[Verse 1] Far from the shores where the wild waves are breaking, I wander beneath foreign skies, And dream of the dawn when the green hills are waking, And mist on the mountainside lies. The wind here is strange, and the stars seem so lonely, The moon has no warmth in its glow, For my heart lies asleep in the land of my fathers, Where the soft winds of Ireland blow. [Refrain] Oh, Ireland, Ireland, my heart calls your name, Through the darkness, the distance, the sorrow, the rain. Your mountains, your meadows, your wild ocean foam, But the love of my lass is the road leading home. Oh, bring me back home, let the wild seabirds cry, Where the green fields roll on 'neath the wide Irish sky. [Verse 2] Oh, the sky there is wide as the dreams of the weary, With clouds like tall ships on the blue, And the hills wear their green like a cloak in the morning, Still wet with the rain and the dew. The sheep graze in peace by the old winding hedgerows, The rivers run silver and clear, And the songs of the lark rise above the wild heather, Like a voice that I long for to hear. [Refrain] Oh, Ireland, Ireland, my heart calls your name, Through the darkness, the distance, the sorrow, the rain. Your mountains, your meadows, your wild ocean foam, But the love of my lass is the road leading home. Oh, bring me back home, let the wild seabirds cry, Where the green fields roll on 'neath the wide Irish sky. [Verse 3] I remember the sea with its thunder and fury, The gulls wheeling high in the gale, The salt on my lips and the spray on my shoulders, The creak of the boats in the sail. At dusk, when the sun sinks in fire o'er the headland, And gold lights the waves as they roll, I hear the old ocean call out to the wanderer, And the tide pulls hard at my soul. [Verse 4] I've walked through the cities where strangers are talking, I've worked till the long days were done, I've drunk to good fortune with men far from Ireland, And laughed in the light of the sun. But the laughter grows faint when the evening falls softly, And the fire burns low in the grate, For no song from a tavern, no gold in my pocket, Can quiet the ache of my fate. [Refrain] Oh, Ireland, Ireland, my heart calls your name, Through the darkness, the distance, the sorrow, the rain. Your mountains, your meadows, your wild ocean foam, But the love of my lass is the road leading home. Oh, bring me back home, let the wild seabirds cry, Where the green fields roll on 'neath the wide Irish sky. [Verse 5] But more than the mountains, the meadows, the ocean, More dear than the stars overhead, I long for the lass with the light in her laughter, And the gold of the dawn in her head. I remember her hand in the warmth of the summer, Her kiss by the old hawthorn tree, And the promise we made as the evening grew quiet: “Love, wait, and I'll come back to thee.” [Verse 6] So someday I'll sail where the grey waves are calling, And follow the gulls through the foam, I'll climb the green hills where the wild winds are singing, And walk the old pathways of home. And there by the shore, where the waves kiss the shingle, I'll hold her as long as I live, For the sky may be endless, the world may be wondrous, But no place has more love to give. [Final Refrain – Slowly, then rising with the music] Oh, Ireland, Ireland, my heart calls your name, Through the darkness, the distance, the sorrow, the rain. Your mountains, your meadows, your wild ocean foam, But the love of my lass is the road leading home. Oh, bring me back home, let the wild seabirds cry, Where my true love awaits 'neath the wide Irish sky. Oh, Ireland, Ireland, now let the bells ring, Let the pipes fill the valleys, let the old voices sing. For I've wandered the world, but at last I can see: All the roads lead to Ireland, and my true love to me.
