I ain’t been but one little place and lived here all my life
I ain’t known but one woman and now she is my wife
Never been further than up the road to the town and back again
Never known but a handful of folks and them I call my friends

Now I’m going to leave here
Now I’m going away
Keep my fiddle tuned for me
I’ll need it some sweet day

Well the preacher said to my only son I’ll sign you up for war
You’ll fight for your life far from your home and never come back no more
Well my only son come home one day and we buried him up the hill
Next to his auntie and old grandma and dear old uncle bill

Now I’m going to leave here
Now I’m going away
Keep my fiddle tuned for me
I’ll need it some sweet day

Now I’m gonna go myself and see what’s it’s all about
Why’d they take a poor man’s son he was all I got
Who’s pockets are filled with gold and they don’t have to fight
Or leave home and say goodbye to their kids and worry on them all night

Now I’m going to leave here
Now I’m going away
Keep my fiddle tuned for me
I’ll need it some sweet day

I set up camp one day on the street where the rich man lived
He won’t come out and talk to me he don’t have the time to give
But’ll call the cops and say roustabout’s a-living on our place
So take him away and all his kind I don’t wanna see his face

Now I’m going to leave here
Now I’m going away
Keep my fiddle tuned for me
I’ll need it some sweet day

I wished I’d stayed to home and kept my son there too
You can give to the rich man all day long but he’ll never give back to you
So they can call me roustabout and do it all they please
Never will I stop for them or get down on my knees

Now I’m going to leave here
Now I’m going away
Keep my fiddle tuned for me
I’ll need it some sweet day