Workin' man with his life in his hands wants a better deal for the kids
And the big boss boys sold their Rolls Royce toys since mi-ining's hit the skids
Well I keep singin' songs, just wonderin' whats gone wrong
With the price of strings and picks and things, I'll be starvin' before long, yeah
And this is the way we stand today
We're chained to the middle with feet of clay-ay, yeah
That's the way-ay we're gonna stay
That's the way-ay we're gonna stay
Well, the union card in the exercise yard says red's the colour now
And the Liberal band say we'll save the land but still haven't worked out how
And the wife keeps bein' rude, protesting at the price of food
And the price of jeans is beyond my means, pretty soon I'll sit around in the nude
This is the way we stand today
We're chained to the middle with feet of clay-ay
And that's the way-ay, we're gonna stay
That's the way-ay, we're gonna stay-ay
Hey there mister can you lend me a dollar, I ain't had nothin' to eat all day-ay
Hey there lady can I share your umbrella, got nothin' on my feet anyway
Every now and then I save up my money, nough for a good hot bath
And once in a while I'll sit back and remember what it was like to laugh
To laugh, ooh-ooh
Ahh-ahh..., you know, you know-ow-ow-ow-ow
Come on down to Sydney town and dance the night away
Laugh and sing, do-oo anything, come and blow your next month's pay
For life is hard my friend and they'll get ya in the end
With ya strainin' backs and income tax, they won't have a penny to spend
This is the way we stand today
We're chained to the middle with feet of clay
That's the way-ay w
