In the ancient middle '50s The closing '60s roar I was caught up in your passion I could only beg for more And if I had a dollar bill I'd give it to you then So I could tell the whole wide world One day, I knew you when ♪ With your dangerous charisma Your thundering attack You charged the very air I breathe And kept me coming back You helped me through my darkest hours You always were my friend You gave me hope to carry on Because I knew you when I knew you when the mountain tops were right beneath your feet When artistry and freedom were complete Before you were an icon, before they all too came You could say I knew you when We all sit here with our memories of a glorious long ago When our heroes seemed immortal, were they really so It's a question for a wiser man I will not ask again I will only say I'm grateful For the time I knew you when I knew you when (I knew you when) Oh, I knew you when I knew you when (I knew you when) Yeah, I knew you when ♪ I knew you when (I knew you when) I knew you when (I knew you when) Yeah, I knew you when