I wish I was in Carrickfergus,
Only for nights in Ballygrand.
I would swim over the deepest ocean,
Only for nights in Ballygrand.
Ah but the sea is wide and I cannot swim over,
Nor have I wings so I could fly.
I wish I could meet a handsome boatman
To ferry me over to my love and die.
My boyhood days bring back sweet reflections,
Those happy hours I spent so long ago.
My childhood friends and my kind relations
Have all passed o'er like melting snow.
I've spent my days in endless roving,
Soft is the grass, and, sure, my bed is free.
O to be back in Carrickfergus,
To spy that mountain road down to the sea.
They say of life, and it has been written,
One chance of happiness, that chance I lost.
The sands of time have passed from out of me,
And it's too late now to count the cost.
I'm drunk today and I'm seldom sober,
A handsome rover from town to town.
Ah but I'm sick now, my days are numbered,
Come all you young men and I'll lay me down.