There was a camp town man, used to plow and sing
And he loved that mule and the mule loved him
When the day got long as it does about now
I'd hear him singing to his mule cow
Calling, "Come on my sweet old girl, and I'll bet the whole damn world
That we're gonna make it yet to the end of the row"
Singing "Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind
Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind, Bessie
Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind no more"
Said it's a mean old world, heavy in need
And that big machine is just picking up speed
And we're supping on tears, and we're supping on wine
We all get to heaven in our own sweet time
So come all you Asheville boys and turn up your old-time noise
And kick 'til the dust comes up from the cracks in the floor
Singing, "Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind, brother
Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind
Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind no more"
But the camp town man, he doesn't plow no more
I seen him walking down to the cigarette store
Guess he lost that knack and he forgot that song
Woke up one morning and the mule was gone
So come on, you ragtime kings, and come on, you dogs, and sing
And pick up a dusty old horn and give it a blow
Playing, "Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind, honey
Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind, sugar
Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind no more"
And he loved that mule and the mule loved him
When the day got long as it does about now
I'd hear him singing to his mule cow
Calling, "Come on my sweet old girl, and I'll bet the whole damn world
That we're gonna make it yet to the end of the row"
Singing "Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind
Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind, Bessie
Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind no more"
Said it's a mean old world, heavy in need
And that big machine is just picking up speed
And we're supping on tears, and we're supping on wine
We all get to heaven in our own sweet time
So come all you Asheville boys and turn up your old-time noise
And kick 'til the dust comes up from the cracks in the floor
Singing, "Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind, brother
Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind
Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind no more"
But the camp town man, he doesn't plow no more
I seen him walking down to the cigarette store
Guess he lost that knack and he forgot that song
Woke up one morning and the mule was gone
So come on, you ragtime kings, and come on, you dogs, and sing
And pick up a dusty old horn and give it a blow
Playing, "Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind, honey
Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind, sugar
Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind no more"
Lyrics submitted by smallwonderrobot, edited by planochico, tweedwolfscream
Hard Times Lyrics as written by Gillian Howard Welch David Todd Rawlings
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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I had a stupid argument with my wife about nothing, because we're both stressed about money, then I heard this song for the first time, having downloaded the album that night (though I now wish I bought the CD, check this out! youtube.com/…).
Anyway, this song came on, and I cried. "Hard times ain't gonna rule my mind, honey, hard times ain't gonna rule my mind any more". I'm sorry, baby.
Thank you Gillian and David for soothing my life.
The Camptown man doesn't plow anymore because he no longer has any fields of any crops. He's lost them because of "factory farms." The only businesses left in his community are cigarette stores and check-cashing places. Walmart has shut everyone else down.
An absolutely heartbreaking and beautiful song. Thank you so much for it, Gillian and David.
For the uncertain line I believe the lyrics are "It's a mean old world, heavy in need..."
Also I think she says "lost that knack" or maybe "nag" and not "lost that black".
In the last verse I think she says ragtime kids.
Thanks for the lyrics.
And on that topic, one minor thing that confuses me about this song is the camptown man's animal. It's referred to as a mule in the second line and again in the last verse, but also as a "muley cow", which means a hornless cow, not a mule.