Lyrics Reg Keating - Belfast Town

BELFAST TOWN

It's now forty years since the last time I stepped
Through a door that's no more in a house that’s gone
Said farewell to all in Turf Lodge and the falls
Set sail from the Quay in the chill mist of dawn
As the ship sailed away I remember that day
Through the mist in my eyes said all my goodbyes
The cries of the gulls in the skies seemed to say
Hurry back to your home Belfast town

The years, they’ve gone, I've come back again
To see my old town, the places I’d known
A kid from the Falls, made good in New York
I'd trade it all in for the years back again
My town has changed where the bombs re-arranged
The places I knew, burned down all around
The kids of today have no fun in their play
Where's your laughter today Belfast Town

Bobby McCracken was sweet on the ball
For Sandy Row Rovers in navy and red.
They beat us ten nil, I remember it still
At the end, took his hand as a friend, now he's dead.
He dared to cry halt to the carnage and the woe
To pray for the dead, to seek for peace instead
They buried all the bits the found after the bomb
One more name on your list, Belfast Town

I'm leaving today ne’er to come back no more
The pain is too strong, memories too clear
My friends and relations all dead now or gone
Will you weep Belfast Town for the days that are o'er
When peace comes round again and the hatred has all gone
You can take back my bones to rest there in your clay
There's a bond that unites the Shankill and the Falls
It's white bones 'neath your clay Belfast Town
There's a bond that unites the Shankill and the Falls
It's white bones 'neath your clay Belfast Town.