A.W.O.L.

Verse #1:

I'm so tired of this old camp
And all its misery.
Guess it's time to travel on
And find my sanity.

Chorus:

I'm going AWOL, AWOL, AWOL, AWOL!
I'm going AWOL, AWOL, AWOL, AWOL!
I'll be AWOL!

Verse #2:

It seems I've always been here
And it's so darn lonely.
But I can't stand no more of this.
I've just got to be free.

Verse #3:

When I'm caught, it'll be six months
In the stockade for me.
But catching me's the biggest fight
Fought in history!

Verse #4:

Driver, please give me a ride
To my destiny.
I don't know where I'm going to.
But it's not the Army.

Verse #5:

Young man, don't you sign your name,
Or you'll end up like me,
Hiding from the Law and
Haunted by a memory.

Words and Music: ©Copyright 1974 by John Robert Mallernee

Author’s Note: "A.W.O.L.", is the acronym for "Absent Without Leave", which means leaving your Army post without permission.

I composed this song in 1974 at Fort Hood, Texas, while assigned to the 16th Signal Battalion. My fellow soldiers LOVED this song, but for some unfathonable reasons, my commander didn't appreciate it!