Bostons

Old man, I heard some things about the boy you used to be
No father, no king
Just a broken old man broken by the whiskey
Too afraid to stay, too smart to not leave
Too young to be a bird who forgot to sing
On a ground that never knew the knees
Of a boy and his own tale of two cities

Sometimes a man breaks, sometimes he can't bend
When his youth is a wound time won't mend
(Never the best, never the best of times)
Sometimes a man breaks, sometimes he can't bend
At the thought of peace as something only lent
(Only the worst, only the worst of mine)
Sometimes a man breaks, sometimes he can't bend
When his son is another one who won't understand

The Irish temper, it's history's chains
And the bottle stain that just won't wash
That just won't wash, wash away
A seed was planted in the sod
Of nothingness from which you came
And flowers grew and roses bloomed
To form this garden of life you've made

And in this city you once knew as Hell
Is a garden where I enjoy myself
And in this father I hardly know
Was a son who took back what the bottle stole

So I could be the boy you couldn't be
Have the father you didn't get to see
Have the youth you did not get to live
Or feel the love this world forgot to give
And for this gift I don't deserve to get
I'll make damn sure I earned this

Oh, your friends say Boston's beautiful
All your friends say Boston's beautiful
But they didn't live there, they didn't die here
In the Hyde Park years
Oh, your friends say Boston's beautiful
All your friends say Boston's beautiful
But they didn't live hard, they didn't die hard
When sons dragged out their fathers from bars
Oh, your friends say Boston's beautiful
All your friends say Boston's beautiful
But they didn't dream here, they didn't scream here
Where no one hears
Oh, your friends say Boston's beautiful
Oh, all your friends say Boston's beautiful
But they didn't hide here, they didn't cry here
Where little boys weren't allowed to shed their tears

There just aren't enough men like you