| Mama cries Son, don’t leave town |
| Find a girl and settle down |
| Well I hate to break her heart |
| But that’s not in the cards while I’m a young man |
| She says I could find a job |
| In the fields or on the docks |
| But I’ve always had a dream |
| To see all I can see while I’m a young man |
| When I’m just an old man on a front porch in a chair |
| Rocking with the memories from my past |
| The lines you see on my face should tell a tale of no regrets |
| I want to look forward to looking back on the race I ran |
| When I was a young man |
| I want to see those seven seas |
| Climb the highest mountain peak |
| Make it my career |
| To make the most of every year while I’m a young man |
| Daddy says young man |
| I know you have to stand on your own you can’t sit at home |
| He says I understand, once I had big plans like you |
| I was a young man too |
| When I’m just an old man on a front porch in a chair |
| Rocking with the memories from my past |
| The lines you see on my face should tell a tale of no regrets |
| I want to look forward to looking back on the race I ran |
| When I was a young man |
| Mama please understand |
| I’m just a young man |
| I’m just a young man… |