As I was slowly passing
An orphan’s home today
I stopped for just a little while
To watch the children play
Alone a boy was standing
And when I asked him why
He turned with eyes that could not see
And he began to cry
I’m nobody’s child
I’m nobody’s child
Just like a flower
I’m growing wild
No momma’s arms to hold me
No daddy’s smiles
Nobody wants me
I’m nobody’s child
In every town and village
There are places just like this
With rows and rows of children
Babies in their cribs
They’ve long since stopped their crying
As no one ever hears
And no one’s there to notice them
Or take away the fears
Nobody’s child
Nobody’s child
Just like a flower
They’re growing wild
Got no mommy’s kisses
And no daddy’s smiles
Nobody wants them
They’re nobody’s child
Nobody’s child
They’re nobody’s child
Just like a flower
They’re growing wild
No mommy’s kisses
And no daddy’s smiles
Nobody wants them
They’re nobody’s child
Nobody wants them
They’re nobody’s child
“Nobody’s Child” is a song written by Cy Coben and Mel Foree. It was first recorded by Hank Snow in 1949 and it became one of his standards, although it did not chart for him. The song has been covered a number of times in the UK; it was on Lonnie Donegan‘s first album in 1956 (which went to #2 as an album in the UK), it was covered by Tony Sheridan and the Beat Brothers (The Beatles) in 1961 in Hamburg,[1] and in 1969 Karen Young took the song to #6 on the UK charts and used it as the title track on her album. In 1969 Hank Williams Jr. did a version of it that made it to #46 on the US Country charts. The Traveling Wilburys‘ 1990 version made it to #44 on the UK charts.
The song lyrics are about an orphan whom no one wants to adopt because he is blind:
