All my life, I've been a workin' man When I was at school they said that's all you'll ever understand No profession, I didn't figure in their plans So they sent me down the factory to be a workin' man All I lived for, all I lived for All I lived for was to get out of the factory Now I'm here seemingly free, but working at the factory Then music came along and gave new life to me And gave me hope back in 1963 The music came and set me free From working at the factory All I lived for, all I lived for Was to get out of the factory All I lived for, all I lived for Was to get out of the factory Never wanted to be like everybody else But now there are so many like me sitting on the shelf They sold us a dream but in reality It was just another factory I made the music, thought that it was mine It made me free, but that was in another time But then the corporations and the big combines Turned musicians into factory workers on assembly lines All we live for, all we live for All we live for is to get out of the factory We made the music to set ourselves free From working at the factory All my life I've put in a working day Now it's sign the contract, get production on the way Take the money, make the music pay Working at the factory All I lived for was to get out of the factory Never wanted to be like everybody else But now there are so many like me sitting on the shelf They sold us a dream that in reality Was just another factory Working at the factory