If you gonna be king of the hill
You can't make it at the cotton mill

If you gonna be king of the hill
You can't make it at the cotton mill
Get put on at the Harlan mine
Be the last one out at quittin' time

You already workin' when the whistle blew
Never complain about a job to do
When they say who can, you say I will
If you ever gonna be king of the hill

If you gonna be king of the hill
You can't make it at the cotton mill

You need a good woman to share your bed
To keep you loved and to keep you fed
To help you to face another day
To get you up and on your way

Where the golden rule don't rule out true
You do to them before they do to you
Watch out for yourself or nobody will
If you ever gonna be king of the hill

If you gonna be king of the hill
You can't make it at the cotton mill

Saturday night you go to Harlan town
You shoot some pool and you fool around
You watch the girls and you drink bootleg
Get starved to death before you beg

You trust in luck till your luck is gone
Then jump right in and you hang right on
There may be times you would have to kill
If you ever gonna be king of the hill

If you gonna be king of the hill
You can't make it at the cotton mill

When the last of the coals out of every vein
Had long been gone on the northbound train
Walk up to the top and if you're standing still
You can call yourself king of the hill

But if you fall like a lot have done
By accident or knife or gun
When they lay you high on the mountain still
You can call yourself king of the hill

If you gonna be king of the hill
You can't make it at the cotton mill