I wish I had a pair of golden cufflinks
I wish I had a suit that's woven fine
so I could take you to your daddy's funeral
and I could mend your heart as well as mine o
I could mend your heart as well as mine

but all these things I wish for they cost money
you won't find that in a factory or a mine
all you're gonna find at the day' end
is you're a little close to your time o
you're a little closer to your time

I wish that we didn't have to do it
if we didn't have to do it we'd be dead
nine thousand days of your daddy's life
just to put a leak roof over your head o
just to put a leaky roof over your head

and we all know what it was that killed him
and you and ma will never see a dime
to the man that put the cancer in him
a man ain't but a number on a line o
a man ain't but a number on a line

now that you'e grown son and have your own son
won't you teach him that money isn't right
and if there ever comes a great reckoning
the world will burn a dollar at a time o
the world will burn a dollar at a time