| «Next year, we gonna move away
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| I wanna take my children away from here»
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| He said «I've almost lost my fear
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| I think I see my way clear
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| I’m gonna take a stand and be a man»
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| But then the man would come from the big house
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| Daddy would always back out
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| And end right up again behind the plow
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| But twelve kids, he had a heavy load
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| He couldn’t walk the front road
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| On his face he always wore a frown
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| It was for you and the others too
|
| He was tryin' to make it through
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| He had to take the back road into town
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| When he finally made up his mind
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| Your Daddy had wasted too much time
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| Your Papa just put it off a little too long
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| 'Cause all the years that Papa was sleepin'
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| Father Time kept right on creepin'
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| 'Til it was time for him to lay his body down
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| He did it all against his will
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| He got lost back in them fields
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| My Daddy never made it into town
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| Twelve kids, he had a heavy load
|
| He couldn’t walk the front road
|
| On his face he always wore a frown
|
| It was for you and the others too
|
| He was tryin' to make it through
|
| He had to take the back road into town
|
| Mmm, twelve kids, he had a heavy load
|
| He couldn’t walk the front road
|
| On his face he always wore a frown
|
| It was for you and the others too
|
| He was tryin' to make it through
|
| He had to take the back road into town
|
| Ohh twelve kids, he had a heavy load
|
| He couldn’t walk the front road |