it's not hard to reach back to the day
underneath that iowa sun
running to the tower of waterloo
looking for the Sullivan's train to come
and his five boys would run to the top
and salute him as he went by
first we'd wave hello
then we'd wave goodbye
goodbye

it's not hard to reach back to the days
after the attack on pearl
overnight my buddies turned into men
running out of time for games and girls
and the Sullivan boys were not overlooked
Uncle Sam'll call them each by name
the very next day they left on a mystery train

say goodbye, Mrs Sullivan
and don't you cry
"-We regret to inform you
the Navy has taken your sons away-"
all five so put your blue stars in the window

it's not hard to reach back to her smile
when she'd recieve a letter
and the letters they sounded generally the same
they said if they couldn't be home
but at least they were together
on a mighty fighting battleship
somewhere in the South Pacific
the letters never got much more specific

say goodbye, Mrs Sullivan
and don't you cry
"-We regret to inform you
the Navy is keeping your sons away-"
all five so keep your blue star in the window

it's not hard to reach back to the day
when the war finally came home
Uncle Sam'll send you a telegram
so he doesn't have to tell you over the phone
i heard she cracked up
when they found out what the war had cost
when all five of her boys were lost

say goodbye, Mrs Sullivan
go ahead and cry
"-We regret to inform you
that all your sons have passed away-"
all five so change your blue star to gold

blue star to gold