Standard (EADGBE)

 The rooms were so much colder then

 My father was a soldier then

 And times were very hard,

 When I was young, when I was young

 I smoked my first cigarette at ten

 And for girls, I had a bad yen

 And I had quite a ball,

 When I was young

 When I was young, it was more important

Pain more painful

Laughter much louder

Yeah, when I was young

 When I was young

 I met my first love at thirteen

She was brown and I was pretty green

 And I learned quite a lot when I was young, When I was young

3x

 When I was young, it was more important

Pain more painful

Laughter much louder

Yeah, when I was young, when I was young

 My faith was so much stronger then

I believed in my fellow men

 And I was so much older then,

 When I was young 3x