Yellow Bird
Chris Isaak Lyrics


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Yellow bird, up high in banana tree.
Yellow bird, you sit all alone like me.

Did your lady friend leave the nest again?
That is very sad, makes me feel so bad.
You can fly away, in the sky away.
You're more lucky than me.
I also had a pretty girl, she's not with me today.
They're all the same those pretty girls.
Take tenderness, then they fly away.
Yellow bird, yellow bird.

Did your lady friend leave the nest again?
That is very sad, makes me feel so bad.
You can fly away, in the sky away.
You're more lucky than me.

Wish that i were a yellow bird, i'd fly away with you.
But i am not a yellow bird, so here i sit.




Nothing i can do.
Yellow bird, yellow bird.

Overall Meaning

In Chris Isaak's 1963 hit song "Yellow Bird," the lyrics tell the story of a lonely man who spots a yellow bird sitting alone in a banana tree. He notices that the bird is also alone like him and wonders if his lady friend has left him again. The man empathizes with the bird's loneliness and suggests that it can fly away, luckier than him, who is stuck on the ground feeling helpless.


The man then shares his own story of having a pretty girl who also flew away, leaving him alone and sad. He becomes envious of the bird's ability to fly away in the sky while he is left with nothing but painful memories. The song ends with the man wishing he could fly away like the bird but realizing that he is not a yellow bird and is unable to do so.


The song's lyrics can be interpreted as a metaphor for relationships and the feeling of being trapped, unable to escape when the other person leaves. It also speaks to the universal human desire for freedom and the possibility of flying away from one's problems.


Line by Line Meaning

Yellow bird, up high in banana tree.
Observing a yellow bird high in a banana tree.


Yellow bird, you sit all alone like me.
Noticing the yellow bird sitting alone like himself.


Did your lady friend leave the nest again?
Asking if the bird's female companion left once more.


That is very sad, makes me feel so bad.
Feeling sad for the bird as he can relate.


You can fly away, in the sky away.
Acknowledging the bird's ability to fly away from problems.


You're more lucky than me.
Envious of the bird's freedom to escape situations.


I also had a pretty girl, she's not with me today.
Reflecting on a past relationship with a girl who is no longer with him.


They're all the same those pretty girls.
Stating that all pretty girls are alike in their tendency to leave.


Take tenderness, then they fly away.
Expressing the idea that women accept love then depart.


Wish that i were a yellow bird, i'd fly away with you.
Wishing to be a bird who can fly away from problems with the yellow bird.


But i am not a yellow bird, so here i sit.
Realizing that he is not a bird and cannot fly away from his problems.


Nothing i can do.
Admitting defeat and accepting his situation.


Yellow bird, yellow bird.
Repeating the song's title to conclude the piece.




Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Spirit Music Group, Abkco Music Inc., Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: ALAN BERGMAN, MARILYN BERGMAN, NORMAN LUBOFF

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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