Six o'clock silence of a new day beginning
Is heard in the small Texas town.
Like a signal from nowhere the people who live there
Are up and moving around

'Cause there's bacon to fry and there's biscuits to bake
On the stove that the Salvation Army won't take
And you open the windows and you turn on the fan
'Cause it's hotter than hell when the sun hits the land

Walter and Fanny, well, they own the grocery
That sells most all that you need
They've been up and working since early this morning
They've got the whole village to feed

Well, they put out fresh eggs and throw bad ones away
That rotted because of the heat yesterday
The store is all dark so you can't see the flies
That settle on round steak and last Monday's pies

Sleepy Hill's drugstore and the cafe are open
The coffee is bubbling hot
'Cause the folks that ain't working gonna sit there 'til sundown
And talk about what they ain't got

Someone just threw a clutch in the old pickup truck
It seems like they're riding on a streak of bad luck
The doctor bills come and the well has gone dry
Seems their grown kids don't care whether they live or die