Myrtles in bloom,
Morning in June,
Whole world smells like a cup of coffee.
French Quarter scene,
Moves like a dream,
Guess I'll let 'em dream along without me,
'Cause I'm bound to leave New Orleans,
Taking one last look along the river.
Hardly can believe, New Orleans,
After all this time we been together.

I was a kid,
Hitting the skids.
You gave me something to believe in,
Threw me a line,
Taught me to rhyme -
Those rhymes that never need a reason.
Now you're like an old pair of jeans,
Can remember when you used to fit me.
Coffee's getting cold, New Orleans,
In between the sugar and the chickory.

Now the years, like lover's tears, come wash over me,
Riding back the streetcar track of my memory.
And I know what it means to miss New Orleans.

I'd like to delay,
But I'm on my way,
Like water, looking for its level.
I want you to know,
Wherever I go,
I'll take you with me when I travel,
'Cause you're in my soul, New Orleans,
You're the flower pressed beneath my pages
Let the good times roll, New Orleans,
Like the river, rolling down the ages.

Goodbye, goodbye, New Orleans
And hello, hello to my dreams.