I played around in Chinatown
Just a-passin' time away
When blackjack red hit me in the head
And when I woke up next day, I was many miles away

I was shanghaied on an ocean freighter
I was shanghaied eatin’ beans and taters
I was shanghaied on an ocean freighter
And I wanna get back to shore, back to the Gold Coast Shore

They threw me off in old Hong Kong
Put me on my own
Not a penny in my pocket, ten thousand miles from home
That's a mighty long way from home

I was shanghaied in old Hong Kong
I was shanghaied, I was all alone
I was shanghaied, wanna get back homе
Back to the Gold Coast Shore, back to the Gold Coast Shorе

I worked for grub on an old Dutch tub
Wound up in L.A
Where a pretty little girl took me on a whirl
And when I woke up next day, when I woke up next day...

I was shanghaied for the rest of my life
I was shanghaied, but that's all right
I was shanghaied, got a pretty little wife
And I’m never leavin' home no more, never leavin' home no more