Lyrics above are Tommy Flemings adaptation,

ie:"I could have lived my life without Cassandra's call,"
Jimmy McCarthy wrote it as;
"I could have lived my life between Cork, Cobh and Youghal,"

The Song is about Jack Doyle, Irish Heavy Weight Contender, from Cobh, County Cork, who threw away his riches on (in his own words)"fast women and slow horses" and died a penniless drunk.

It's a heart breaking song when you know the story behind it.