Lifelessness cries from the fountain of youth
Lawyers debate the meaning of truth
In the judge's chamber he downs his gin and
Vermouth
And he cries when he sees his refl ection
The lost postman wanders American streets
Past Henry the VIII who quietly eats
Being entertained by a drunk quoting Keats
Who pays a dollar a week for protection
Oh Mama, Mama where have you gone
You left your little boy here all alone
Music plays in the small cafes
They converse of Marlon Brando in his younger days
The backroom manager's quoting off-Broadway plays
Because the feelings that he feels are not real
Politicians shake my hand under the el
They don't have to show me I can easily tell
That it isn't their smiles they're trying to sell
But the bad hand of another deal
Oh Mama, Mama where have you gone
You left your little boy here all alone
By the pool sits a broken athlete
Who drowns his pain from his head to his feet
Since he's retired he can swallow defeat
Because his life is no longer a game
The old man sits alone with his toast and tea
Watching Jackie Gleason on his old TV.
Working for the transit authority
And just like Jackie he feels the same
Oh Mama, Mama where have you gone
You left your little boy here all alone
Well it gets mighty cold after dark
I was walking alone through Battery Park
Down to the South I saw a spark
Coming from the lady's candle
She stood with grace and liberty
All by herself out in the sea
Leaning down she whispered to me
"This is probably more than you can handle."
Oh Mama, Mama where have you gone
You left your little boy here all alone