At first Mom and Papa called the little boy Ned

raised him on the banks of the riverbed

A houseboat tied to a big tall tree

a home for my Papa and my Mama and me



The clock strikes three Papa jumps to his feet

Already Mama's cooking Papa something to eat

At half past Papa he's a-ready to go

He jumps in his bireau heading down the bayou



He's got fishing lines strung across the Louisiana River

gotta catch a big fish for us to eat

He sets his traps catching anything he can

Gotta make a living he's a Louisiana Man

Gotta make a living he's a Louisiana Man



Muskrat hides hangin' by the dozen

Even got a lady makes a muskrat cousin

All the hides drying in the hot hot sun

Tomorrow Papa's gonna turn them into mon



Call Mama Rita and my daddy is Jack

little baby brother on the floor is Matt

Green and Lynn are the family twins

Big brother Ed's on the bayou fishing



On the river floats Papa's great big boat

that's how my Papa goes into town

Takes every bit of the night and day

to even reach the place where the people stay



I can hardly wait 'till tomorrow comes around

That's the day my Papa takes his furs to town

Papa promised me that I could go

he'd even let me see a cowboy show



I'd seen the cowboys and Indians for the first time then

Told my Papa gotta go again

Papa said "Son we got a life to run

We'd come back again 'cos there's work to be done"



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