Once I had a lover in Berlin,
Said a frail old woman from a table next to mine.
His voice was like an ancient violin
And he spoke to me - that voice ... that voice!
I believe they call it falling for a man,
But this falling made me fly, left me soaring for the sky.
There wasn't any sense, there was no plan,
But who would trade this passion for the safety of dry land?
Not I.
Not he.

And we knew we had to travel far away,
We knew we had to disappear, where no one else could find us.
A sailing ship would take us from the bay.
Its sails would fill with an offshore wind to blind us.
We gambled our security - the future for the now,
Sailed off toward the storm, safety cast aside.
We'd gone beyond what reason would allow,
But who could tame the tidal wave and tell it where to go?
Not I.
Not you.

Reality then brought it to an end,
Said the frail old woman, shaking underneath her hat.
A decent set of values is no friend.
It's reason now that blinds us, please believe!
And passion is not willing to be steered.
Purity alone won't fill a ship's wide sails.
Life will sometimes bring what we most feared,
And who could ever say when to go or when to stay?
Not you.
Not we.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Kari Bremnes's song "A Lover in Berlin" narrate a love story that defies all logic and conventions. The song is introduced by a frail old woman, possibly recounting her own past, who speaks of her lover in Berlin, comparing his voice to the sound of an ancient violin. She shares that whilst falling in love with a man is often considered a commonplace occurrence, her own experience felt transformational, making her feel as if she was flying, soaring for the sky. There was no plan, no common sense, but the passion was so powerful that she wouldn't trade it for anything else. She believes it was the same for him, as they both knew they had to disappear and travel far away to a place where no one could find them. They took the risk, casting their safety aside, and boarded a sailing ship, whose offshore wind blinded them. They gambled their security, and sailed off towards the storm, heading wherever the waves would take them.

However, reality did catch up with them eventually, and their love story came to an end. The woman attributes this to the limitations that reality imposes, claiming that a decent set of values is no friend. She identifies reason as the force that blinds us, and that passion cannot be steered by it. Purity alone, she says, won't fill a ship's sails. Life has its own set of surprises, some of which can be the most feared, and it's hard to know when to stay or go. She concludes by stating that neither the listener nor she herself, nor anyone else, can decide the fate of our passions, for they come and go as they please.

In essence, the lyrics of "A Lover in Berlin" are about the power of love to transform lives, making people abandon their reason and security in pursuit of passion. The woman and her lover's story is one example of such a transformative experience, and the song suggests that sometimes, the irrational and unpredictable nature of love can be the most fulfilling.

Line by Line Meaning

Once I had a lover in Berlin,
There was a time I was in love with someone in Berlin.

Said a frail old woman from a table next to mine.
I overheard an elderly woman at a table close to me say this.

His voice was like an ancient violin
He had a voice that sounded like an old violin.

And he spoke to me - that voice... that voice!
I loved the sound of his voice when he spoke to me.

I believe they call it falling for a man,
I think they call it falling in love with a man.

But this falling made me fly, left me soaring for the sky.
But the feeling of falling in love made me feel like I was flying and reaching new heights.

There wasn't any sense, there was no plan,
There was no logic or plan to our love.

But who would trade this passion for the safety of dry land?
But who would choose safety and stability over this passionate love?

Not I.
Not me.

Not he.
Not him.

And we knew we had to travel far away,
We knew we had to leave and go far away.

We knew we had to disappear, where no one else could find us.
We knew we had to go somewhere where no one else could find us.

A sailing ship would take us from the bay.
We would leave on a ship from the bay.

Its sails would fill with an offshore wind to blind us.
The wind would fill the sails of the ship and we wouldn't be able to see where we were going.

We gambled our security - the future for the now,
We risked our security and future for the present moment.

Sailed off toward the storm, safety cast aside.
We left towards a storm and didn't worry about our own safety.

We'd gone beyond what reason would allow,
We had gone beyond what was logical.

But who could tame the tidal wave and tell it where to go?
But who can control passion and love?

Not I.
Not me.

Not you.
Not you.

Reality then brought it to an end,
Reality eventually ended our love.

Said the frail old woman, shaking underneath her hat.
The elderly woman said this while shaking under her hat.

A decent set of values is no friend.
Having good values doesn't always help in love.

It's reason now that blinds us, please believe!
Now logic and reason have blinded us.

And passion is not willing to be steered.
Passion cannot be controlled.

Purity alone won't fill a ship's wide sails.
Just being pure and good isn't enough to bring success.

Life will sometimes bring what we most feared,
Life can bring things we are most afraid of.

And who could ever say when to go or when to stay?
And who can tell us when we should leave or stay?

Not you.
Not you.

Not we.
Not us.

Contributed by Hunter D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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Comments from YouTube:

Senrence

17y↑2

God, I wish the norwegian version was on youtube aswell.. Ah well. Thanks a bunch for adding this in english at least. =) It's a wonderfull song. I just "found" her again. My mother used to play this lots when I was a child and now I understand why.