It is the most successful single released from the album, having peaked at #1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, #1 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart, and #31 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Like a Stone is Audioslave's most successful single and has been certified gold by the RIAA.
Bass player Tim Commerford explained that the song is about an old man waiting for death. He sits in a house alone after all his friends and family have passed on before him. He is waiting to be reunited with them. However, while Commerford originally thought it was a song about love and romance, Chris Cornell explains: "It's a song about concentrating on the afterlife you would hope for, rather than the normal monotheistic approach: You work really hard all your life to be a good person and a moral persona and fair and generous......And then you go to hell anyway."
The melancholy and certain parts of the lyrics of "Like a Stone" has prompted some to wonder if Cornell wrote the song about late Alice in Chains singer Layne Staley who died in April of 2002. Cornell's answer to these assumptions: "No. I'm not one of those guys where, like, something happens and then I go run around, 'Ooh, 9/11, and now it's 9/12, let me write about that. I wrote the lyrics before he died. ... You can misinterpret that stuff pretty easy, but I don't tend to sit down and plan on writing about a specific issue. They come up or they don't."
Like a Stone
Audioslave Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In a room full of emptiness
By a freeway I confess
I was lost in the pages
Of a book full of death
Reading how we'll die alone
And if we're good, we'll lay to rest
Anywhere we want to go
In your house, I long to be
Room by room, patiently
I'll wait for you there
Like a stone
I'll wait for you there
Alone
And on my deathbed I will pray
To the gods and the angels
Like a pagan to anyone
Who will take me to heaven
To a place I recall
I was there so long ago
The sky was bruised
The wine was bled
And there you led me on
In your house, I long to be
Room by room, patiently
I'll wait for you there
Like a stone
I'll wait for you there
Alone
Alone
And on I read
Until the day was gone
And I sat in regret
Of all the things I've done
For all that I've blessed
And all that I've wronged
In dreams until my death
I will wander on
In your house, I long to be
Room by room, patiently
I'll wait for you there
Like a stone
I'll wait for you there
Alone
Alone
The lyrics of Audioslave's song "Like A Stone" contain a deep sense of loneliness and yearning for something or someone. The first stanza sets the tone for the rest of the song, describing how the singer is lost and feeling empty while reading about death. Despite this feeling, the singer is hopeful that if they are good, they'll be able to lay to rest anywhere they want to go. The second stanza speaks of the singer's longing to be in someone's house and waiting for them there, like a stone, patiently. The chorus repeats this sentiment, with the added emphasis on waiting alone.
The third stanza speaks of the singer envisioning their deathbed and praying to the gods and angels to take them to heaven, to a place they recall being at so long ago. The description of the sky being bruised and the wine being bled adds to the sense of melancholy and despair. The repetition of the line "I'll wait for you there" in the chorus adds to the feeling of wanting and waiting for something specific, but not necessarily knowing what that is.
The final stanza speaks of the singer's regrets and how they will continue to wander in their dreams until their death. The last line of the song, "alone," emphasizes the feeling of isolation and longing that runs throughout the song. Overall, the lyrics of "Like A Stone" paint a picture of a person who is lost, lonely, and searching for something to fill the emptiness they feel.
