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Old Before Your Time Lyrics
When I was a younger man lookin' for my pot of gold,
Everywhere I turned the doors were closin'.
It took every ounce of faith I had to keep on keepin' on,
And still I felt like I was only losin'.
I refused then, like I do now,
To let anybody tie me down.
And I lost a few good friends along the way.
I was raised up poor and I wanted more, and maybe
I'm a little too proud,
In lookin' back I see a kid who was just afraid,
Hungry... and old before his time.
Through the years I've known my share of
broken-hearted fools,
And those who couldn't choose a path worth taking.
There's nothin' in the world so sad as talking to a man,
Who never knew his life was his for making.
Ain't it about time you realize,
It's not worth keepin' score,
You win some, you lose some and you let it go.
What's the use of stacking on every failure another stone,
'Til you find you've spent your whole damn life
Building walls.
Lonely... and old before your time.
It took so long to see
That truth was all around me.
Now the wren has gone to roost and the sky is turnin' gold.
Like the sky, my soul is also turnin'.
Turnin' from thepast, at last, and all I've left behind.
Could it be that I am finally learnin'
Learnin' I'm deserving, of love and the peaceful heart,
I won't tear myself apart no more for tryin'.
I'm tired of lyin' to myself,
Tryin' to buy what can't be bought,
It's not livin' that you're doin if it feels like dyin'.
Cryin', growin' old before your time.
Cryin', growin' old before your time.
Everywhere I turned the doors were closin'.
It took every ounce of faith I had to keep on keepin' on,
And still I felt like I was only losin'.
To let anybody tie me down.
And I lost a few good friends along the way.
I was raised up poor and I wanted more, and maybe
I'm a little too proud,
In lookin' back I see a kid who was just afraid,
Hungry... and old before his time.
broken-hearted fools,
And those who couldn't choose a path worth taking.
There's nothin' in the world so sad as talking to a man,
Who never knew his life was his for making.
It's not worth keepin' score,
You win some, you lose some and you let it go.
What's the use of stacking on every failure another stone,
'Til you find you've spent your whole damn life
Building walls.
Lonely... and old before your time.
That truth was all around me.
Like the sky, my soul is also turnin'.
Turnin' from thepast, at last, and all I've left behind.
Could it be that I am finally learnin'
I won't tear myself apart no more for tryin'.
I'm tired of lyin' to myself,
Tryin' to buy what can't be bought,
It's not livin' that you're doin if it feels like dyin'.
Cryin', growin' old before your time.
Cryin', growin' old before your time.
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I really just love this song with all my heart.
This song is really about realizing how prideful we are when we were younger. I think this song really talks about how it was for the character to grow up (I was raised up poor and I wanted more, and maybe, I'm a little too proud, In lookin' back I see a kid who was just afraid,) and its basically a reflection on this persons life, and the people he met along the way, but some of them came in and out.
it is a masterpiece of singer songwriter to encompass their experiences and integrate others to make an approachable and relate-able song. This song really touches me.
This song is pretty much perfect and probably my favorite of all Ray's tunes.
I think its about growing up. Life's hard when you're young and starting out. You've got struggles with finding work, losing and gaining friends, and feeling like you've got to accomplish something big to make something out of life. Seems like he is talking to all these folks who never did what they wanted in life, and he thinks its sad. Towards the end of the song, he decides its worth at least attempting to do what he loves, even if its just turns into another failure. And he doesn't seem to even care if it is b/c he doesn't want to "spend his life building walls". There are a lot of messages going on in this song, but that's my take on it. Do what matters to you and stop worrying so much about failure. My favorite lyric in the song is "it's not living if what you're doing feels like dying".
This song is too good