I was dealing up and down the highway
'Til they caught me with a heavy load
They sentenced me to hard labor
Working on the side of the road
Now I don't deny I was guilty
And I know I broke the law
I was hungry and broke and couldn't see no hope
And my back was up against the wall

Now I'm right outside your window
Honey, open up and let me in
I broke out of jail this morning
And I ain't never going back again
I just had to stop by for a minute
And I can't stay long at all
'Cause I gotta run, you see, I'm under the gun
And my back is up against the wall

I was shackled to a three-time loser
A man named Jefferson
One night we got to talking
And I asked him what he'd done
He said: "A man fell over my razor
In the middle of a barroom brawl
But don't you see it was him or me
And my back was up against the wall"

Now I'm right outside your window
Honey, open up and let me in
I broke out of jail this morning
And I ain't never going back again
I just had to stop by for a minute
And I can't stay long at all
'Cause I gotta run, you see, I'm under the gun
And my back is up against the wall

Now I'm right outside your window
Honey, open up and let me in
I broke out of jail this morning
And I ain't never going back again
I just had to stop by for a minute
And I can't stay long at all
'Cause I gotta run, you see, I'm under the gun
And my back is up against the wall

I gotta run, you see, I'm under the gun
And my back is up against the wall
Yeah, I gotta run, you see, I'm under the gun
And my back is up against the wall