The Boxer Simon and Garfunkel (#7 in 1969)

I am just a poor boy, though my story's seldom told
I have squandered my resistance for a pocketful of mumbles, such are promises
All lies and jest, still a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest (hmmmm....mmmm......)
 
When I left my home and my family, I was no more than a boy
In the company of strangers.....
In the quiet of the railway station, runnin' scared
Laying low, seeking out the poorer quarters, where the ragged people go
Looking for the places only they would know
 
    Li la li... li la la la li la li
    Li la li... li la la la li la li
    La la la la li...

 
Seeking only workman's wages, I come looking for a job, but I get no offers.....
Just a come-on from the whores on Seventh Avenue
I do declare, there were times when I was so lonesome
I took some comfort there (li la la, la, la la)
 
And I'm laying out my winter clothes, wishing I was gone, goin' home
Where the New York city winters aren't bleedin' me, leadin' me to go home
 
In the clearing stands a boxer, and a fighter by his trade
And he carries the reminder of every glove that laid him down or cut him
'Til he cried out in his anger and his shame
I am leaving, I am leaving, but the fighter still remains
Yes, he still remains ...
   Chorus