The band has been highly influential in the electronic dance music scene, especially synthpop, techno, and trance, partly due to their innovative work, recording techniques, and use of sampling. Their most successful album is arguably 1990's Violator, which reached the #2 position in the UK, #7 in the US, and sold over 8 million copies worldwide. The band has released a long series of high-charting singles over their three-decades long career. Enjoy the Silence is their most recognized song and one of history's most covered songs.
The original line-up was Dave Gahan, Martin L. Gore, Andy Fletcher, and Vince Clarke. In December 1981, Clarke left the band and later formed Yazoo, The Assembly, and Erasure. Alan Wilder joined the group initially in January 1982 as a live keyboardist but became an official member in December 1982. He left in mid-1995 to fully concentrate on his Recoil project, and the band continued as a trio. In 2010 Wilder re-joined Depeche Mode on stage after 16 years for a performance of Somebody during a show at London's Royal Albert Hall in aid of the Teenage Cancer Trust.
Depeche Mode's origins date back to 1977, when Vince Clarke and Andrew Fletcher formed a band called No Romance in China, with Clarke on vocals and guitar and Fletcher on bass. In March 1980, Clarke, Gore, and Fletcher formed a band called Composition of Sound, with Clarke on vocals/guitar, Gore on keyboards, and Fletcher on bass. Soon after the formation of Composition of Sound, Clarke, and Fletcher switched to synthesizers. Dave Gahan joined the band in 1980 after Clarke heard him perform at a local scout hut jam session, singing to a rendition of David Bowie's "Heroes" and Depeche Mode was born.
While playing a live gig at the Bridge House in Canning Town, Daniel Miller, the founder of Mute Records, approached the band, who proposed a verbal contract. The result was their first single, Dreaming of Me, recorded in December 1980 and released in February 1981, reaching number 57 in the UK charts and followed soon by a real contract with Mute.
To date, Depeche Mode have released:
15 studio albums: Speak & Spell (1981), A Broken Frame (1982), Construction Time Again (1983), Some Great Reward (1984), Black Celebration (1986), Music For the Masses (1987), Violator (1990), Songs of Faith and Devotion (1993), Ultra (1997), Exciter (2001), Playing the Angel (2005), Sounds of the Universe (2009), Delta Machine (2013), Spirit (2017), and Memento Mori (2023);
8 compilations: People Are People (1984), The Singles 81-85 (1985), Catching Up with Depeche Mode (1985), Greatest Hits (1987), The Singles 86>98 (1998), Remixes 81-04 (2004), The Best Of Depeche Mode Volume 1 (2006), The Complete Depeche Mode (2006);
5 live albums: 101 (1989), Songs of Faith and Devotion Live (1993), Recording the Angel (a series of live recordings; 2006), Tour Of The Universe: Barcelona 20/21:11:09 (2009) and Live In Berlin (Soundtrack) (2014) ;
Over 50 singles: including Just Can't Get Enough, Everything Counts, People Are People, Master and Servant, Shake the Disease, Stripped, A Question of Time, Strangelove, Never Let Me Down Again, Personal Jesus, Enjoy the Silence, World in My Eyes, Policy of Truth, I Feel You, Walking in My Shoes, In Your Room, Barrel of a Gun, It's No Good, Home, Dream On, Freelove, Precious, Wrong and Heaven ;
14 live / video collections (VHS/DVD/Blu-ray): The World We Live In and Live in Hamburg (1985), Some Great Videos (1985), Strange (1988), 101 (1989), Strange Too (1990), Devotional (1993), The Videos 86>98 (1998), One Night in Paris (2002), The Videos 86>98 (2002), Touring the Angel: Live in Milan (2006), The Best of - Volume 1 (2006), Tour of the Universe : Barcelona 20/21.11.09 (2009), Live in Berlin (2014) and Video Singles Collection (2016)
06. A Question of Time
Depeche Mode Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Before they do
It's just a question of time
Before they lay their hands on you
And make you just like the rest
I've got to get to you first
It's just a question of time
And you look good
I'll take you under my wing
Somebody should
They've persuasive ways
And you'll believe what they say
It's just a question of time
And it's running out for you
It won't be long until you'll do
Exactly what they want you to
I can see them now
Hanging around
To mess you up
To strip you down
And have their fun
With my little one
It's just a question of time
And it's running out for you
It won't be long until you'll do
Exactly what they want you to
It won't be long until you'll do
Exactly what they want you to
Sometimes I don't blame them
For wanting you
You look good
They need something to do
Until I look at you
And then I condemn them
I know my kind
What goes on in our minds
It's just a question of time
It's just a question of time
It's just a question of time (it should be better)
It's just a question of time (it should be better with you)
It's just a question of time (it should be better)
It's just a question of time (it should be better with you)
It's just a question of time (it should be better)
It's just a question of time (it should be better with you)
It's just a question of time
The lyrics of Depeche Mode's "A Question of Time" describe a sense of urgency to protect a young person from the outside world. The singer is worried that outside forces will take away the innocence of the young person, represented in the lyrics as being only fifteen years old. The singer wants to shield them from the dangerous influences that are lurking around them, and is aware that time is running out for them.
The song portrays a predator-prey imagery where the young person is the prey and the outside forces are the predators. The singer wants to take them under their wing so that they can protect them from being stripped down and taken advantage of by the others. The singer acknowledges that while they sometimes understand why others would want the young person, ultimately they have to protect them.
Overall, the song speaks to the precariousness of innocence in a harsh world and the desire of older, more experienced individuals to protect and nurture younger people.
Line by Line Meaning
I've got to get to you first
I must reach you before others do.
Before they do
Before others reach you.
It's just a question of time
It's inevitable.
Before they lay their hands on you
Before they harm you.
And make you just like the rest
And make you like everyone else.
Well now you're only fifteen
You're young.
And you look good
And you're attractive.
I'll take you under my wing
I will protect you.
Somebody should
Someone must help you.
They've persuasive ways
Others can be convincing.
And you'll believe what they say
And you might believe them.
It won't be long until you'll do
It won't be long before you do what they want.
Exactly what they want you to
Precisely what they want.
I can see them now
I can imagine them doing it.
Hanging around
Lurking, waiting.
To mess you up
To harm you.
To strip you down
To expose or humiliate you.
And have their fun
And enjoy doing it at your expense.
With my little one
With someone I care about.
Sometimes I don't blame them
Sometimes I understand why they act as they do.
For wanting you
For being attracted to you.
And they need something to do
And they are looking for entertainment.
Until I look at you
Until I see you as a person.
And then I condemn them
And then I criticize them for their behavior.
I know my kind
I understand people like me.
What goes on in our minds
How we think and feel inside.
It should be better
Things should be improved.
It's just a question of time
It takes time to make things better.
It should be better with you
Things could be better if you were with me.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Martin Gore
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@acousticmusic4777
30 years later, the 80's still sound like the future
@mohanapandianraju1120
Golden words shall not be repeated, thank you!
@bsbgsn3677
40 yrs
@djjoselopez9035
@@mohanapandianraju1120ir🏃 🥶😘😂😅😅😊
@unapprovedtruth7116
The 80's were the future. This is just the aftermath of the internet.
@terrydunlop4461
You must be joking 😮😮😮
@megded1
This is basically a hard rock/heavy metal song played on synths, and I’m loving it.
@mangalover0149
No wonder it works so well as a symphonic metal song. xd
@christophecapello8154
https://youtu.be/8hzUuYQiaXE
@christophecapello8154
@@mangalover0149 https://youtu.be/8hzUuYQiaXE