With a stuffed bandana, on a stick, he travels light so he can get lost quick

It’s all he needs, and it’s all he owns, ain’t got no family, ain’t got no home

Been called a troll and a tramp, a beggar and a bum, a gypsy and a clown, but he's not a single one

He's a lonesome hobo, with a hole in his shoe, just a lonesome hobo, and he's got the blues

With that bindle sack, he's on the fly, probably live that way, until the day he dies

Call him what you want, he’ll keep chuggin ahead, the only home he knows is that old ton of lead

He's a vagabond, a wayfaring soul, only time he feels at home is when he's on a roll

He's a lonesome hobo, with so much to see and do, just a lonesome hobo, and he's got the blues

Brown paper bag bottle, of liquid heat, and a cheap cigar stuck between his teeth

Got a gravelly voice, got scraggly hair, he's got a big beer belly but he just don’t care

When he's high on spirits, keeps his profile low, never cries when he's dry, hungry or cold

He's a lonesome hobo, never means to be rude, just a lonesome hobo, and he's got the blues

Hasn't held a steady job, since he got back from the war, he's too proud to beg, so he's always too poor

He's bound to ramble, he was born to roam, he can tell funny stories ‘till the cows come home

Sometimes he works, but most of the time he plays, somehow he gets by without a penny to his name

He's a lonesome hobo, on his way to somewhere new, just a lonesome hobo and he's got the blues

Once he had a woman, but she flew the coop, now it’s newspaper blankets and mulligan stew

Through rocky mountains and Midwest farms, rollin’ on the tracks until he's back in her arms

He gets cold 'cause he's old, but the soup bowl's free, sleeps under stars, or when it rains a pine tree

He's a lonesome hobo, finding ways to make do, just a lonesome hobo, and he's got the blues

With a sideways view, his destination’s unknown, trees fly by, but his bird has flown

On track, on schedule, goin’ nowhere fast, as he crosses the ties, on the rails of his past

Had his share of hard luck, his share of handouts, he may be down, but never down and out

He's a lonesome hobo, who always pulls through, just a lonesome hobo, and he's got the blues

Hops a train at night, jumps a ride all day, across the great divide, prairies and plains

The box car gets him where he wants to go, and deep down inside he's got a heart of gold

Never believed in the devil, never believed in god, but he's too scared to steal, borrow, cheat or rob

He's a lonesome hobo, never graced a church pew, just a lonesome hobo, and he's got the blues

He's had a ragged life, all ripped and torn, been that way since the day he was born

He never stops unless it runs out of steam, the whistle wakes him up from crazy hobo dreams

He's been no stranger to trouble, or telling white lies, someday he's gonna catch the westbound to die

He's a lonesome hobo, a little like me and you, just a lonesome hobo, and he's got the blues