What Can I Say
Malik B and Mr. Green Lyrics

In nineteen and seventy-nine they lived in an old schoolbus
The year was 1979 and Linda and Luther Henry lived in an old schoolbus.

Earn 3000$ in good years and in bad ones it's half as much
In good years, they earn $3,000, but in bad years it's only half of that.

They're fruit tramps like their parents have been and like their children will be as well
They do the same work as their parents and their children will also end up doing the same job.

They still get diminutive wages and people say they'll someday go to hell
Despite their hard work, they are paid very little and people often judge them poorly.

Linda is 23 years and Luther Henry has 13 years more
Linda is 23 years old, while Luther Henry is 13 years older.

They're picking cherries in Maine and strawberries right outside your door
They work in Maine picking cherries, but also in a location near the listener's home picking strawberries.

Many month it's been raining the harvest is rotting in the fields
Due to many months of rain, the harvested fruits are rotting in the field.

And often their four year old daughter for a whole day gets nothing to eat
Their 4-year-old daughter often goes without food for an entire day.

Take heed what I say this can't be today
The artist is urging the listener to take notice of the situation and find a way to improve it.

A strong back and a lack of will-power is not everything that you need
Physical strength alone is not enough to overcome the difficult circumstances they face.

A belly full of hard liquor eases the work in the field
Drinking hard liquor helps ease the physical pain of the work in the field.

Playing poker in the night and sipping a bottle of gin
In their free time, they play poker and drink gin.

Is the only pleasure they get it's the only game they're able win
Playing poker and drinking is the only enjoyment they have and the only activity they can succeed at.

They get up at four in the morning start picking before the sun's coming up
They begin work at 4am before the sun has risen.

Eight hours later many baskets are filled but they cannot give up
After 8 hours of work, many baskets are filled but they cannot stop working.

For three more hours they pick in the parching sun
They work an additional 3 hours in the hot sun.

And at five o'clock in the evening a 25$ job it is done
They finish their job at 5pm and earn $25 for the day's work.

They all are American people but people treat them like dogs
Despite being American citizens, they are treated poorly and disrespectfully.

Seems that men become animals when they pick in the morning fog
The difficult physical labor turns people into animals in the morning mist.

Rich men should know that all fruits that they eat are picked by people like Henry
The affluent should recognize that their food is picked by laborers like Luther Henry.

Then they'd give them enough money and not only one third of their fee
If wealthy individuals recognized and appreciated the laborers, they would pay them fairly and not just a third of the earnings.

For a short time they settled up north near the border of Canada
They briefly lived in the northern area near the Canadian border.

But their blood was too thin for the cold and I don't know where they now are
They had difficulty adjusting to the cold weather and their current location is unknown.

Luther Henry suffers from cancer and he wants to go home for to die
Luther Henry is battling cancer and desires to return home to pass away.

In 1992 they all feel so bad that they just can't stop cryin'
In the year 1992, the family feels so overwhelmed with emotion that they cannot stop crying.

Love is their only religion their delight and for their children they live
Their love for one another is their strongest belief and they live solely for the good of their children.

Though they are starving with them and they don't have enough for to give
Despite their own struggles with poverty and hunger, they still do their best to provide for their children.

Luther's still living and he don't want to die
Luther Henry is still alive and does not want to pass away.

But before he will go to hell he'll go out and pick under blue sky
Rather than suffer in hell, Luther would prefer to do the hard work picking fruits under the open sky.