White Winter Hymnal
Fleet Foxes Lyrics
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I was following the, I was following the
I was following the, I was following the
I was following the, I was following the
I was following the pack, all swallowed in their coats
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
To keep their little heads from falling in the snow
And I turned 'round and there you go
And Michael, you would fall and turn the white snow red
As strawberries in the summertime
I was following the pack, all swallowed in their coats
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
To keep their little heads from falling in the snow
And I turned 'round and there you go
And Michael, you would fall and turn the white snow red
As strawberries in the summertime
I was following the pack, all swallowed in their coats
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
To keep their little heads from falling in the snow
And I turned 'round and there you go
And Michael, you would fall and turn the white snow red
As strawberries in summertime
The opening verses of Fleet Foxes' 'White Winter Hymnal' evoke a sense of being caught up in the busy rush of winter. The repetition of "I was following the" highlights a feeling of being carried along by a wave of movement and energy, without any sense of direction or purpose, as if blindly following the crowd. The chorus also adds to this image of a frenzied winter storm, with the pack of people all bundled up in coats with red scarves tied around their throats for warmth. The line "To keep their little heads from falling in the snow" suggests a vulnerability and need for protection, as if they are all huddled together for survival in harsh conditions. The sudden turn in the chorus, with the mention of Michael falling in the snow and turning it red as strawberries, is a striking image that jars with the earlier sense of cozy comfort that the scarves and coats evoke. The reference to summertime also adds a feeling of wistfulness and longing for a different season, perhaps for the warmth and abundance that summer brings. This imagery of winter's hustle and bustle is a reflection of the chaotic modern world, where people can feel lost and disconnected amidst the frenzy of activity around them.
Line by Line Meaning
I was following the, I was following the
The singer repeated this sentence to emphasize that they were following something or someone.
I was following the pack, all swallowed in their coats
The singer was following a group of people who were bundled up in their winter coats.
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
The group of people had red scarves tied tightly around their necks.
To keep their little heads from falling in the snow
The scarves were used to keep the group's heads up so they wouldn't fall into the snow.
And I turned 'round and there you go
The artist turned around and saw someone they knew.
And Michael, you would fall and turn the white snow red
Michael, who the singer knew, would fall in the snow and his red scarf would stain the white snow red.
As strawberries in the summertime
The red stain on the snow reminded the singer of strawberries in the summertime.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Robin Noel Pecknold
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@petersoliz5982
I was following the
I was following the pack
All swallowed in their coats
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
To keep their little heads
From fallin' in the snow
And I turned 'round and there you go
And, Michael, you would fall
And turn the white snow red as strawberries
In the summertime
I was following the pack
All swallowed in their coats
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
To keep their little heads
From fallin' in the snow
And I turned 'round and there you go
And, Michael, you would fall
And turn the white snow red as strawberries
In the summertime
I was following the pack
All swallowed in their coats
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
To keep their little heads
From fallin' in the snow
And I turned 'round and there you go
And, Michael, you would fall
And turn the white snow red as strawberries
In the summertime
@lucyfoster4082
[Pecknold]: ‘I mean a lot of the record is about family and friends, very little of it is… I don’t think there’s any real love song that’s on the record, but that one is just like about my experience when I was a kid, you know, like I had my really tight group of friends. But as we grew up from grade school to junior high to high school, everybody just kind of split off, and everybody kind of changed. I went from like this tight-knit group to, seemingly for no reason, everybody was kind of going their own way. That song is just about that feeling.'”
–Later in the same interview:
[Interviewer]: ‘The song references a person named Michael. Is that someone specific, or is that just a name for a feeling?’
[Pecknold]: ‘A person named Michael.’
[Interviewer]: ‘It is?’
[Pecknold]: ‘[Laughs.] Yeah. Michael is a great buddy of mine from back when. We just totally, I don’t know, he was one of the kids I knew from grade school on. If I saw him now, I really don’t know what we would talk about. It’s just kind of that same thing that kind of happened really gradually.’ ”
@sylviebartusek5190
LYRICS:
I was following the, I was following the (4 times)
I was following the pack
All swallowed in their coats
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
To keep their little heads
From fallin' in the snow
And I turned 'round and there you go
And, Michael, you would fall
And turn the white snow
Red as strawberries in the summertime
I was following the pack
All swallowed in their coats
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
To keep their little heads
From fallin' in the snow
And I turned 'round and there you go
And, Michael, you would fall
And turn the white snow
Red as strawberries in the summertime
I was following the pack
All swallowed in their coats
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
To keep their little heads
From fallin' in the snow
And I turned 'round and there you go
And, Michael, you would fall
And turn the white snow
Red as strawberries in the summertime
@MissDistarr60
Lyrics:
I was following the,
I was following the,
I was following the,
I was following the,
I was following the,
I was following the,
I was following the,
I was following the,
(The following verse repeats 3X)
I was following the pack,
All swaddled in their coats
With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
To keep their little heads
From fallin' in the snow
And I turned 'round and there you go.
And Michael you would fall,
And turn the white snow
Red as strawberries in the summertime.
Read more: Fleet Foxes - White Winter Hymnal Lyrics | MetroLyrics
@catspit892
Great speculations! Unfortunately, this beautiful song actually has a rather sad connotation. Here is what I believe the real meaning of the song is.
During the French Revolution, mobs of revolutionists beheaded those (such as royalty -- I'm sure you've heard of Marie Antoinette) who were against the revolution. Revolutionists would gather around the guillotines in "packs" to watch the beheadings. The fashion then was to wear high-collared coats, which may have appeared to "swallow" the individual. Also, I found a painting depicting a beheading scene in the French Revolution. The revolutionists in the illustration wore red scarves around their necks, perhaps to symbolize their loyalty to the revolution. Perhaps "Michael" didn't wear a red scarf or did not support the revolution, and thus he was quickly beheaded at the guillotine.
"I was following the pack all swallowed in their coats" -- someone was following the revolutionists on their way to the guillotine to behead those who opposed the movement. Perhaps this person was for the revolution and was a friend of Michael, or he too was on his way to the guillotine.
"With scarves of red tied 'round their throats" -- the revolutionists wore red scarves to symbolize their loyalty.
"To keep their little heads from falling in the snow" -- in order to keep from being beheaded, they wore the red scarves to show others that they were for the revolution.
"And I turned 'round and there you'd go, and Michael you would fall, and turn the white snow red as strawberries in the summertime." -- Michael did not wear a scarf or did not support the revolution, and thus he was quickly beheaded.
Hope this helps :)
@bonymacaroni3293
Funny thing- when im happy this song makes me sad, but when im really sad this song makes me happy.
@juliastraight4890
ultimate mood neutralizer
@deusvult6571
Listen to it twice to make you happy again
@schr4pnel
@@deusvult6571 beat the system
@MK-hj9de
@@deusvult6571 but what if they are happy rn
@akrobeau
Because it has a really happy sound to it but a really really dark meaning
@vminweddingcaterer3675
this would be perfect in a weirdly surreal and dark and sad but also heartwarming indie movie
@benjaminhuntergreen7142
ray watson yeah like an A24 movie
@flieds
thank you, fatal gonnorhea
@PetrMichalec
Give me the license and say no more!