My bills are all due and the babies need shoes
But I'm busted
Cotton's gone down to a quarter a pound
And I'm busted

I got a cow that's gone dry
And a hen that won't lay
A big stack of bills
Getting bigger each day
The county's gonna haul my belongings away
But I'm busted

So I called on my brother to ask for a loan
'Cause I was busted
I hate to beg like a dog for a bone
But I'm busted

My brother said: There's not a thing I can do
My wife and my kids
Are all down with the flu
And I was just thinkin' about callin' on you
'Cause I'm busted

Lord, I ain't no thief, but a man can go wrong
When he's busted
The food that we canned last summer is gone
But I'm busted

Now the fields are all bare
And the cotton won't grow
Me and my family's gotta pack up and go
Where I'll make a living, the Lord only knows
'Cause I'm busted