[1] I wanted more from life than [4] four kids and a wife
And a [1] job in a [5] dark Kentucky [1] mine
A twenty-acre farm with a [4] shacky house and barn
That's [1] all I had and [5] all I left [1] behind

But at gamblin' I was lucky and so I left Kentucky
And left behind my woman and my kids
Into the gay casinos in Nevada's town of Reno
This Kentucky gambler planned to get rich quick

Kentucky gambler [4] who's going to love your [5] woman in Ken-[1]-tucky
Yeah and [4] who's going to be the [1] one to give her [5] everything she [1] needs
Kentucky gambler [4] who's going to raise your [5] children in Ken-[1]-tucky
Hey [4] who's gonna keep them [1] fed and keep them [5] shoes on their [1] feet

There at the gambler's paradise Lady Luck was on my side
And this Kentucky gambler played just right
Hey I wanted everything I played, I really thought I had it made
But I should'a quit and gone on home that night

But when you love the green backed dollar sorrow's always bound to follow
And Reno's dreams fade into neon amber
And Lady Luck she'll lead you on, she'll stay a while and then she's gone
You better go on home Kentucky gambler

But a gambler never seems to stop 'til he loses all he's got
And with a money-hungry fever I played on
I played 'til I'd lost all I'd won, I was right back where I'd started from
Then I started wantin' to go home

Kentucky gambler there ain't nobody waiting in Kentucky
When I ran out somebody else walked in
Kentucky gambler looks like you ain't really very lucky
And it seems to me a gambler loses much more than he wins