Shark Smile
Big Thief Lyrics
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She came around and I stole a glance in my youth
A vampire
Evelyn shown quiet as roses sting
It came over me at a bad time
But who wouldn't ride on a moonlit line?
Had her in my eye, 85 down the road of a dead end gleam
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
It came over her at a bad time
Riding through Winona down the dotted line
Held us gunning out
Ninety miles down the road of a dead end dream
She looked over with a part smile
Caught up in the twinkle, it could take awhile
And the money pile on the dashboard fluttering
As she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
Evelyn's kiss was oxygen
I leaned over to take it in
As we went howling through the edge of south Des Moines
It came over me at a bad time
She burned over the double line
She impaled as I reached my hand for the guardrail
Ooh, the guardrail
Ooh, the guardrail
And she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
She said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
"Shark Smile" by Big Thief is a song that begins with a poetic imagery of a woman in a yellow van with a smile like that of a shark's. The singer seems to have encountered her before, as he admits to having stolen a glance at her in his youth. The woman is described as a "vampire," possibly suggesting that she is seductive and alluring, but also dangerous. While they both ride on a moonlit line, the singer admits that this encounter came over him at a bad time.
The song then switches to the woman's perspective, as she asks the singer to take her somewhere with her. As they drive through Winona down the dotted line, there is a sense of urgency and recklessness in their journey. The woman's character appears to be wild and impulsive, as she burns over the double line and impales herself on the guardrail.
The chorus repeats the exchange between the two characters, as they both ask each other to take them. The kiss of the character named Evelyn is compared to oxygen, perhaps indicating that she is the air that the singer needs to breathe. The song concludes as both characters repeat their refrain of "woo, baby, take me too."
Overall, "Shark Smile" paints a vivid picture of a brief, but intense encounter between two individuals who are drawn to each other in a time of recklessness and abandon.
Line by Line Meaning
She was a shark smile in a yellow van
She had a captivating, mysterious smile while driving a yellow van
She came around and I stole a glance in my youth
I saw her when I was young and couldn't resist looking at her
A vampire
She had a power over me like a vampire
Evelyn shown quiet as roses sting
Evelyn seemed calm, but had a sharpness that could hurt
It came over me at a bad time
I fell for her at a difficult moment
But who wouldn't ride on a moonlit line?
Who wouldn't take a chance on love under the moonlight?
Had her in my eye, 85 down the road of a dead end gleam
I was fixated on her while speeding down a road with no future
And she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
We both felt drawn to each other and expressed it passionately
Riding through Winona down the dotted line
We drove through Winona on a winding road
Held us gunning out
Ninety miles down the road of a dead end dream
We accelerated towards a hopeless destination
She looked over with a part smile
Caught up in the twinkle, it could take awhile
And the money pile on the dashboard fluttering
She smiled enigmatically, lost in thought, while money scattered on the dashboard
Evelyn's kiss was oxygen
I leaned over to take it in
As we went howling through the edge of south Des Moines
It came over me at a bad time
Her kiss was life-sustaining and we drove recklessly through the outskirts of Des Moines in a moment of vulnerability
She burned over the double line
She impaled as I reached my hand for the guardrail
Ooh, the guardrail
Ooh, the guardrail
She lost control and crashed into the guardrail, fatally injuring herself as I watched helplessly
And she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
She said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
In the face of danger and tragedy, we continued to express our love and desire for each other
Lyrics © DOMINO PUBLISHING COMPANY
Written by: Adrianne Lenker
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Arturo Vega
She was a shark smile in a yellow van
She came around and I stole a glance in my youth
A vampire
Evelyn shown quiet as roses sting
It came over me at a bad time
But who wouldn't ride on a moonlit line?
Had her in my eye, 85 down the road of a dead end gleam
And she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
It came over her at a bad time
Riding through Winona down the dotted line
Held us gunning out
Ninety miles down the road of a dead end dream
She looked over with a part smile
Caught up in the twinkle, it could take awhile
And the money pile on the dashboard fluttering
As she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
Evelyn's kiss was oxygen
I leaned over to take it in
As we went howling through the edge of south Des Moines
It came over me at a bad time
She burned over the double line
And she impaled as I reached my hand for the guardrail
Ooh, the guardrail
Ooh, the guardrail
And she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
She said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
ghost on the shore
Ohhh the cacophony
Is madness baby
But It's all mine
Whipping around like a downed power line
Tingling and lonely but alive
Alive to make new and fine
But chosing too
Go back threw time
Crossing that double yellow line
Behind the wheel with a part shark smile
Driving into the sun
Crisis point
Solar storm
Bringing it all
Back home
On a dead end road
Tonight
PS
(This was whispered into my ear after seeing a flying vision of that nite
Above the oxygen
Over and over
Again and again)
Santiago Correa Jara
Lyrics☺
She was a shark smile in a yellow van
She came around and I stole a glance in my youth
A vampire
Evelyn shown quiet as roses sting
It came over me at a bad time
But who wouldn't ride on a moonlit line?
Had her in my eye, 85 down the road of a dead end gleam
And she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
It came over her at a bad time
Riding through Winona down the dotted line
Held us gunning out
Ninety miles down the road of a dead end dream
She looked over with a part smile
Caught up in the twinkle, it could take awhile
And the money pile on the dashboard fluttering
As she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
Evelyn's kiss was oxygen
I leaned over to take it in
As we went howling through the edge of south Des Moines
It came over me at a bad time
She burned over the double line
She impaled as I reached my hand for the guardrail
Ooh, the guardrail
Ooh, the guardrail
And she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
She said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
Arturo Vega
She was a shark smile in a yellow van
She came around and I stole a glance in my youth
A vampire
Evelyn shown quiet as roses sting
It came over me at a bad time
But who wouldn't ride on a moonlit line?
Had her in my eye, 85 down the road of a dead end gleam
And she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
It came over her at a bad time
Riding through Winona down the dotted line
Held us gunning out
Ninety miles down the road of a dead end dream
She looked over with a part smile
Caught up in the twinkle, it could take awhile
And the money pile on the dashboard fluttering
As she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
Evelyn's kiss was oxygen
I leaned over to take it in
As we went howling through the edge of south Des Moines
It came over me at a bad time
She burned over the double line
And she impaled as I reached my hand for the guardrail
Ooh, the guardrail
Ooh, the guardrail
And she said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
She said woo
Baby, take me
And I said woo
Baby, take me too
Bnice2any1
Cheers mate for the lyrics!
Darren Gadd
Thank you super human with human like offerings,we need more humane humans
Thresh Prince
2:25 The way those guitar riffs start depicting ambulance sirens as Adrianne reaches the climax of the car accident is one of the most poetic, subtextual bits i've ever heard in a song. Close second is the spacey synths in UFOF.
nibo
Damn... that's a beautiful observation
Chi No
Also reminds me of the way Kendrick Lamar ends his first 2 verses on Sing About Me, Dying of Thirst
Karen Grosh
Remember Hendrix at Woodstock playing the Star Spangled Banner while inventing sounds of the Vietnam war on his guitar.
Like nothing else to invoke the shame of that war.
ghost on the shore
@Karen Grosh his tune
Machine gun is
It's exactly what your saying and much more friend
Shawn DuVall
There's something about how great songs, songs that you just LOVE, you don't pick them, they pick you. That is this song, it never gets old and I want to restart it as soon as it's over.
Julian Silden Langlo
That happened to me, I've been listening to this on repeat all day.