[Verse 1]
She's got a phone in one hand, a hairbrush in the other
And she says, "Life's too short to stay at home and be a mother"
She said she could have it all because that's the New Deal
So God give her a hand 'cause she needs one for the wheel

[Verse 2]
When he gets home from work, it's well after seven
But he drives a nice car and so he thinks he's in Heaven
His kids hardly know him, but they've all got nice clothes
And in just a few hours more overtime he can pay off that boat

[Chorus]
They've got nice big houses, they've got nice big cars
And it looks from the outside like they're really going far
But there's trouble in the engine and we're junkyard-bound
If some moms and some dads don't start hanging around

[Verse 3]
When they get around to dinner, they're damn near half-dead
So they drive through McDonald's and put their kids off to bed
They're upwardly mobile and everything is fine
'Cause when they do get together, man, it's quality time

[Chorus]
They've got nice big houses, they've got nice big cars
It looks from the outside like they're really going far
There is trouble in the engine and we're junkyard-bound
If some moms and some dads don't start hanging around
[Verse 4]
They want stickers on the music, they want the laws turned around
They want the cops to run Beavis and Butthead out of town
They say they care about their children, but it's just too damn hard
To turn off that TV or to sell off that car

[Chorus]
They like those nice big houses, they like those big cars
It looks from the outside like they're really going far
There is trouble in the engine and we're junkyard-bound
If some moms and some dads don't start hanging around

[Verse 5]
There's a whole lot of people who can't make ends meet
On the wages that they're earning, I know a family can't eat
I am talking about people who would sell their kid's soul
To keep up with the Jones's, no matter the toll

[Chorus]
They like those big houses, they like those big cars
It looks from the outside like they're really going far
There is trouble in the engine and we're junkyard-bound
If some moms and some dads don't start hanging around

[Outro]
When they do get together, it's quality time