Father of mine
Tell me where have you been
You know I just close my eyes
My whole world disappeared

Father of mine
Take me back to the day
Yeah, when I was still your golden boy
Back before you went away

I remember blue skies
Walking the block
I loved it when you held me high
I loved to hear you talk

You would take me to the movies
You would take me to the beach
Take me to a place inside
That was so hard to reach

Father of mine
Tell me where did you go
You had the world inside your hand
But you did not seem to know

Father of mine
Tell me what do you see
When you look back at your wasted life
And you don't see me
I was ten years old
Doing all that I could
It wasn't easy for me
To be a scared white boy in a black neighborhood

Sometimes you would send me a birthday card
With a five dollar bill
Yeah, I never understood you then
And I guess I never will

Daddy gave me a name
My daddy gave me a name
Then he walked away
Daddy gave me a name
Then he walked away
My daddy gave me a name

Yeah, yeah, oh yeah

Daddy gave me a name
My daddy gave me a name
Then he walked away
Daddy gave me a name
Then he walked away
My daddy gave me a name
Yeah, yeah, oh yeah

Father of mine
Tell me where have you been
Yeah, I just close my eyes
And the world disappeared

Father of mine
Tell me how do you sleep
With the children you abandoned
And the wife I saw you beat

I will never be safe
I will never be sane
I will always be weird inside
I will always be lame

Now I'm a grown man
With a child of my own
And I swear that I'm not gonna let her know
All the pain I have known

Then he walked away
Daddy gave me a name
Then he walked away
My daddy gave me a name
Then he walked away
My daddy gave me a name
Then he walked away
My daddy gave me a name
Then he walked away, yeah
Then he walked away, yeah
Then he walked away, oh yeah