I remember when I first went to school
They said, Don't be a joker, don't be a fool
Pledge your allegiance to the red, white and blue
Don't expect your country to do nothin' for you
They said your forefathers loved you
but I only had one
And I watched him die in the heat of the sun
Suckin' up the bullets of a policeman's gun
There was nothin' I could do but stay away

In the U.S.A. you gotta take your chances
If you plan on stayin' free
They call this the land of the living
But they're trying to make a dead man out of me

I remember when I first hit the road
I [bad word] #39; from the lenders of the money I owed
Came to Austin, heard a knock at my door
Crossed another border and [bad word] #39; some more
They say they're gonna get me but it ain't happened yet
Burnin' my fingers on my last cigarette
It's time to remember time to forget
Nothin' I could do but get away

I remember all the stories I heard
How a man's supposed to be 'bout as free as a bird
My brother's in prison, my father's dead
Me, I'm tired of living with a price on my head
I wonder if there's a place to be
In the whole wide country for a fella like me
Name's in the paper, face on T.V.
Nothin'I can do but get away