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 that 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

But dear Margaret remembers that for me

The Dutchman still wears wooden shoes

His cap and coat are patched with the love

That Margaret sewed there

Sometimes he thinks he's still in Rotterdam

He watches the tug-boats down canals

And calls out to them when he thinks he knows the Captain

Till Margaret comes

To take him home again

Through unforgiving streets that trip him though she holds his arm

Sometimes he thinks he's alone and he calls her name

Let us go to the banks of the ocean

Where the walls rise above the Zuiderzee

Long ago I used to be a young man

But dear Margaret remembers that for me

The windmills whirl the winter in

She winds his muffler tighter

And they sit in the kitchen

Some tea with whiskey keeps away the dew

He sees her for a moment calls her name

She makes his bed up singing some old love song

She learned it when the tune was very new

He hums a line or two they hum together in the dark

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 Zuiderzee

Long ago I used to be a young man

But dear Margaret remembers that for me