I was cast out of Eden
And driven out east
In my darkest hour, turned to crime
I was sentenced to jail
Where I was beaten and starved
I was murdered time after time after time
Treat a man like a dog
And that's what he'll become
He'll grovel today
But soon his time will come
A man can be pushed
Made to endure all pain
But one like a noose
He'll reach his breaking strain
In an act of defense
Or defiance or rage
I savagely beat my cellmate
So they shackled my legs
And threw me in a gang
To clear an old graveyard
To lay down some track
I felt like a beast
Running hurt, blind, and bleeding
Knowing somewhere a cliff is ahead
The bossman would watch
From the shade of a tree
And drive me till I was near dead
The boss licked his chops
And said, "Get back to work"
"Or I'll throw your bones down in the hole."
Like pot boiling over
And snuffing out its fire
My soul burned as black as a coal
I'm no bossman's dog
My back won't stoop far
My home's not in heaven
I don't run from war
They say a man can be pushed
But when there's nothing left at stake
Sooner or later
He'll break
My eyes filled with blood
So I picked up a bone
And I cleaved his fat head clean in two
He fell into the dust
As I spat on his face
"Brother, the same goes for you."