Line by Line Meaning
On a cobweb afternoon
On a lazy and somewhat eerie afternoon
In a room full of emptiness
In a place that felt sterile and devoid of life
By a freeway I confess
Next to a busy road, I must admit
I was lost in the pages
I was absorbed completely in the words on the page
Of a book full of death
Of a book that described the end of life
Reading how we'll die alone
Reading about the inevitability of being by oneself at the end
And if we're good, we'll lay to rest
And that if we live honorably, we will be buried with respect
Anywhere we want to go
Anywhere we choose to travel
In your house, I long to be
I desire to be in your home
Room by room, patiently
Methodically exploring each area with great care
I'll wait for you there
I'll be waiting for you in that place
Like a stone
As unyielding and steadfast as a boulder
Alone
By myself
And on my deathbed I will pray
As I am dying, I will offer a plea
To the gods and the angels
To the divine beings
Like a pagan to anyone
Like someone without a specific religious belief, I will be seeking assistance from any available source
Who will take me to heaven
Who can transport me to the afterlife
To a place I recall
To a location I have memories of
I was there so long ago
I visited that place many years prior
The sky was bruised
The sky appeared a hazy, dark blue color
The wine was bled
The wine had been poured out and appeared deep red
And there you led me on
You showed me the way forward in that moment
And on I read
I continued to read
Until the day was gone
Until the sun had set
And I sat in regret
And I felt remorse for my actions
Of all the things I've done
For everything I have accomplished or failed at
For all that I've blessed
For all the positive events in my life
And all that I've wronged
And for all the negative actions I have committed
In dreams until my death
For the remainder of my time on earth, I will think and dream about these things
I will wander on
I will continue to exist, searching and traveling
Alone
By myself
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Timothy Commerford, Chris Cornell, Tom Morello, Brad Wilk
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@giankragazzo571
On a cobweb afternoon
In a room full of emptiness
By a freeway I confess
I was lost in the pages
Of a book full of death
Reading how we'll die alone
And if we're good, we'll lay to rest
Anywhere we want to go
In your house, I long to be
Room by room, patiently
I'll wait for you there
Like a stone
I'll wait for you there
Alone
And on my deathbed I will pray
To the gods and the angels
Like a pagan to anyone
Who will take me to heaven
To a place I recall
I was there so long ago
The sky was bruised
The wine was bled
And there you led me on
In your house, I long to be
Room by room, patiently
I'll wait for you there
Like a stone
I'll wait for you there
Alone
Alone
And on I read
Until the day was gone
And I sat in regret
Of all the things I've done
For all that I've blessed
And all that I've wronged
In dreams until my death
I will wander on
In your house, I long to be
Room by room, patiently
I'll wait for you there
Like a stone
I'll wait for you there
Alone
Alone
@FreebieBabe
On a cob web afternoon,
In a room full of emptiness
By a freeway I confess
I was lost in the pages of a book full of death;
Reading how we'll die alone.
And if we're good we'll lay to rest,
Anywhere we want to go.
In your house I long to be;
Room by room patiently,
I'll wait for you there like a stone.
I'll wait for you there alone.
@katrinkasanfranciscobayare7364
@@onemancarnage
Thank you Bryan.
You know, I've Loved, borrowed and shared these words for several years now.
Please feel free to borrow and share them as well.
These words helped me out so much when I was down.
So I typed it up, printed it on pretty paper and had it laminated.
I passed out over fifty to a hundred copies throughout the years.
I appreciate your kind messages.
Have a great weekend Bryan.
Mahalo and Aloha
From Katrinka,
San Francisco Bay Area🌺🌴
@chicken
no matter how many years have passed, this will remain one of my favorite songs of all time
@kristasingleton6179
Me too!! And also one my top favorite videos of all time. I always thought I liked the long hair better. However, he's gorgeous in this, so I can't decide. ❤
@RafaelMora-mp3wn
The longe time.
@josevazquez7475
Yeaah
@pedroantonio8526
You said the same on "losing my religion"
@user-nv1fu5dc8c
I know, I feel the same. There is something so haunting about it! Sometimes I hear it in my sleep.
@KDB13404
My son suffered from depression, he took his own life 2/4/24. Ever since his death I hear this song in my head, when I wake up, during the day and at night it will pop into my head. I am devastated and will never get over my sons death. I want to wake up from this nightmare but I can’t. I miss my son so much. Rip Brandon my heart is forever broken. To anyone who suffers from depression know that what suicide leaves behind to family and friends is a never ending hell. Stay strong, get help and call a loved one to help you through your pain.
@amrodriguez4989
sorry to hear of your loss.
@cronicarieschick6923
I'm so sorry for your loss and I'm constantly fighting depression I think sometimes the only thing stopping me is my kids everyday for years now every night when my kids are asleep I spend my time in tears and I pray my children never feel like this smh I can't even pretend to imagine how much pain you feel it's not fair and ik he has no idea that him ending his pain that way would cause u as much pain that he felt I'm so sorry
@wetworksyt4446
may he rest in peace i will pray for him.