The lyrics to “Busted,” written by Harlan Howard, and made famous as performed by Johnny Cash:

My bills are all due and the babies need shoes,

But I’m Busted

Cotton’s gone down to a quarter a pound

And I’m Busted

I got a cow that’s gone dry

And a hen that won’t lay

A big stack of bills

Getting bigger each day

The county’s gonna haul my belongings away,

But I’m Busted

So I called on my brother to ask for a loan

‘Cause I was Busted

I hate to beg like a dog for a bone,

But I’m Busted

My brother said, “there’s not a thing I can do,

My wife and my kids

Are all down with the flu

And I was just thinkin’ about callin’ on you,

‘Cause I’m Busted.”

Lord, I ain’t no thief, but a man can go wrong,

When he’s Busted

The food that we canned last summer is gone,

But I’m Busted

Now the fields are all bare

And the cotton won’t grow

Me and my family’s gotta pack up and go

But I’ll make a living, just where, I don’t know

‘Cause I’m Busted

There’s a lot to think about in this 2 minute song: family, poverty, foreclosure, charity, and economic displacement.

Update: A mendation e my way (HT) to check out Ray Charles’ version. Here is below: