Kate Campbell

Joe Louis' Furniture

Kate Campbell


I've got a coffee table
Made of mahogany
With cigarette burns 
And water rings
But that don't bother me

I bought it at an auction
Ten years ago
I put my feet up on it 
And watch the fights on HBO

Float like a butterfly 
Sting like a bee
I am the greatest
Said Muhammad Ali

Oh, but I've got Joe Louis' 
Furniture in my den
Twelve years running world 
Heavyweight champion
And in my book well 
He's the best 
There's ever been
And you can't take 
That away from him

He came from Alabama
He didn't come from much
He fought his way up 
To the top
Then lost his money 
To the government

So here I sit
In his old chair
Something about this
Don't seem fair

Now I've worked hard
All my life
With nothing 
To show for it
But a poor man's pride