I remember my first love affair
Somehow or another the whole darn thing went wrong
My mamma had some great advice
So I thought I'd put it into words of this song
I can still hear her say
Boy, (boy, boy) Oh, I see you're sittin' out there all alone
Cryin' your eyes out 'cos the woman that you love has gone
Oh, there's gonna be, there's gonna be a whole lot of trouble in your life
(whole lotta trouble)
Oh, so listen to me get up off your knees 'cos only the strong survive
That's what she said, only the strong survive
Only the strong survive,
Oh you gotta to be strong, you better hold on
Don't go all around with your head hung down
Well I wouldn't let that little girl know
I wouldn't let her know that she made me feel like a clown
There's a whole lot o' girls (whole lotta girls) lookin' for a good man like you
Oh but you'll never meet 'em if you give up now and say your life is through
And she said: Only the strong survive, only the strong survive,
Well you gotta be a man, you've gotta take a stand
(Boy) (Boy) (Oh Boy)
Only the strong survive, only the strong survive,
Oh, you gotta be strong, you better hold on
'Cos only the strong survive
Only the strong survive, only the strong survive,
Well, you gotta be a man, you gotta take a stand
Only the strong survive, only the strong survive,
Only the strong survive, only the strong survive