Hayes Carll's song "I Got A Gig" tells the story of life playing in bars and clubs for a living. The lyrics describe the rough and tumble world of a working musician, where burnt fried chicken and Lone Star beer are staples and cops and kids drink for free. The singer plays six nights a week, performing for rowdy crowds at Hurricanes, Easter, and New Year's Eve. The bar where he plays is filled with colorful characters, including an old lion tamer with a hundred pounds of weed in a stolen car, oil patch boys and girls who went to college, and a barefoot shrimper with a pistol up his sleeve. The singer observes it all, including the girl behind the bar who lies about her past and tries to make a living. The song captures the gritty reality of the music business, where the singer has paid his dues playing in clubs with broke pool tables and hard luck cues. But despite the challenges, he keeps playing night after night, chasing his dream of making it as a musician. The chorus is a defiant declaration of his commitment to his craft: "I got a gig, baby, I got a gig."
