I'm goin away,
'cause I gotta busted heart.
I'm leavin' today,
If my TravelAll will start.
And I recken where I'm headed,
I might need me different clothes-
Way up in Michigan,
Where the Laughing River flows.

Twenty years in the minor leagues-
Ain't no place I didn't go.
Well I gotta few hits,
But I never made the show.
And I could hang on for a few years,
Doin what I've done before.
I wanna hear the Laughing River,
Flowin' right outside my door.

My cousin Ray,
Said he's got a job for me.
Where the houses are cheap,
And he knows this nice lady.
He said she even saw me play once,
Said she smiled at my name.
Well upon the Laughing River,
Could be a whole new game.

So goodbye to the bus.
Good bye to payin' dues.
Goodbye to the cheers,
And goodbye to the booze.
Well I'm trading in this old bat,
For a fishing pole.
I'm gonna let the Laughing River,
Flow right into my soul.

[repeat first verse]