Don't it make you sick when they say, "Trust me I'm your friend" You know there must be some election coming round again And what about when someone calls you haven't seen in years? You know they're after something when they break down in tears Everybody's after something these days They're all on the take Don't it make you mad? Everybody's onward and everybody's upward Stealing from my pocket And stepping on my head You might say I'm bitter, well, I guess that you'd be right If you'd been through what I have maybe then you'd realize But I was born with nothing and now I've even less And the only things I'll leave behind are pain and bitterness Everybody's after something these days They're all on the take Don't it make you mad? Everybody's onward and everybody's upward Stealing from my pocket And stepping on my head And the only pleasure that I get is knowing it