Cruel, cruel world, must I go on?
Cruel, cruel world, I'm moving on
I've been living too fast
I've been living too wrong
Cruel, cruel world, I'm gone

This big old world sure got me running round
Heard a voice, it told me "settle down"
And with moonlight as my guide
And this feeling deep inside
I know now that I'm homeward bound

As I wonder through the pines
The whispers they tell
Of the many before me who tried and fell
Seeking fortune and ways to get to glory days
Looking for a place in this old world

Cruel, cruel world, must I go on?
Cruel, cruel world, I'm moving on
I've been living too fast
I've been living too wrong
Cruel, cruel world, I'm gone

Desert road, desert plain
I have seen so much pain
Now I see into the eyes of a girl
No more, no more cruel world

On a dusty trail I saw a vapor lie
Was it mirage, don't know but it seemed right
I felt mission, I felt trust
I knew then that I must
Go to her, away from this cruel world

Cruel, cruel world, must I go on?
Cruel, cruel world, I'm moving on
I've been living too fast
I've been living too wrong
Cruel, cruel world, I'm gone
Cruel, cruel world, I'm gone