White Winter Hymnal
Birdy Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

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





Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh

Overall Meaning

The song White Winter Hymnal by Birdy is about a group of individuals walking in the winter snow, all bundled up in their coats and red scarves. They are walking together towards a destination, and the singer, who is following the pack, is observing them. In the second verse, the singer turns around and sees Michael from the pack falling down in the snow, which turns red like strawberries, giving a metaphorical imagery that even in the winter, memories of summer, symbolized by the color red, can still be seen. The song ends with a series of "ohs" that creates an ethereal feeling.


The lyrics of White Winter Hymnal represent a nostalgic feeling of people who are moving towards a destination, but amidst their journey, they get separated, and the singer is left missing them. The line, "I was following the pack," represents the desire to follow where everyone else is going, in this case, towards the destination. The image of snow turning red as strawberries in the summertime is an example of the merging of the winter and summer season. The red summer fruit is giving a contrast feeling to the cold white winter, which is symbolic of the past and present moment.


Line by Line Meaning

I was following the
I was blindly following the masses


pack All swallowed in their coats
Everyone was covered up and didn't stand out


With scarves of red tied 'round their throats
They wore bright colors to stand out in the snow


To keep their little heads
They were cautious and didn't want any accidents


From falling in the snow
To prevent any injuries or getting lost in the white snow


And I turned 'round and there you go
I looked around and you were there


And Michael, you would fall
And Michael slipped and fell


And turn the white snow red as strawberries
The snow turned red from the blood, like strawberries


In the summertime
As if it happened on a hot summer day, not in the cold of winter


Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Repetitive sounds that add to the atmosphere of the song




Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Robin Noel Pecknold

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Most interesting comment from YouTube:

@anjaudovicic

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



All comments from YouTube:

@Thecookielove22

This song will never get out of your head.

@shadia5322

This hahahah

@ayanmaharramli1692

Definitely

@christinash2235

It's what's called a round in choral singing and she does it beyond justice vs. Fleet Foxes. A round is supposed to make you feel like you can sing it for an hour. But Birdys version is genius in its haunting. It's with few pop peers.

@melissaestrada4885

Yap

@juliemusikka155

@Shadia Thank God for that

3 More Replies...

@tatianeleite4081

God, i just love all the versions of this song!! The original, this one, the Pentatonix one! Damn, i just love this song...

@nikijasminee

Uuuh... This is the original one

@tatianeleite4081

+Nikita Jasmine No, honey, the original one is by Fleet Foxes. You should check it out.:)

@luluquintero1390

+Tatiane L. Me too :)

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