Bright Eyes
Art Garfunkel Lyrics

Is it a kind of a dream
Garfunkel is questioning whether the situation he's experiencing is a subjective manifestation of his mind while he is under normal, unconscious rest.

Floating out on the tide
He feels as though he has no control over the situation and is being swept along with the flow and process of his own mind.

Following the river of death downstream
Garfunkel envisions himself being pulled towards a potentially somber conclusion which he is powerless to change, but instead simply follows the path laid out for him.

Oh, is it a dream?
He repeats his initial questioning, wondering if this is all just a figment of the subconscious world he's entered.

There's a fog along the horizon
The singer describes the blur his memory: a thick layer of haze from the past, which obscures the future he is unable to see.

A strange glow in the sky
Despite the fog, Garfunkel sees an illuminating light that shines down from above, casting an eerie light on his surroundings.

And nobody seems to know where it goes
Garfunkel's motions are inscrutable to anyone else and he has no idea where to move from here.

And what does it mean?
He is confused by the situations and does not understand the message that his subconscious is sending him.

Bright eyes, burning like fire
The brightness in his vision is all he can currently focus on and the light appears as a vibrant and somber depiction of his state of mind.

Bright eyes, how can you close and fail?
He is now questioning the source of the light and what it means if it fails him.

How can the light that burned so brightly Suddenly burn so pale?
He is confused and upset by the sudden disappearance of the light and is wondering about what this could mean for his situation.

Is it a kind of a shadow
He wonders if the darkness he is currently experiencing is just an obscure reflection of a lack of understanding in previous experiences he has had.

Reaching into the night
The lack of understanding feels like being casted into the night without any guide, struggling to find a way through the confusion.

Wandering over the hills unseen
Garfunkel feels as though he is aimlessly roaming around through the vast wilderness, constantly wandering without a clear direction, without a possiblity of anyone observing from within.

Or is it a dream?
He is no longer sure if the situation he's experiencing is real life or just a far-off vision dreamscape.

There's a high wind in the trees
Garfunkel feels that something powerful is brewing in his mind that is creating a restless and unsettled mindset that is unexplainable to anyone else.

A cold sound in the air
He experiences the sense of coldness that causes a shiver down his spine and creates a feeling of detachment from those around him.

And nobody ever knows when you go
Garfunkel is referencing the fact that nighttime is an intangible and mysterious time, something that nobody can really control and impossible for others to observe.

And where do you start?
The singer is feeling lost and doesn't know where to begin or where to end with the journey that he's taking.

Oh, into the dark
He has no choice but to continue to move forward, even as the void of darkness looms ahead of him.

Bright eyes, burning like fire
The cadence and pensive tone of the song and lyrics come full circle as Garfunkel again describes the light he senses ahead in his dreams, its vibrancy now emphasized by the fire imagery.

Bright eyes, how can you close and fail?
He is pleading with the light, asking it not to fail him and his journey.

How can the light that burned so brightly Suddenly burn so pale?
Posed again. He is confused and upset by the sudden disappearance of the light that he's relied on and does not know what this means for his future.

Bright eyes
Garfunkel ends the song again with a repeated intonation to the light in his dreams, singing it with the same gravity as before, despite the confusion of what he's gone through.