Up To No Good Livin' – English Lyrics

• By: Chris Stapleton
• Album: From A Room: Volume 1

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the heart of modern country storytelling with Chris Stapleton's “Up To No Good Livin'.” This song offers a great opportunity to learn colloquial English expressions related to past mistakes and redemption. Its raw emotion and powerful vocals make it a compelling piece for understanding the nuances of trust and change in relationships, all set to a classic country and blues melody.

[English]

Wish I could come home from working

And not have her checking my breath

I'm tired of her turning her questions

Into the Gettysburg Address

There's no reason why she shouldn't trust me

The fact that she don't makes me mad

Can't count all the times that I've begged her

Honey, just let my past be the past

I used to drink like a fish and run like a dog

Without a whole lotta shit not committed by law

People called me the Picasso-of-painting-the-town

I've finally grown up

I've finally changed in that someone I was

To somebody I am

But she finds it hard to believe that she's turned me around

I know I'll probably die before I live all my

Up-to-no-good-livin'-down

Gave up on bringing her flowers

That just kept making things worse

I ain't been guilty of nothing

But being the man she deserves

I used to drink like a fish and run like a dog

Without a whole lotta shit not committed by law

People called me the Picasso-of-painting-the-town

I've finally grown up

I've finally changed in that someone I was

To somebody I am

But she finds it hard to believe that she's turned me around

You know I'll probably die before I live all my

Up-to-no-good-livin'-down

I used to cuss like a sailor and howl at the moon

And I woke up some morning with I-don't-know-who

But I never dreamed back then I'd have to pay for it now

You know I'll probably die before I live all my

Up-to-no-good-livin'-down

Yeah, I'll hate to die before I live all my

Up-to-no-good-living-down

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
drink /drɪŋk/ A1	verb - to consume liquid
run /rʌn/ A1	verb - to move quickly on foot
die /daɪ/ A2	verb - to stop living
live /lɪv/ A2	verb - to be alive; to reside
trust /trʌst/ B1	verb - to have confidence in
mad /mæd/ A2	adjective - angry
guilty /ˈɡɪlti/ B2	adjective - responsible for a wrongdoing
deserve /dɪˈzɜrv/ B2	verb - to merit something
believe /bɪˈliːv/ B1	verb - to accept as true
turn /tɜrn/ A2	verb - to change direction
grow /ɡroʊ/ A2	verb - to increase in size
change /tʃeɪndʒ/ B1	verb - to make different
past /pæst/ B1	noun - time before now
flower /ˈflaʊər/ A1	noun - the blooming part of a plant
law /lɔː/ B1	noun - system of rules
address /ˈæd.rɛs/ B2	noun - a formal speech
reason /ˈriːzən/ B1	noun - cause or explanation
question /ˈkwɛs.tʃən/ B1	noun - a sentence asking for information
moon /muːn/ A1	noun - the Earth's satellite
sailor /ˈseɪ.lər/ B1	noun - person who works on a ship

Key Grammar Structures

• Wish I could come home from working

  ➔ Wish + could (subjunctive form for unreal wishes)

  ➔ "could" expresses a hypothetical ability in a wish: Wish I "could" come home...

• And not have her checking my breath

  ➔ Gerund after a verb (have + object + gerund) to indicate a continuous action

  ➔ "checking" is a gerund showing a continuous action: have her "checking" my breath

• I'm tired of her turning her questions into the Gettysburg Address

  ➔ be tired of + gerund

  ➔ "tired of" is followed by the gerund "turning" to show what causes fatigue

• There's no reason why she shouldn't trust me

  ➔ negative reason + should + infinitive (modal verb in a negative clause)

  ➔ "shouldn't" is the negative form of the modal "should" expressing expectation: she "shouldn't" trust me

• Can't count all the times that I've begged her

  ➔ Present perfect (have + past participle) to describe experiences up to now

  ➔ "I've" is the contraction of "I have" showing present perfect: I "have" "begged" her many times

• I used to drink like a fish and run like a dog

  ➔ "used to" + base verb for past habits no longer true

  ➔ "used to" signals a former habit: I "used to" "drink" and "run" like that

• She finds it hard to believe that she's turned me around

  ➔ "find it + adjective + to + infinitive" structure

  ➔ "hard" is the adjective after "find it": she "finds it" "hard" "to believe"...

• I know I'll probably die before I live all my

  ➔ Future simple with "will" + adverb of probability + time clause with "before"

  ➔ "will" shows future; "probably" indicates uncertainty; "before" introduces a time clause: I'll "probably" "die" "before" I "live"...