Looking for the song text of Janis Joplin’s famed a capella song from her 1971 album Pearl? Find the lyrics below, and a video of the song! Mercedes Benz was famously written in one spontaneous night at a Port Chester bar, but its spark actually came from poet Michael McClure. Joplin had been riffing on McClure’s tongue-in-cheek lines about consumer culture when she made up her own improvised version, reshaping his playful critique into a bluesy, sarcastic prayer for material comforts. She recorded it just days before her death in 1970, and the raw, one-take performance has become one of her most iconic moments. In fact, the “That’s it!” and her laugh at the end was the last thing she ever recorded…

I’d like to do a song of great social and political import
It goes like this

Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz?
My friends all drive Porsches, I must make amends
Worked hard all my lifetime, no help from my friends
So, oh, Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz?

Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a color TV?
Dialing For Dollars is trying to find me
I wait for delivery each day until three
So, oh, Lord, won’t you buy me a color TV?

Oh, Lord, won’t you buy me a night on the town?
I’m counting on you Lord, please don’t let me down
Prove that you love me and buy the next round
Oh, Lord, won’t you buy me a night on the town?
Everybody

Oh, Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz?
My friends all drive Porsches, I must make amends
Worked hard all my lifetime, no help from my friends
So, oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz?

That’s it!