[Verse 1]
He worked his hands to the bone
Always late comin' home
Tryin' to keep the damn show on the road that
That leads from the docks to the port
Momma's on a late shift
Came back in the morning mist now
Now I'm runnin' down Grafton street
Where my mother and my father meet
[Pre-Chorus]
I feel the burden on my back
The wheel of time is rollin' away
And I feel the pressure building up on me
[Chorus]
My father told me, son, don't stay in the city
He worked so hard for things to change
I can't count the years I've been in this city
I'm tryin' to make it out of here
[Verse 2]
I wish that I could have known
One day they'd be gone
I feel my heart breaking
Standing on the docks when the ships come in
I'm in my childhood home
It feels bigger on my own
Times have changed, now I gotta run
I know it seems fast, but I gotta move on
[Chorus]
My father told me, son, don't stay in the city
He worked so hard for things to change
I can't count the years I've been in this city
I'm tryin' to make it out of here
[Bridge]
Now my life's been turned around
Found a new lover and I'm on solid ground
I wish they could see me now
A new home on a different shore
I got my own boy and I'm loving to watch him grow
I tell him how
[Chorus]
My father told me, son, don't stay in the city (Don't stay now)
He worked so hard for things to change
I can't count the years I've been in this city (Been in this city)
And now I found my way out of here
[Outro]
I can't find my way out of here
Oh, find my way
So many years out there
And now I found my way out of here