not so long ago just outside paris arkansas a young lady had a mountain to climb gonna climb up this mountain cause there s one thing i know my daddy s in this mountain digging arkansas coal yes i hear my mama calling i ll let her wait ten minutes more she ll be sold cause i like to lay on the ground and listen to the sound of my daddy digging arkansas coal i was born in this mountain been down her since i was nine years old and i know some day i ll die in this mountain digging digging arkansas arkansas coal coal arkansas coal married me a good man back in 59 knew he was an arkansas coal miner and that suited me fine got us a little daughter she s only eight years old wishing she was a man like her daddy digging arkansas coal billy get off of that mountain billy you gotta go to school billy you re mama and daddy ain t gonna raise you no natural fool ain t gonna raise you no natural fool mama why s the earth shaking mama is the world coming to an end mama why are you crying is it another caving my god the rocks are falling ten thousand tons on my head i knew someday this would happen so this is how it feels to be dead so this is how it feels to be dead gonna climb up that mountain cause there s one thing i know my daddy s in that mountain digging arkansas coal