Iron John

Days in the city tied to the iron trade begin before dawn
Silent-faced beneath the hard hats and work-boots
Pounding on the cobblestone
As the long whistle sounds and the shifts begin to change

And the three rivers form a point of reference
For generations of Irish hearts
Iron hands all by the back fence
From the heights of Washington, Mary stands sentinel to the city

[Chorus]
Iron John swirls beer 'round the bottom of a tall glass
Iron John's got a story

And the nights on Oneida in the summertime
They flicker quick light like the fireflies
I chased down the cobblestone hills into the lights of Olympia
To watch them fade in my hand though I tried hard to save them

[Chorus]

[Bridge]
From the far away posting I'd watch the lights
Swinging out on the helipads
And dream of the lights from the nights I spent
In my American city
From his hands now he's trying harder and harder
To build the things that I will remember
And they don't fade away--not like fireflies
Those nights on Oneida in the summertime
Never Iron John
I carry them everyday

And I know the man who blessed me into this world
And I'd like him to marry me to my girl
In the big house on Oneida in the summertime