So you've decided to set me free
|
I've paid my debt to society
|
Fresh out of jail trying to make a new start
|
On the street with a bitter heart
|
But my past keeps on haunting me
|
There ain't no chance for a man with my history
|
|
Once a thief
|
Always a suspect
|
Once a liar
|
Never be believed
|
Will they ever forget that
|
I was once a thief?
|
|
I was out in the cold
|
I was soaked to the skin
|
I needed a home
|
And your heart took me in
|
Then I heard all the lies
|
And I lost my belief
|
You threw away my hope
|
And you called me a thief
|
|
So you've decided to set me free
|
I'm out of jail but you've still got the key
|
There was a time when I thought you respected me
|
But somehow you always suspected me
|
|
Once a thief
|
Always a suspect
|
Once a liar
|
Never be believed
|
Will they ever forget that
|
I was once a thief?
|
|
Instead of offering me charity,
|
You should've tried to put some faith in me
|
Instead of making me a better man,
|
You kept reminding me of what I am
|
|
Instead of offering me charity,
|
You should've tried to put some faith in me
|
How many years must a criminal pay?
|
Until he's old and his hair turns to gray
|
You smile at me
|
But I know underneath
|
You're thinking
|
Once a thief always a suspect.
|
|
Once a thief
|
Always a suspect
|
Once a liar
|
Never be believed
|
Will they ever forget that
|
I was once a thief?
|
|
-----------------
|
Once A Thief
|
| The Kinks |
