Written by kevin bacon



Oh he was a cold cold man

Touched him with a cold cold hand

Raised him with an iron glove

Down in the city of brotherly love

There he waited at the top

Legs on fire I thought I'd drop

Man it was a big big hill

Swear to God I'm climbing still

I will never be as tall

As his mark upon the wall

But I'm afraid that I've begun

To cast a shadow on the son

I want to break this legacy

Change this angry history

And plant a brand new family tree

I guess the rest is up to me



Chorus

I gotta chop wood I gotta carry water

Hold my boy and respect my daughter

And when I take my rest

I'll know I did the best I could

Chop wood carry water



Oh he was a strange strange lad

All those wicked thoughts he had

Left to build his little world

And he left you with a lonely girl

Yeah you were the princely one

You bear the burden of the first born son

But man it was a peasant's goal

Cigarettes and rock and roll

Now you can try and hold it in

But you will never be as thin

And you can never take the floor

Because you never went to war

You want to break this legacy

Change this angry history

And plant a brand new family tree

Here's some cheap advice from me

Brother gotta

Chop wood you gotta carry water

Hold your boy and respect your daughter

And when you take your rest

You'll know you did the best you could

Chop wood carry water



Now you can build yourself a monument

Yeah you can write your name in stone

But you're checking out like you checked in naked and alone



Chorus