Discover the story of the song > Respectable – Don McLean

The protagonist sings about how hard it is to face the consequences when you've done something wrong, and how some people have it easier than others because of money and friends. He talks about how people who commit crimes can get away with it because they can afford fancy lawyers, while innocent people suffer, and he compares it to the old outlaws of the West. He ends by saying that he respects people who do their best and fail, rather than those who win because they have more money and connections.