Gamble Either Way

Gamble Either Way Lyrics

(Dolly Parton)


Being born was the worse and the first mistake I ever made

The doctor didn't spank me, he just slapped me in the face

And the cup of love was always quenching someone else's thirst

Leaving me to swallow the bitter taste of hurt

'Cause I was raised an orphan

Never wanted as a kid until the year I turned 13

Then everybody did, strangers pass me back and forth

Men just took me as they pleased

And others had a Cinderella slave to cook and clean and weep


Though the deck is stacked against you

Win or lose, you have to play

The hand a life has dealt you

And It's a gamble either way


On a dust road at 15 in a yellow cotton dress

With the desert sun like an angry dragon breathing down my neck

And the dry cracked plains would make me think of a prehistoric time

Or should I fear what lay before me less than what I'd left behind

A 15 year old girl don't have no trouble hitching rides

But sometimes when you're riding free

You'll pay the highest price

On back roads and in back seats

And in a cheap highway motel

But what's a few more strangers in a life of nothing else


Though the deck is stacked against you

Win or lose, you have to play

The hand a life has dealt you

And It's a gamble either way


16 caught me crying, underneath the scarlet light

On the door steps of a stranger on a cold and rainy night

When I walked into the parlour here

Other pieces seemed to fit

I was good at pleasing strangers

So I made the most of it


Either way it's all a gamble

So view the stakes and know the odds

And lay your cards upon the table

Do all the dealing from the top


Though the deck is stacked against you

Win or lose, you have to play

The hand a life has dealt you

And It's a gamble either way