Lyrics of
Those Were The Days

Those Were the Days was originally a Russian song (Дорогой длинною), with music by Boris Fomin and lyrics by Konstantin Podrevsky. Gene Raskin, an American musician, added new English lyrics and popularized the song in the West. Mary Hopkin released the most famous version of the song in 1968, produced by Paul McCartney for the Apple Records label.

Once upon a time, there was a tavern
Where we used to raise a glass or two
Remember how we laughed away the hours,
Think of all the great things we would do
Those were the days, my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we'd choose
We'd fight and never lose
For we were young and sure to have our way
La La La La La La La La
La La La La La La
La La La La La La La La La La
Then, the busy years went rushing by us
We lost our starry notions on the way
If, by chance, I'd see you in the tavern,
We'd smile at one another and we'd say
Those were the days, my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we'd choose
We'd fight and never lose
For we were young and sure to have our way
La La La La La La La La
La La La La La La
La La La La La La La La La La
Just tonight, I stood before the tavern
Nothing seemed the way it used to be
In the glass, I saw a strange reflection
Was that lonely woman really me?
Those were the days, my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we'd choose
We'd fight and never lose
For we were young and sure to have our way
La La La La La La La La
La La La La La La
La La La La La La La La La La
Through the door, there came familiar laughter
I saw your face and heard you call my name
Oh, my friend, we're older but no wiser
For in our hearts, the dreams are still the same
Those were the days, my friend
We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we'd choose
We'd fight and never lose
For we were young and sure to have our way
La La La La La La
La La La La La La
La La La La La La La La La La 2x
* You can also try subsituting F# or F for F#7