Original text: “Sixteen Tons”
Author: Tennessee Ernie Ford
Some people say a man is made outta mud
A poor man’s made outta muscle and blood
Muscle and blood and skin and bones
A mind that’s a-weak and a back that’s strong
You load 16 tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
St. Peter, don’t you call me ’cause I can’t go
I owe my soul to the company store
I was born one mornin’ when the sun didn’t shine
I picked up my shovel and I walked to the mine
I loaded 16 tons of number nine coal
And the straw boss said, “Well, a-bless my soul”
You load 16 tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
St. Peter, don’t you call me ’cause I can’t go
I owe my soul to the company store
I was born one mornin’, it was drizzlin’ rain
Fightin’ and trouble are my middle name
I was raised in the canebrake by an ol’ mama lion
Can’t no high toned woman make me walk the line
You load 16 tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
St. Peter, don’t you call me ’cause I can’t go
I owe my soul to the company store
If you see me comin’, better step aside
A lotta men didn’t, a lotta men died
One fist of iron, the other of steel
If the right one don’t get you
Then the left one will
You load 16 tons, what do you get?
Another day older and deeper in debt
St. Peter, don’t you call me ’cause I can’t go
I owe my soul to the company store
Sixteen Tons – Song Meaning (Summary)
“Sixteen Tons” describes the harsh life of American coal miners in the mid-20th century. The narrator works endlessly, hauling coal day after day, yet he becomes “another day older and deeper in debt.”
The song highlights exploitation, poverty, and the sense of being trapped in a system controlled by the mining companies.
Summary Translation of the Song (Non-literal)
The lyrics portray a worker who digs coal every day but never gets ahead. Instead, he grows older and sinks deeper into debt to the company store.
He presents himself as tough and resilient, shaped by hardship, but still unable to escape the economic grip of the mining industry.
The tone is dark, fatalistic, and reflective of the struggles of the working class.
Video Sixteen Tons
The video I like of this song is the one featuring the version sung by LeAnn Rimes.
Simplified Chords (Easy Version)
Original key: Em
Easy version: Am (better for beginners)
Verse (repeated pattern)
Am C E7 Am
Am C E7 Am
Chorus (same progression)
Am C E7 Am
👉 Typical rhythm: country-blues
👉 One main progression: it repeats through the whole song
This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)
