Sixteen Tons – English Lyrics

• By: Johnny Cash
• Album: Johnny Cash Is Coming To Town

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the story of the American working man through Johnny Cash's version of "Sixteen Tons." This song offers a powerful lesson in American history, exploring themes of labor, debt, and resilience. Its straightforward narrative and iconic chorus make it an excellent song for English language learners to connect with a significant piece of American folk tradition.

[English]

("16 Tons" by Johnny Cash)

♪ Some people say a man is made outta mud ♪

♪ A poor man's made outta muscle and blood ♪

♪ Muscle and blood and skin and bone ♪

♪ A mind that's weak and a back that's strong ♪

♪ You load 16 tons and what do you get ♪

♪ Another day older and deeper in debt ♪

♪ Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go ♪

♪ I owe my soul to the company store ♪

(snappy guitar music) (snappy piano music)

(drumsticks clicking)

♪ I was born one mornin' when the sun didn't shine ♪

♪ I picked up my shovel and I walked to the mine ♪

♪ I loaded 16 tons of number nine coal ♪

♪ And the straw boss said "Well, a-bless my soul" ♪

♪ You load 16 tons and what do you get ♪

♪ Another day older and deeper in debt ♪

♪ Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go ♪

♪ I owe my soul to the company store ♪

(snappy guitar music) (snappy piano music)

(drumsticks clicking)

♪ I was born one mornin', it was drizzlin' rain ♪

♪ Fightin' and trouble are my middle name ♪

♪ Raised in the canebrake by an ol' mama lion ♪

♪ Ain't no high-toned woman make me walk the line ♪

♪ You load 16 tons and what do you get ♪

♪ Another day older and deeper in debt ♪

♪ Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go ♪

♪ I owe my soul to the company store ♪

(snappy guitar music) (snappy piano music)

(drumsticks clicking)

♪ If you see me comin', better step aside ♪

♪ A lotta men didn't and a lotta men died ♪

♪ With one fist of iron and the other of steel ♪

♪ If the right one don't get you ♪

♪ Then the left one will ♪

♪ You load 16 tons and what do you get ♪

♪ Another day older and deeper in debt ♪

♪ Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go ♪

♪ I owe my soul ♪

♪ To the company store ♪

(snappy guitar music) (snappy piano music)

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
load /loʊd/ A1	verb - to put or carry something onto a vehicle, animal, or person
debt /dɛt/ A2	noun - something owed, usually money
soul /soʊl/ A2	noun - the spiritual part of a person
mine /maɪn/ A1	noun - a place where minerals are extracted
coal /koʊl/ A1	noun - a combustible black rock used as fuel
boss /bɒs/ A1	noun - a person in charge of workers
bless /blɛs/ A2	verb - to invoke divine favor upon
fight /faɪt/ A1	verb - to take part in a physical conflict
trouble /ˈtrʌbəl/ A1	noun - a problem or difficulty
raise /reɪz/ A1	verb - to bring up from childhood
woman /ˈwʊmən/ A1	noun - an adult female human
walk /wɔk/ A1	verb - to move on foot at a slower pace than running
iron /ˈaɪərn/ A1	noun - a strong, hard metallic element
steel /stiːl/ A1	noun - a hard, strong alloy of iron
die /daɪ/ A1	verb - to stop living

Key Grammar Structures

• Some people say a man is made outta mud

  ➔ Use of colloquial 'outta' for 'out of'. Demonstrates informal language and dialect.

  ➔ The phrase uses a contraction, **'outta'**, which is common in spoken English and folk music. It's a less formal way of saying **'out of'**.

• A poor man's made outta muscle and blood

  ➔ Possessive apostrophe ('s) indicating ownership or association. Use of 'made outta' again.

  ➔ The **'s** in 'poor man's' shows that the qualities following belong to or are associated with the **poor man**.

• You load 16 tons and what do you get

  ➔ Interrogative sentence structure with 'what do you get' functioning as a rhetorical question.

  ➔ This line is a question, but it's not seeking information. It's a **rhetorical question** meant to emphasize the futility of the work – the answer is already implied (another day older and deeper in debt).

• Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go

  ➔ Double negative ('don't' and 'can't') – common in some dialects, particularly African American Vernacular English (AAVE).

  ➔ The use of both **'don't'** and **'can't'** creates a double negative. While grammatically incorrect in standard English, it's a feature of certain dialects and emphasizes the speaker's inability to go to heaven.

• I owe my soul to the company store

  ➔ Figurative language – metaphor. 'Owe my soul' is not literal; it represents complete economic dependence.

  ➔ The phrase **'owe my soul'** is a **metaphor**. It doesn't mean the singer literally sold their soul. It means they are so deeply in debt to the company that they have no freedom or control over their life.