He went to Paris lookin' for answers 
To questions that bothered him so 
He was impressive, young and aggressive 
Savin' the world on his own 

But the warm summer breezes 
The French wines and cheeses 
Put his ambition at bay 
The summers and winters 
Scattered like splinters 
And four or five years slipped away 

Then he went to England, played the piano 
And married an actress named Kim 
They had a fine life, she was a good wife 
And bore him a young son named Jim 

And all of the answers and all of the questions 
Locked in his attic one day 
'Cause he liked the quiet clean country livin' 
And twenty more years slipped away 

Well the war took his baby, the bombs killed his lady 
And left him with only one eye 
His body was battered, his whole world was shattered 
And all he could do was just cry 

While the tears were a-fallin' he was recallin' 
Answers he never found 
So he hopped on a freighter, skidded the ocean 
And left England without a sound 

Now he lives in the islands, fishes the pilin's 
And drinks his Green Label each day 
Writing his memoirs, losin' his hearin' 
But he don't care what most people say 

Through eighty-six years of perpetual motion 
If he likes you he'll smile and he'll say 
"Jimmy, some of it's magic, some of it's tragic 
But I had a good life all the way" 

Coda: 
And he went to Paris lookin' for answers 
To questions that bothered him so