Berkeley is a New Jersey native, but in the past decade, he's lived in Brooklyn, Atlanta, Berkeley and Corsica. Santa Fe is now home, where he lives with this wife and two young sons. Within months of arriving and still overwhelmed by the palette of reds and browns, the endless open sky, and the frightening lack of water in his new high desert surroundings, Berkeley wrote and recorded his most haunting and personal songs to date. Berkeley's doleful baritone and vulnerable falsetto, called "lustrous and melancholy" by the New York Times, is up front in the mix, showcasing his profoundly elegiac lyrics. Indeed, Berkeley cites Yeats and Melville among his greatest influences. For his unique way with words, the San Francisco Chronicle dubbed Berkeley "a musical poet."
Berkeley's gift as a songwriter and storyteller is that he sees both the tragedy and comedy in life, managing to both reveal the sorrow at the heart of the human condition and the blazing joy and beauty in the same. It's a duality that audiences experience at all of Berkeley's shows as he tells uproarious stories between heartbreaking songs. It's why his fans respond so deeply to his music and why so many look to him to express what they are often unable to articulate. It's also why his voice and lyrics have cross-genre appeal. Berkeley's songs are at once hard and hopeful.
George Square
David Berkeley Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She was walking cross George Square in the rain*
I was high. I was so high in a plane.
I was trying to see through the clouds,
Looking for places we’d been,
Like a sign, like a sunburst, like the letters in her name.
Oh girl, don’t change your hair for me now.
I am on your side.
I am on my way down.
She was walking quite slowly all alone.
All the lights in the windows were aglow.
But the statues they were so silent,
With the rain splashing their heads.
How bad she wanted to hear them tell her which way is best.
Oh girl, don’t change your dress for me now.
I am on your side.
No girl, don’t hide your eyes from me now.
I am on my way down.
I am on my way down.
We were back in George Square when the rain gave way.
There’s something in how the spring comes so suddenly.
And the dress she wore was yellow.
And the rain was in her hair.
How bad I wanted to tell her that I would always be there.
So girl, don’t change, don’t change please don’t change.
I am on your side.
No girl, don’t hide your heart from me now.
I am on my way down.
I’ll be on your side.
I am on your side.
The song “George Square” by David Berkeley opens with a scene of a girl walking across George Square in the rain, while the singer watches her from high in a plane, trying to see through the clouds. The lyrics are filled with imagery, such as the statues in the square that the girl wishes could tell her which way is best. The singer urges her not to change her hair or dress for him, and not to hide her hands or eyes, because he is on her side. As the rain clears, the singer sees the girl again in George Square, wearing a yellow dress with rain in her hair. He wants to tell her that he will always be there, urging her not to change and assuring her that he is on her side.
The song touches on themes of love, hope, and support, showcasing a narrator who deeply cares for the girl in the song and wants to be there for her through thick and thin. The use of the Scottish landmark of George Square as the setting for the song adds a sense of place and history, making the story even more poignant.
Line by Line Meaning
She was walking cross George Square in the rain*
The girl was walking across George Square during a rainy day.
I was high. I was so high in a plane.
The singer was in a plane, feeling high and looking down at the ground.
I was trying to see through the clouds,
The singer was looking through the clouds to see the places they had been.
Looking for places we’d been,
The singer was searching for the places they had previously visited.
Like a sign, like a sunburst, like the letters in her name.
The singer was looking for something that would serve as a sign, like her name or a sunburst.
Oh girl, don’t change your hair for me now.
The singer is asking the girl not to change her hair just for him.
I am on your side.
The singer is assuring the girl that he is on her side.
No girl, don’t hide your hands from me now.
The singer is asking the girl not to hide her hands from him.
She was walking quite slowly all alone.
The girl was walking slowly by herself.
All the lights in the windows were aglow.
The lights in the windows were shining and bright.
But the statues they were so silent,
The statues were silent and did not speak.
With the rain splashing their heads.
The rain was falling on the statues' heads.
How bad she wanted to hear them tell her which way is best.
The girl wanted the statues to tell her which direction was the best one to take.
Oh girl, don’t change your dress for me now.
The singer is asking the girl not to change her dress just for him.
No girl, don’t hide your eyes from me now.
The singer is asking the girl not to hide her eyes from him.
We were back in George Square when the rain gave way.
The singer and the girl returned to George Square when the rain stopped.
There’s something in how the spring comes so suddenly.
The singer is noticing how spring arrives all of a sudden.
And the dress she wore was yellow.
The girl was wearing a yellow dress.
And the rain was in her hair.
The girl's hair was wet from the rain.
How bad I wanted to tell her that I would always be there.
The singer wanted to tell the girl that he would always be there for her.
So girl, don’t change, don’t change please don’t change.
The singer doesn't want the girl to change anything, just stay the same.
I am on your side.
The singer is again reassuring the girl that he is on her side.
No girl, don’t hide your heart from me now.
The singer is asking the girl not to hide her heart from him.
I am on my way down.
The singer is coming down from the high he felt earlier.
I’ll be on your side.
The singer is promising to be by the girl's side.
I am on your side.
The singer repeats that he is on the girl's side.
Writer(s): Stefan Bruenig, David Berkeley Copyright: Copyright Control Shares, Edition Euphonica
Contributed by Colton M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Raul
This track is absolutely great. Congratulations ! The Trance remixes for it are also fantastic
JoannyTrance
The best track for 2012, i cant stop listening since it was played in TATW 400 by Kyau and Albert :)
Zoltán Györkei
Wow, just found this track. This is bloody brilliant, reminds me why I love trance :)
TheUnPatriot
FANTÁSTICO ! MUITO BOM !! Congratulations Steve !! I Heard this version on Elphonic Sessions ... The video cut is fantastic! David Berkley is one of the best male vocals to remix, even count the magic lyrics !! Grande Abraço !! Regards from Brazil !!
methylone1
What an absolutely amazing track --- David Berkeley sing more trance !!
Mick Bitter
Love it ♥ Perfectly describes feelings with a killer tune!
T H
wonderful song, thanks so much for uploading! please make more great music like this :)
vespyn7
The vocal has such a magnetizing quality..so ethereal.
DirSpecialBlend
Love the way this song makes me feel! It's why I love music so much,
Dustin Johnson
im so glad you finally posted the original cut. ive been checking everyday and then there it was. ABSOLUTLY LOVE IT. thanks steve