although i ve left you darling i ll soon be back again that s what i said in china where all the work was dead i hope you get my letters i ll write them every day i ll soon be heading eastwards i m hammering the nails i m working on the railroad i dig away the time i m singing to the work song with memories in mind i ll sail to hong kong harbor the winds were warmer there the sweat would roll down my back while digging at the earth while talking of you darling i d show your photograph and point it over westwards way over past the tracks i m working on the railroad i dig away the time i m singing to the work song with memories in mind i m working on the railroad i dig away the time i m singing to the work song with memories in mind of you of you oh i ve saved every penny my girl i hope that you have waited out there for all my love when i get home cause deep down in my heart there s a hole i ve saved every penny my girl i hope that you have waited out there for all my love when i get home cause deep down in my heart there s a hole i ve saved every penny my girl i hope that you have waited out there for all my love when i get home cause deep down in my heart there s a hole 