A boy is born in hard time Mississippi 一个男孩出生在困难时期密西西比

Surrounded by four walls that ain't so pretty 事实并非如此漂亮的四墙包围

His parents give him love and affection 他的父母给他的爱和亲情

To keep him strong moving in the right direction 让他强朝着正确的方向

Living just enough, just enough for the city...ee ha! 生活刚好够，就足以让这个城市......呀哈！

   

His father works some days for fourteen hours 他的父亲的作品有些天14小时

And you can bet he barely makes a dollar 你可以打赌，他勉强让一块钱

His mother goes to scrub the floors for many 他的母亲去擦洗地板为许多

And you'd best believe she hardly gets a penny 而且你最好相信她很难得到一分钱

Living just enough, just enough for the city... yeah! 生活刚好够，就足以让这个城市...是啊！

   

His hair is long, his feet are hard and gritty 他的头发很长，他的脚是很难和坚韧不拔

He spends his life walking the streets of New York City 他花了他一生走纽约市的街头

He's almost dead from breathing in air pollution 他几乎死在呼吸的空气污染

He tried to vote but to him there's no solution 他试图投票，但他有没有解决办法

Living just enough, just enough for the city... 生活刚好够，就足以让这个城市...

   

I hope you hear inside my voice of sorrow 我希望你能听到我的忧伤的声音里

And that it motivates you to make a better tomorrow 而且它促使你做出更好的明天

This place is cruel no where could be much colder 这个地方是残酷的任何地方可能会更寒冷

If we don't change the world will soon be over 如果我们不改变世界，很快就会过去

   

Living just enough... 生活刚好够...

For the city... ooh, ooh 为城市......哦，哦