[Key: G Major] [Tempo: 116 BPM] [Genre: Motown Soul, Girl Group R&B, Northern Soul] [Intro, punchy brass, tambourine, finger snaps, playful female ad-libs] Oh, honey! Come here a minute. I've got something to tell you. [Verse 1, confident female lead, bouncy bass] Been up since six, got the breakfast made Scrubbed your collar, paid the bills you laid Got your work shirt hanging by the door And I'm damn near sick of this domestic chore You come home tired, put your feet up high Ask where your clean white sheets have gone and why Well, I've got two hands and you've got two hands And I'm through running this whole operation! [Pre-Chorus, backing girls enter] I washed 'em Monday I washed 'em Tuesday Wednesday came and I washed 'em again Now Thursday morning, I've got a proposition Listen up, baby, I'm putting an end to this tradition! [Chorus, full girl-group harmonies, brass punches] I ain't hanging the wash no more! No, I ain't hanging the wash no more! If you want dry sheets when you hit that bed You better get your lazy self up instead! I ain't hanging the wash no more! You heard me knocking, now I'm locking that door! You want them pillowcases smelling like spring? Get your own behind out there and work that string! [Verse 2, playful vocal runs, driving rhythm] You say a woman's work is never done Well, ain't that handy for a son of a gun? You learned to shave, you learned to drive You managed to make it to forty-five You know where the soap is, you know where the line is You know where I keep them wooden clothespins So don't stand there with that helpless look Like hanging up a sheet requires a damn instruction book! [Pre-Chorus, backing vocals answer the lead] I folded your trousers I mended your socks I've been the queen of this laundry box But I'm off duty, I'm calling it quits You want clean linen? Put your back into it! [Chorus, bigger horns and exuberant backing vocals] I ain't hanging the wash no more! No, I ain't hanging the wash no more! If you want dry sheets when you hit that bed You better get your lazy self up instead! I ain't hanging the wash no more! You heard me knocking, now I'm locking that door! You want them pillowcases smelling like spring? Get your own behind out there and work that string! [Bridge, half-time groove, spoken female lead, backing girls punctuate] Now, baby, don't you pout at me. (Oh, no!) Don't you tell me that you never learned. (Oh, no!) You can run that tractor. You can fix that car. You can tell your buddies how hard you work down at the bar. But a bedsheet's got four corners And a clothesline ain't a throne. If you can find your way to the bedroom, You can hang the damn things on your own! [Instrumental Break, bright brass riff, tambourine, handclaps, backing girls chanting] Hang 'em up! (Hang 'em up!) Pin 'em down! (Pin 'em down!) Want 'em dry? (Do it yourself!) That's right, baby! [Verse 3, full groove returns, gleefully defiant] It's morning now, the sun is shining bright Those sheets ain't drying by themselves tonight You've got till supper, so you'd best begin Or you'll be sleeping on that mattress again! And if you think I'm bluffing, try your luck I'll take my book and let you sort your stuff You might discover, when you do your share That clean clothes don't just magically appear! [Final Chorus, full Motown band, soaring female harmonies] I ain't hanging the wash no more! No, I ain't hanging the wash no more! If you want dry sheets when you hit that bed You better get your lazy self up instead! I ain't hanging the wash no more! Hear that screen door slam? That's me keeping score! You want them
