Granddaddy to sit me on his knee And me how it was in the old country and floods and crops that failed I'd listen for as he told his tale
He said, "There must have been a curse on the name" But he swore be the one to break that chain With money he saved from the sweat of his brow He'd get 'em out of there, someday,
Well, he never was of a gamblin' man But he dreamed of passage to the Promised Bet it all on a better in America He said, "We'll change our fate, and this O'Reilly Luck"
I can imagine the look on his face Tickets in hand, as they counted the Eleven passports, no turnin' Decidin' they should and shouldn't pack
But the baby the fever just days before And the doctor hung a on their front door For two long weeks were quarantined Stranded nothin' but a shattered dream
Well, he was much of a gamblin' man But he dreamed of passage to the Promised Bet it all on a life in America He said, "We'll our fate, and this danged O'Reilly Luck"
Granddaddy this story 'til he passed away How the people all cheered from the dock day While he shook his with a tear in his eye At the ship of the White Star Line
And he cursed his and his danged O'Reilly Luck As the mighty Titanic, into the sun
Well, he never was much of a man But he found his way to the Land Bet it all on a life in America He said, "We'll change our fate, and this danged O'Reilly Danged Luck"