Well you know I left my home when I was seventeen years of age

Started hitch hiking from San Francisco down to L.A.

And I, I met this man giving me a ride

Amd finally got me by my side said, "Hey son have a dime."

I say, "Thank you" and he was on his way

So I got down in the big cities and I was trying to get myself a job



But there wasn't no jobs around

I couldn't seem to find anyway to make guineas

And this man at the gas station, he says,

"Son you need yourself a job?" and I said "Mr. I surely do."

He said "Welcome in, I give you a dollar and a 1/4 an hour"

That's sure good handling that time



So I worked in the gas station for a while

And I got myself a Plymouth mobile, yes I did

That was comin' on pretty good up to one day

I kind of let down on my lovin' down for a 1/4 an hour

Couldn't go far out working overtime I need a lot of money

That lot of money I don't know what to do



So I met one of these guys who'd walk around in the neighborhood

Behind this other gas station we figure we'd check it out pretty good

So we decided we're gonna rob this gas station

Because there was no other way ot get no money

And then one night when there was no one around

We went over there on that side of town

And we broke into that gas station and we robbed the cash register

And just at that time we're making our escape

Here come a policeman walking up the street

He yelled "Halt!" and we got scared we threw the money up in the air

We started running and he started too

He's hollering "halt!" and then he began to shoot. I was lucky I got over a fence

My other friend made it around the corner, but my other buddy he went down



And Michael you should have stopped when the man told you

Because if that bullet wouldn't have hit you

You would have been living and what I'm trying to say now

Is that if you find yourself in a situation

Where you could get killed or you could live, Live if you cried



He didn't have to go down if he were to stop

We had some pride wouldn't let him quit that runnin'

But now Michael's in the ground. Michael why did you keep on runnin'?

Michael your pride done got you killed

You should have knowed that cop had a pistol on his side

Why didn't you stop before you was killed