Now whatcha gonna do

When the welfare turn it's back on you?

Whatcha gonna do

When the welfare turn it's back on you?

You'll be standin' there stranded

And there won't be a thing you can do


Now you look all through your house, yeah

Yes, and you can't even find a piece of bread

You look all through your house, I know you do

Yes, you can't even find a piece of bread

I sometimes begin to wonder, yeah

Yes, if you'd be better off, be better off dead


Lord have mercy


(Guitar solo)


You have to go down to the welfare

Every month to report

And some of the things they say to you

Will sure enough get your goat

If you tell them that you're sick

You better have a bad cough, lord have mercy

Cause if you don't, they'll be ready to throw you off,

I know they will


Whatcha gonna do, lord have mercy

When the welfare turns its back on you?

Yeah, you'll be standin' there stranded

Yeah, and there ain't a thing that you can do