The Dutchman's not the kind of man to keep his thumb jammed in the dam
That holds his dreams in, but that's a secret only Margaret knows
When Amsterdam is golden, in the morning, Margaret brings him breakfast
She believes him, he thinks the tulips bloom beneath the snow
He's mad as he can be, but Margaret only sees that sometimes
Sometimes she sees her unborn children in his eyes
Let us go to the banks of the ocean
Where the walls rise above the Zuider Zee
Long ago, I used to be a young man
And dear Margaret remembers that for me
The Dutchman still wears wooden shoes, his cap and coat are patched with love
That Margaret sewed in, sometimes he thinks he's still in Rotterdam
He watches tug-boats down canals, an' calls out to them when he thinks he knows the Captain
'Til Margaret comes to take him home again
Through unforgiving streets that trip him, though she holds his arm
Sometimes he thinks that he's alone and calls her name
Let us go to the banks of the ocean
Where the walls rise above the Zuider Zee
Long ago, I used to be a young man
And dear Margaret remembers that for me
The windmill swirl the wintering
She winds his muffler tighter, they sit in the kitchen
And the tea with whiskey keeps away the dew
He sees her for a moment, calls her name
She makes his bed up humming some old love songs
She learned it when the tune was very new
He hums a line or two, they hum together in the night
The Dutchman falls asleep and Margaret blows the candle out
Let us go to the banks of the ocean
Where the walls rise above the Zuider Zee
Long ago, I used to be a young man
And dear Margaret remembers that for me
Let us go to the banks of the ocean
Where the walls rise above the Zuider Zee
Long ago, I used to be a young man
And dear Margaret remembers that for me