Fancy
Lynn Anderson Lyrics

I remember it all very well lookin' back it was the summer I turned eighteen
I have vivid memories of the summer I turned eighteen

We lived in a oneroom rundown shack on the outskirts of New Orleans
My family and I lived in a small and dilapidated shack outside of New Orleans

We didn't have money for food or rent to say the least we were hard pressed
We were struggling financially and couldn't even afford basic necessities like food and rent

Then mama spent every last penny we had to buy me a satin dancin' dress
My mother sacrificed all our money to buy me a fancy dress for dancing

Mama washed and combed and curled my hair and she painted my eyes and lips
My mother did my hair and makeup to make me look beautiful

Then I stepped into my satin dancin' dress That had a split on the side clean up to my hips
I put on the satin dress that had a high slit on the side

It was red velvet trim and it fit me good and starin' back from the lookin' glass
The dress had red velvet details and fit me well, as I admired myself in the mirror

There stood a woman where a half grown kid had stood
I transformed into a mature woman from a previous adolescent stage

Here's your one chance Fancy don't let me down
My mother urged me to succeed and not disappoint her

Mama dabbed a little bit of perfume on my neck and she kissed my cheek
My mother placed a small amount of perfume on my neck and kissed my cheek goodbye

Then I saw the tears wellin' up in her troubled eyes when she started to speak
My mother was visibly upset as she spoke to me

She looked at a pitful shack and then she looked at me and took a ragged breath
My mother examined our shack and then gazed at me before taking a heavy breath

Your pa's run off and I'm real sick and the baby's gonna starve to death
My father left, my mother was ill, and there was a possibility of my baby sibling starving

She handed me a heart shaped locket that said to thine owenself be true
My mother gave me a heart-shaped locket that had an inscription telling me to be true to myself

And I shivered as I watched a rouch crawl across the toe of my high heeled shoe
I felt creeped out as a bug crawled over my high heeled shoe

It sounded like somebody else that was talkin' askin' mama what do I do
I felt like my voice wasn't my own as I asked my mother for guidance

Just be nice to the gentlemen Fancy and they'll be nice to you
My mother advised me to be kind to men as they might treat me well in return

Lord forgive me for what I do but if you want out well it's up to you
I prayed for forgiveness for my actions, but ultimately it was my decision whether to leave my difficult situation

Now don't let me down you better start movin' uptown
My mother encouraged me to move to a better area and make a better life for myself

Well that was the last time I saw my ma the night I left that rickety shack
I left the shack that night and never saw my mother again

The welfare people came and took the baby mama died and I ain't been back
Social services took my baby sibling, my mother died, and I haven't returned there since

But the wheels of fate had started to turn and for me there was no way out
My fate was set in motion and I couldn't see a way out of my difficult situation

And it wasn't very long till I knew exactly what my mama'd been talkin' about
It didn't take long for me to understand my mother's advice

I knew what I had to do but I made myself this solemn vow
I knew the path I needed to take but made a serious promise to myself

That I was gonna be a lady someday though I didn't know when or how
I vowed to become a respectable woman someday, although I wasn't sure how I would achieve it

I couldn't see spendin' the rest of my life with my head hung down in shame
I couldn't bear to live a life in shame and humiliation

I might have been born just plain white trash but Fancy was my name
Despite being born in poverty, I took on the name Fancy as a symbol of hope and change

It wasn't long after a benevolent man took me off the street
A kind man rescued me from a life on the streets not long after

And one week later I was pourin' his tea in a five room motel suite
A week later, I was serving tea to this man in a luxurious motel suite

I charmed a king a congressman and an occasional aristocrat
I used my charm and wit to attract powerful men like a king, a congressman, and an aristocrat

Then I got me a Georgia mansion in an elegant New York townhouse flat
I eventually obtained a mansion in Georgia and a fancy townhouse flat in New York

And I ain't done bad
Overall, I've been quite successful