Lyrics:
I'm Just Barely Living, That's All [Version (a)]:
You have heard the old saying
"Every dog must have his day"
But I've been trying since I was born
To get mine, but there ain't no way
They say "Speculate your money
And that you will have more"
But that ain't nothin' but talk
I've tried that thing before
Believe me, I had eleven dollars once
And you know that ain't so small
I got mixed up in a whist crap game
And there I left it all
I'm just barely living, that's all
'Cause a little bit is better than none at all
I accumulate a little now and then
But it won't last long 'cause it's bound to end
I had my fortune told by Madam Caul
She said I'm just barely living, that's all
I went out West to the Klondike mines
There I thought I'd get rich quick
It was so cold in that doggone place
But I made up my mind to stick
A white man had a gold field here
And mine was over there
We both started digging side by side
To get rich, we did prepare
"The gold I've found!" the white man yelled
"My wealth is about to bud"
I dug twice as far as the white man did
And the best I got was mud
I'm just barely living, that's all
'Cause a little bit is better than none at all
I accumulate a little now and then
But it won't last long 'cause it's bound to end
I had no business digging in that mud at all
'Cause I'm just barely living, that's all
You have heard the old saying
"Every dog must have his day"
But I've been trying since I was born
To get mine, but there ain't no way
They say "Speculate your money
And that you will have more"
But that ain't nothin' but talk
I've tried that thing before
Believe me, I had eleven dollars once
And you know that ain't so small
I got mixed up in a whist crap game
And there I left it all
I'm just barely living, that's all
'Cause a little bit is better than none at all
I accumulate a little now and then
But it won't last long 'cause it's bound to end
I had my fortune told by Madam Caul
She said I'm just barely living, that's all
I went out West to the Klondike mines
There I thought I'd get rich quick
It was so cold in that doggone place
But I made up my mind to stick
A white man had a gold field here
And mine was over there
We both started digging side by side
To get rich, we did prepare
"The gold I've found!" the white man yelled
"My wealth is about to bud"
I dug twice as far as the white man did
And the best I got was mud
I'm just barely living, that's all
'Cause a little bit is better than none at all
I accumulate a little now and then
But it won't last long 'cause it's bound to end
I had no business digging in that mud at all
'Cause I'm just barely living, that's all
The Song:
In order for it to feel more authentic, Beck filled out his Song Reader book with a number of song fragments and melodies, as well as fictional album collections and made-up song titles. "I'm Just Barely Living, That's All" is listed as a part of the Male Quartette Collection, the greatest book ever compiled.
Many of the titles throughout the book are references to older sheet music/songs, and this is one. "I'm Just Barely Living, Dat's All" is a song from 1903 by Harry Brown and Tom Lemonier.
In order for it to feel more authentic, Beck filled out his Song Reader book with a number of song fragments and melodies, as well as fictional album collections and made-up song titles. "I'm Just Barely Living, That's All" is listed as a part of the Male Quartette Collection, the greatest book ever compiled.
Many of the titles throughout the book are references to older sheet music/songs, and this is one. "I'm Just Barely Living, Dat's All" is a song from 1903 by Harry Brown and Tom Lemonier.