Our ceilidh band managed to work this song into a strip the willow. Here are the full lyrics:


THE RECRUITING SERGEANT
As recorded by The Pogues on "If I Should Fall from Grace with God" (1988)

As I was walking down the road
A-feeling fine and larky oh,
A recruiting sergeant came up to me.
Says he: "You'd look fine in khaki oh,
For the king he is in need of men.
Come and read this proclamation oh.
A life in Flanders for you then
Would be a fine vacation oh."

"That may be so," says I to him,
"But tell me, sergeant dearie oh,
If I had a pack stuck up on my back
Would I look fine and cheery oh?
For they'd have you train and drill
Until they had you like the Frenchies oh.
It may be warm in Flanders,
It's draughty in the trenches oh."

The sergeant smiled and winked his eye.
His smile was most provoking oh.
He twiddled and twirled his wee mustache.
Says he: "You're only joking oh.
The sandbags are so warm and high
The wind you won’t feel blowing oh."
I winked at a colleen passing by.
Says I: "What if it's snowing oh?

"Come rain or hail or wind and snow,
I'm not going out to Flanders oh.
There's fighting in Dublin to be done.
Let your sergeants and your commanders go.
Let English men fight English wars.
It’s nearly time they started oh."
I saluted the sergeant a very good night.
There and then we parted oh.