i m an ordinary man nothing special nothing grand i ve had to work for everything i own i never asked for a lot i was happy with what i got enough to keep my family and my home now they say that times are hard and they ve handed me my cards they say there s not the work to go around and when the whistle blows the gates will finally close tonight they re going to shut this factory down then they ll tear it d o w n i never missed a day nor went on strike for better pay for twenty years i served them best i could now with a handshake and a cheque it seems so easy to forget loyalty through the bad times and through good the owner says he s sad to see that things have got so bad but the captains of industry won t let him lose he still drives a car and smokes his cigar and still he takes his family on a cruise he ll never lose well it seems to me such a cruel irony he s richer now then he ever was before now my cheque is spent and i can t afford the rent there s one law for the rich one for the poor every day i ve tried to salvage some of my pride to find some work so s i might pay my way oh but everywhere i go the answer s always no there s no work for anyone here today no work today break 1st four lines and so condemned i stand just an ordinary man like thousands beside me in the queue i watch my darling wife trying to make the best of life and god knows what the kids are going to do now that we are faced with this human waste a generation cast aside and as long as i live i never will forgive you ve stripped me of my dignity and pride you ve stripped me bare you ve stripped me bare you ve stripped me bare