The song is an Irish folk style ballad, written by Phil Chevron, and featured on The Pogues' album If I Should Fall from Grace with God.
The first verse continues in the second-person voice, with a series of questions about post-immigration life, asked by a modern immigrant of an earlier one, first about employment ("upon the railroad"/as a police officer) and class ("the White House"/"the five and dime"), and then about homesickness.
According to historical documentation, there was a 30% mortality rate on these coffin ships, and their reference is a recurring theme in many Irish folk songs.
The setting is contemporary, making references to Brendan Behan, George M. Cohan, 'Dear old Time Square's favourite bard', and "JFK" (John F. Kennedy).
[1] The chorus continues, to describe the furtive life of the illegal immigrant: "from rooms the daylight never sees, where lights don't glow on Christmas trees."