Hallelujah! I'm a Bum
19th Century John J. Husband

1. Oh, why don't you work
Like other men do?
How the hell can I work
When the skies are so blue?
Chorus:
Hallelujah! I'm a bum,
Hallelujah bum again,
Hallelujah! give us a handout
To revive us again.
2. Oh, I love my boss
And my boss loves me,
And that is the reason
I'm so hungry.

3. Well, springtime has come
And I'm just out of jail,
Without any money,
Without any bail.

4. Oh why don't you save all
The money you earn?
Well if I didn't eat,
I'd have money to burn.

5. Oh, I like my boss,
He's a good friend of mine,
And that's why I'm standing
Out in the breadline.
 6. I can't buy a job
'cause I ain't got the dough
So I ride in a boxcar
'cause I'm a hobo.
7. I went to a house and
I knocked on the door,
The lady said, "Scram, bum,
You've been here before!"

8. I went to a house, and
I asked for some bread;
A lady came out, says,
"The baker is dead."

9. I went to a bar and
I asked for a drink,
They gave me a glass
And they showed me the sink.

10. Oh why don't you work
Like other folks do?
How can I get a job
When you're holding down two?

11. Whenever I get all
The money I earn,
The boss will be broke
And to work he must turn.
 


12. When springtime does come,
Oh won't we have fun,
We'll throw up our jobs
And we'll go on the bum.