Before the Money Came (The Battle of Bettye Lavette) Songtext
von Bettye LaVette

Hey, hey

Close shootin′, don't kill no birds
I′m standin' tall with the rest of the girls hangin' on
To my mama′s every word
Gonna sing ′em out loud and conquer the world

All them faces on the pictures up there
Makes me remember when my table was bare
Livin' at my mama′s house
Takin' food from my family′s mouth
Before the money came

I was singin' R&B back in ′62
Before you were born and your mama too
I knew David Ruffin when he was oversleepin' on my floor
Before he crossed over all my friends on the Grammy show
I was stuck in Detroit tryin' to open doors
Record deals kept fallin′ apart
One with Atlantic nearly broke my heart


′Fore the money came
I got a lot to say
So proud I was built this way
Some folks didn't see my worth
Didn′t know where I fit in
40 years I kept on singin'
Before the money started rollin′ in

Oh, there was a time when I would call it luck
If I got me a gig for 50 bucks
Now I got all these big decisions to make
Never thought success would be hard to take

Shoes on my feet, more in the closet
Silk on my skin, more if I wanted
All these years I kept my style
I wouldn't cross over, so it took me a while

Before the money came
Yeah-oh, I′ve got so much to say
So damn proud I was built this way
Some folks didn't see my worth
Didn't know where I fit in
40 years I kept singing
Before the money started rollin′ in

Before the money came
Before the money came
Before the money came
Before the money came


A long time coming, it′s just about time
I ain't never been afraid to speak my mind
I′ve always had a lot to say
So proud to be here, I'm gonna stay
′Cause the money's rollin′ in

Then the money came
Then the, then the money came
Then the money came
Then the money came
Then the money came
Then the money came
Then the money came
Then the money came