I left for work at 4 am Loaded trip headed down below Aim to spend the next 12 hours a day For that west virginia coal New hats red and old hats black Each man knows he might not come back Its a way of life that few understand The pride of having coal miners hands Between the EPA and Yes We Can Its gettin harder everyday Just to keep our land Fight tooth and nail Just to earn our pay In the pitch black dark No light of day Got daddy's boots and pap-aws lamp To guide me through the methane damp Every thing that I am Came by coal miners hands Coal miners hands I got 15 years in mining coal Under my hat and in my soul In the belly of the beast They call the mines I work my shift and do my time So the lights come on And the kids get fed Lungs turn black But my neck's still red Lord I know you have a plan For my coal miners hands Coal miners hands Lost a real good friend in '93 To a beltfire off 119 Now and then I feel the ghosts Of those boys that just lost in Montcoal, Aracoma, Sago, and many more There's scores of men who've gone before I have lived and I will die By with coal miners hands Coal miners hands Coal miners hands Coal miners hands Coal miners hands