She left her neighborhood, in which everyone was filthy rich,
She left her parents' home and strayed with a vagabond who made
Vows of love she'd never heard, and she believed his every word.
She left no forwarding address, just took her youth and happiness
As with the boy she vanished in, the secret sweetness of their sin.
A young girl,
A young girl of sixteen
Child of springtime, still green,
Lying here by the road.
He told her love demanded space, so they roamed from place to place.
Although she realized she'd sinned, she threw caution to the wind
As she followed him around while he slowly dragged her down.
So overpowering was her love that it had made a captive of
The young girl's heart and soul and mind.
In other words, love drove her blind.
A young girl
A young girl of sixteen
Child of springtime, still green,
Lying here by the road.
Too much emotions for a girl
She let her heart become her world.
But worlds that God has never wrought
Fall asunder we are taught
Had she been wiser she would have known
She could not feed him love alone.
She should have known the day would come
When he would quit her just for crumbs.
He needed fresh new meat to carve
And left her heart, soul and mind to starve.
A young girl,
A young girl of sixteen
Child of springtime, still green,
Lying here by the road.
Dead.
Released 1965
Originally a French song co-written and recorded by Charles Aznavour