Karaoké Patches (I'm Depending On You) Clarence Carter

I was born and raised down in Alabama

On a farm way back up in the woods

I was so ragged the folks used to call me Patches papa used to tease me about it

'Course deep down inside he was hurt 'cos he'd done all he could

My papa was a great old man

I can see him with a shovel in his hand

See, education he never had he did wonders when the time got bad

The little money from the crops he raised barely paid the bills we made

Oh, life had kicked him down to the ground

When he tried to get up life would kick him back down

One day papa called me to his dyin' bed

Put his hands on my shoulders and in tears he said

He said Patches

I'm depending on you son

To pull the family through my son, it's all left up to you

Two days later papa passed away and I became a man that day

So I told mama

I was gonna quit school

But she said that was daddy's strictest rule

So every morning fore

I went to school

I fed the chickens and I chopped wood too

Sometimes I felt that I couldn't go on

I wanted to leave just run away from home

But I would remember what my daddy said

With tears in his eyes on his dyin' bed

He said Patches

I'm depending on you son

I've tried to do my best it's up to you to do the rest

Then one day a strong rain came and washed all the crops away

And at the age of thirteen

I thought I was carrying

The weight of the whole world on my shoulders

And you know, mama knew what I was going through

'Cos every day I had to work the fields

'Cos that's the only way we got our meals

See, I was the oldest of the family

And everybody else depended on me

Every night

I heard my mama pray

Lord, give him strength to make another day

Though years have passed and all the kids have grown

The angels took mama to a brand new home

Lord knows, people

I shedded tears

But my daddy's voice helped me through the years

Sayin' Patches

I'm depending on you son

To pull the family through my son, it's all left up to you

Oh, I could still hear papa's voice sayin'

Patches

I'm depending on you son

I've tried to do my best it's up to you to do the rest

I could still hear papa when he's saying

Patches

I'm depending on you son

To pull the family through my son, it's all left up to you