Ten long years
Ten more to go
One rotten jail
Go on, let me go, son
Save your prayers
Cry no more
It ain't going to help none
Could be the way it was
Could be the way it was
Could be the way it all was sown
Could be a hard row to hoe
You're hitting land with hardened hoe
But all you plant don't want to grow none
Beyond the pale, driven dust
There ain't no wonder

Could be the way it was
Could be the way it was
Could be the way it all was sown?
Could be a hard row to hoe?

It's hard to tell which way it goes
Doing well, then way down the road, son
You're taking hell and giving blood
To all that want some

Could be the way it was
Could be the way it was
Could be the way it all was sown?
Could be a hard row to hoe?
Could be a hard row to hoe?

Where it ends we never know
How or when or way down the road, son
What kind of men will we become?
I'm trying to tell you
Don't let them break me, Lord
Don't let them break me, Lord
Could be the way it all was sown?
Could be a hard row to hoe?