[Verse] It ain’t easy Living like a gypsy Tell your honey how I feel I’ve been dreaming Floating down the stream and Losing touch with all that’s real Whole earth lover Keeping under cover Never know where you’ve been You’ve been fading Always out parading Keep in touch with Mama Kin Well you’ve always got your tail on the wag Shooting fire from your mouth Just like a dragon You act like a perpetual drag You better check it out Because someday soon, you’ll have to Climb back on the wagon
[Pre-Chorus 1] It isn’t easy Living like you wanna It’s so hard to find peace of mind Yes it is The way I see it You’ve got to say shit But don’t forget to drop me a line
[Chorus 1] Said, you’re bald as an egg when you’re eighteen Working for your dad is just a drag You still stuff your mouth with your dreams You better check it out Because someday soon you’ll have to Climb back on the wagon
[Chorus 2][x2] Keep in touch with Mama Kin Tell her where you’ve gone and been Living out your fantasy Sleeping late and smoking tea
The song comprises a basic guitar riff, with a strong rhythm backbeat which comes in between lyrics in the verse and throughout the bridge. There are also saxophones interspersed throughout the song.
In the early 1990s, the band opened up a music club called the Mama Kin Music Hall in their hometown of Boston, Massachusetts – the club has since closed.
Steven Tyler has a tattoo on his arm with the phrase “Ma’ Kin.”[2] He got it when the band was writing its first album because he had so much confidence in the song. Tyler and Perry have both said that his arm was too thin to fit the whole title.
Shinedown references to “smokin’ tea with Mama Kin” in their song “Cry for Help” on the Sound of Madness album.
Guns N’ Roses and Buckcherry versions
The song was covered by Guns N’ Roses in 1986 and released in the same year on their EP album Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide. It was later re-released on their second studio album G N’ R Lies in 1988. There’s also a live version of Guns N’ Roses performing the song along with Steven Tyler and Joe Perry. This was from Guns N’ Roses live from Paris pay per view special.
Buckcherry also covered the song, which appeared as a bonus track on their 2014 EP Fuck. It is the only song on that album that does not use the word “fuck” in the song or have “fuck” as part of the title.
