Dear Mama

I’m so tired of living this life that I lead
I’m sick of the salt and the smell of seaweed
My hands are all calloused, my back it is sore
Dear Mama, I don’t want to be a sailor no more

The whistles and bells are driving me mad
Oh why did I give up what little I had
I once had a home and a place on the shore
Dear Mama, I don’t want to be a sailor no more

I miss the good cooking and the comforts of home
I miss my sweet girlfriend I’m so all alone
This bed that I sleep on is worse than the floor
Dear Mama, I don’t want to be a sailor no more

I can’t seem to find love in just one night stands
With the bar girls I meet in these strange foreign lands
They take all my money and they run out the door
Dear Mama, I don’t want to be a sailor no more

I remember the days when I stood on the beach
Looking out at the lands that were beyond my reach
Now that I’ve reached them there’s not much in store
Dear, Mama I don’t want to be a sailor no more

Though I’ve served four years I’ve two more to go
And I count all the days as they go by so slow
And though I must be here until eighty-four
Dear Mama, I don’t want to be a sailor no more