At birth Mom and Papa called the little boy Ned
Raised him on the banks of a riverbed
A houseboat tied to a big tall tree
A home for my Papa and my Mama and me

The clock strikes three, Papa jumps to his feet
Already Mama's cooking Papa something to eat
At half past Papa he's a-ready to go
He jumps in his pirouge heading down the bayou

He's got fishing lines strung across the Louisiana rivers
Gotta catch a big fish for us to eat
He settin' traps in the swamps catching anything he can
Gotta make a living he's a Louisiana Man
Gotta make a living he's a Louisiana Man

Muskrat hides hangin' by the dozen
Even got a lady mink, a muskrat's cousin
Got 'em out drying in the hot, hot sun
Tomorrow Papa's gonna turn them into mon'

Well they call Mama Rita and my daddy Jack
Little baby brother on the floor that's Mack
Bren' and Lin' are the family twins
Big brother Ed's on the bayou fishing

On the river floats Papa's great big boat
That's how my Papa goes into town
Takes every bit of a night and a day
To even reach the place where the people stay

I can hardly wait until tomorrow comes around
That's the day my Papa takes his furs to town
Papa promised me that I could go
Even let me see a cowboy show

I'd seen the cowboys and Indians for the first time then
I told my Papa gotta go again
Papa said "Son, we got lines to run
We'll come back again but first there's work to be done"

He's got fishing lines strung across the Louisiana rivers
Gotta catch a big fish for us to eat
He settin' traps in the swamps catching anything he can
Gotta make a living he's a Louisiana Man
Gotta make a living he's a Louisiana Man