Don't know how I'm gonna tell you
I can't play with you no more
Don't know how I'm gonna do what mama told me)
My friend, the boy next door

Don’t believe what people saying
You're gonna let your hair hang down
I'm satisfied to sit here working all day long
You're in the darkest side of town

That's the way
That's the way it’s got to be
Yeah, mama said, mama said
That's the way it’s got to be

When I'm out I see you walking
Why don't your eyes see me
Can it be you've found another game to play
What did mama say to me

Yesterday I saw you standing by the river
Weren't those tears that filled your eyes
And all the fish that lay in dirty water dying
Have they got you hypnotized?

That's the way
That's the way it’s got to be, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah don’t you know
Mama said, momma said
That's the way it’s got to be