The Prisoners Song
Bill Monroe Lyrics

Oh, I wish I had someone to love me,
I feel so alone and I long for someone to care for me and love me unconditionally.

Someone to call me their own.
I wish there was someone in my life who claimed me as their beloved, and gave me a sense of belonging and security.

Oh, I wish I had someone to live with,
I feel so isolated in my current situation and wish I had a companion to share my days with.

'Cause I'm tired of living alone.
This loneliness has become unbearable, and I crave the warmth and company of another human being.

Oh, meet me tonight in the moonlight,
I want to meet the person I love under the moonlit sky, so that we can feel its beauty together.

Please meet me tonight all alone.
I need to see this person privately, and I hope they will come without anyone else accompanying them.

For I have a sad story to tell you,
There is something painful that has happened to me, and I need to share it with you.

It's a story that's never been told.
This is something I have never spoken of before, but I trust you enough to confide in you.

I'll be carried to the new jail tomorrow,
I am going to prison tomorrow and I will be separated from the person I love.

Leaving my poor darling alone.
My spouse or lover will have to bear the pain of my absence, and that thought pains me deeply.

With the cold prison bars all around me,
The prison is a cold, dark and confined space, and I will be trapped there, alone and away from the person I love.

And my head on a pillow of stone.
I will not even have a comfortable bed to lie on, my head will rest on a stone slab, making my stay even more unbearable.

Now I have a grand ship on the ocean,
I own a magnificent ship that is sailing on the vast ocean, but it has brought me no solace in this time of grief.

All mounted with silver and gold.
The magnificent ship is adorned with silver and gold, but they hold no value or meaning for me in my current state.

And before my poor darling would suffer,
I would go to any lengths to prevent my beloved from experiencing the pain that I am going through.

Oh, that ship would be anchored and sold.
I would rather sell off my prized possession than let my beloved suffer the agony that I am facing now.

Now, if I had the wings of an angel,
If only I had the supernatural power to fly, like an angel, I would use it to be with my beloved, even in prison.

Over these prison walls I would fly.
I would fly over the prison walls, to be with my beloved, to hold them tight and never let go.

And I'd fly to the arms of my darling,
I would fly straight into the embrace of my beloved, and relish being in their warm and comforting embrace.

And there I'd be willing to die.
I would even be willing to die in their loving arms, so that at least for a moment, I would have felt unconditionally loved and cherished.