| 1973 | C | G | |
| Looking back at my | hard luck days |
| F | C | |
| I | really do have to | laugh |
| C | G | |
| Working in a dive for | twenty six dollars |
| F | G | |
| Spending it all on | grass |
| F | C | |
| We were hungry | hard luck heros |
| F | G | |
| Trying just to stay | alive |
| F | C | |
| We'd go down to the | corner drug |
| D | G | |
| This is how we'd sur | vive |
| Chorus: |
| C | |
| Who's going to steal the peanut butter? |
| F | C | |
| I'll get a can of sar | dines |
| C | |
| Running up and down the aisle of the mini mart |
| F | G | |
| Sticking food in our | jeans |
| F | C | |
| We | never took more than | we could eat |
| F | G | |
| There was | plenty left on the | rack |
| F | C | |
| We all swore if we | ever got rich |
| G | C | |
| We would pay the mini mart | back |
| F | C | F | C | |
| Yes | sir! | Yes | sir! |
| G | C | |
| We would pay the mini mart | back |
| It was a two man operation |
| Had it all down on a note |
| Ricky would watch that big round mirror |
| And I'd fill up my coat |
| Then we'd head for the checkout aisle |
| With a lemon and a bottle of beer |
| Into to the car, got to make it on home |
| Supper time's gettin' near |
| (Repeat chorus) |
| I guess every good picker has had some hard times |
| I sure had my share |
| It's really kind of funny to laugh at it now |
| But I don't want to go back there |
| So every now and then when I'm in the grocery |
| I take a little but not much |
| You never know when those hard times will hit you |
| And I don't want to lose my touch |
| (Repeat chorus) |