Released: September 25, 1970

Songwriter: Sorrells Pickard

Producer: Pete Drake

[Verse]
Patiently she stares down the runway
Today's the day that he is coming home
Seems like he's been gone a lifetime
And a lifetime is a long time to be gone
But there are songs that need singing
And there are things that must be done
There are thoughts that still need thinking
And there are wars that must be won

He was just a boy when they sent for him
And overnight turned him into a man
Proudly he had served his country
In a war he didn't seem to understand
The flag still waves, his war is over
He'll never have to kill again
And as she waits, she thinks it over
Is winning worth the prize we pay to win?

Her thoughts keep wandering to his childhood
When all his hand grenades were merely toys
And "war" was just a game that he was playing
With plastic guns like other little boys
And every day when play was over
He'd put his little toys away
And she'd be standing, waiting for him
The way she's waiting here today

As the plane stops she starts thinking
Will he still look the way he did before?
Or will his eyes reflect the pain of killing
Like most young men when they come home from war?
These last few minutes seem like hours
She tries her best not to cry
But there's that hearse filled up with flowers
Did he really have to die?

[Outro]
No, no, no, no[x10]

Ringo Starr

Best known as the drummer for The Beatles, Ringo Starr (born Richard Starkey, 1940) also had a moderately successful solo career (with hits like “It Don’t Come Easy” and “Photograph”) and was the narrator for Thomas The Tank Engine.

His country-infused nickname emerged from a tendency to wear rings on his fingers.