Can't Lose What You Never Had
Muddy Waters Lyrics


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I once I had a pretty little girl
I lose my baby, ain't that sad?
Oh, you know, once I had a pretty little girl
I lose my baby, ain't that sad?
Well, you know, you can't spend what you ain't got
You can't lose what you ain't never had

I had money in the bank
I got busted, boys, ain't that sad?
Oh, you know, I had some money in the bank
I got busted, baby, ain't that bad?
Well, you know, you can't spend what you ain't got
You can't lose what you ain't never had

I had a sweet little home
It got burned down, boys, ain't that bad?
Oh, you know, was my own fault
People, they just said




Well, you know, you can't spend what you ain't got
You can't lose what you ain't never had

Overall Meaning

Muddy Waters's song You Can't Lose What You Ain't Never Had explores the theme of loss and its devastating effects on the human spirit. The song is structured around three different verses, each of which describes a different type of loss. The first verse is about losing love. Muddy Waters sings about how he once had a "pretty little girl" but lost her. He laments the fact that he can't spend what he ain't got and can't lose what he never had. The second verse is about losing money. He had money in the bank but got busted and lost it all. He then repeats the same refrain that you can't spend what you ain't got and can't lose what you ain't never had. Finally, the third verse is about losing a home. He had a sweet little home but it got burned down. Again, he repeats the same refrain that you can't spend what you ain't got and can't lose what you ain't never had.


Line by Line Meaning

I once I had a pretty little girl
I used to have a beautiful girlfriend


I lose my baby, ain't that sad?
I lost her and it's quite unfortunate


Oh, you know, once I had a pretty little girl
As you may be aware, I had a lovely girlfriend


Well, you know, you can't spend what you ain't got
It's impossible to use or give what you don't possess


You can't lose what you ain't never had
It's impossible to lose something you never possessed


I had money in the bank
I once had quite a bit of money saved up


I got busted, boys, ain't that sad?
Unfortunately, I got in trouble and lost it all


Oh, you know, I had some money in the bank
As I'm sure you're aware, I used to have quite a bit of money saved


I got busted, baby, ain't that bad?
I got into trouble and it's quite unfavorable


I had a sweet little home
I had a lovely house


It got burned down, boys, ain't that bad?
Unfortunately, it caught fire and burned to the ground


Oh, you know, was my own fault
As you may know, it was due to my own mistake


People, they just said
Others have commented


Well, you know, you can't spend what you ain't got
It's impossible to use or give what you don't possess


You can't lose what you ain't never had
It's impossible to lose something you never possessed




Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: McKinley Morganfield

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Most interesting comments from YouTube:

@izakk91

Once I had a pretty little girl
I lose my baby, ain't that sad?
Oh, you know, once I had a pretty little girl
I lose my baby, ain't that sad?
Well, you know, you can't spend what you ain't got
You can't lose what you ain't never had

I had money in the bank
I got busted, boys, ain't that sad?
Oh, you know, I had some money in the bank
I got busted, baby, ain't that bad?
Well, you know, you can't spend what you ain't got
You can't lose what you ain't never had

I had a sweet little home
It got burned down, boys, ain't that bad?
Oh, you know, was my own fault
People, they just said
Well, you know, you can't spend what you ain't got
You can't lose what you ain't never had



@ajcavalcanticoelho

PASSAGEM
Quando falamos do tempo, pretendemos do tempo nos apropriar, e podemos dizer talvez "no meu tempo" ou quem sabe "teremos tempo". O próprio tempo se encarrega de demonstrar que a realidade é diferente. A propósito, lembrou-me Muddy Waters [1913 - 1983] em sua antiga canção "You Can't Lose What You Neve Had" de quantas vezes deixamos de reconhecer que "Não se pode perder o que não se tem", "Não se pode gastar o que não se possui" e tampouco "Não se pode passar por onde não se vai".

Referências:
- Helene Mollo in "As Múltiplas Faces do Tempo"
http://www.revistas.ufg.br/index.php/historia/article/view/10452/6927

- Scientific American Brasil - "Máscaras do Tempo" [Marcus Vinícius C. Baldo, André M. Cravo e Hamilton Haddad Jr]
http://www2.uol.com.br/sciam/reportagens/mascaras_do_tempo.html

- Muddy Waters - You Can't Lose What You Ain't Never Had
Muddy Waters - You Can't Lose What You Ain't Never Had



All comments from YouTube:

@user-cx8vy2ev2h

There will never be another Muddy Waters. People like him come along once in a lifetime. God bless this talented man!

@Nexusmexius

Godfather of electric blues . Takes two players of what he plays alone Rip Muddy

@Voy0

The guitars in this song make the chills running down my spine... all of them, the piercing solos and subtly muted rhytm ones. Muddy's the man!

@waynejohanson1083

Not to mention the piano.

@cyndygough4107

And the bass really is excellent.

@Quebecoisegal

@Wayne Johanson Otis Spann on piano has given me so many chills down my spine.

@marcoevans2155

That's Muddy sliding those strings himself

@NewHandle4Real

Come on. His voice gives the shivers.

3 More Replies...

@tybo8107

He is in his own league. This man is the king of blues even eric clapton and rollin stones agreed.

@giulioluzzardi7632

It's Muddy wisdom, sort of Blues philosopher for the 20thC onward....he tells you what the "Intellectuals" try to teach but he delivers his message in clear -concise-no-nonsense manner . Wise wise MAN!

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