Donovan came to fame in the United Kingdom in early 1965 with a series of live performances on the television pop series, Ready Steady Go!. He first hit the charts in 1965 with his single "Catch the Wind", continuing on with a string of hits, most of them produced by Mickie Most. Donovan's 1966 Sunshine Superman marked not only a transition to the burgeoning psychedelic scene, but is also viewed as a formative album in its genre, inspiring countless contemporaries. His 1967 double album A Gift from a Flower to a Garden—the first major album released as a boxed set—completed the transition from beat poet folkster to hippie troubadour.
As a close friend of The Beatles, he traveled with them to India during their stay at the ashram of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, and taught them the "clawhammer" finger-picking style, which is featured on several tracks on their seminal 1968 double album The Beatles, better known as "The White Album."
The decline of Donovan's commercial popularity coincides roughly with his split from Most in 1969, as well as gradually lessened interest in psychedelics by artists and the record-buying public alike. With the advent of punk rock during the mid-'70s, Donovan, now viewed as a "nice boy" '60s relic, truly fell from favor. Music critics' tastes too had changed; Donovan's new product, while still quirky and experimental, earned little but scorn and derision. As the decades progressed, Donovan would record and perform only sporadically, often separated by several years.
Donovan's career went through a revival of sorts with the emergence of Britain's rave scene in the '90s. As a result, his most famous works were reissued, and once again viewed favorably by critics. With the release of the back-to-basics Rick Rubin-produced Sutras in 1996, Donovan's career settled into a comparatively steady stream of new releases, coupled with archival material and various reissues. He was inducted into the Rock and Hall of Fame in 2012.
Lost Time
Donovan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Timothy took his time to school
Plenty of time he took
But some he lost in the tadpole pool
And some in the stickle back brook
Ever so much in the linnets nest
And more on the five-barred gate
But he lost it all and was late.
Timothy has a lot to do
How shall it all be done ?
Why he never got home till close on two
Though he might have been back by one
There's sums and writings and spelling too
And an apple tree to climb
Timothy has a lot to do
How shall he find the time ?
Timothy sought it high and low
He looked in the tadpole pool
To see if they'd taken the time to grow
That he lost on the way to school
He found the nest and he found the tree
And he found the gate he'd crossed
But Timothy never shall find ah me
The time that Timothy lost.
Tam ta ta tam ...
Timothy sought it high and low
He looked in the tadpole pool
To see if they'd taken the time to grow
That he lost on the way to school
He found the nest and he found the tree
And he found the gate he'd crossed
But Timothy never shall find ah me
The time that Timothy lost
The time that Timothy lost
The time that Timothy lost
The time that Timothy lost ...
The lyrics of Donovan's song "Lost Time" are a nostalgic reflection on the carefree days of childhood and the fleeting nature of time. The song tells the story of Timothy, a young boy who is constantly distracted by the wonders of nature and the countryside on his way to school, and ends up losing all the time he had. The first stanza describes the various places where Timothy loses time, such as the tadpole pool and the linnets nest, while the second stanza portrays the overwhelming amount of tasks that Timothy has to complete, which leaves him wondering how he will find the time.
The third stanza sees Timothy embarking on a search to recover the time he had lost, but his efforts are in vain. He checks the tadpole pool to see if the tadpoles have grown into frogs, only to find they haven't. He finds the nest, the tree, and the gate he had crossed but is unable to find the lost time. The repetition of the last line of the third stanza, "The time that Timothy lost," adds a sense of finality to the song, emphasizing that once time is lost, it cannot be regained.
The melody of "Lost Time" is simple and upbeat, contrasting with the bittersweet sentiment of the lyrics. The use of the tambourine and the background vocals adds to the song's cheerful tone, creating a sense of whimsy and innocence that perfectly captures the nostalgic longing for the carefree days of childhood.
Line by Line Meaning
Timothy took his time to school
Timothy took his time getting to school
Plenty of time he took
He had a lot of time to spare
But some he lost in the tadpole pool
He wasted some time looking at tadpoles
And some in the stickle back brook
He wasted some time looking at fish
Ever so much in the linnets nest
He wasted a lot of time admiring birds' nests
And more on the five-barred gate
He wasted more time standing near a gate
Timothy took his time to school
Timothy took his time getting to school
But he lost it all and was late.
He wasted so much time that he ended up being late for school
Timothy has a lot to do
Timothy has a lot of tasks to complete
How shall it all be done?
He is questioning how to complete everything
Why he never got home till close on two
He always got home later than he intended
Though he might have been back by one
He could have finished earlier, but didn't
There's sums and writings and spelling too
He has math, writing, and spelling homework
And an apple tree to climb
He also wants to climb the apple tree
Timothy has a lot to do
Timothy has a lot of tasks to complete
How shall he find the time?
He is unsure of how to manage his time effectively
Timothy sought it high and low
He searched everywhere for more time
He looked in the tadpole pool
He even checked the tadpole pool again
To see if they'd taken the time to grow
He checked if the tadpoles grew into frogs, which would signify the passage of time
That he lost on the way to school
Which he wasted earlier on his way to school
He found the nest and he found the tree
He found some things, like the bird's nest and apple tree
And he found the gate he'd crossed
He also found the gate he previously stood by
But Timothy never shall find ah me
Despite his search, he will never find the lost time
The time that Timothy lost.
The time he wasted and can never get back
Tam ta ta tam ...
Outro music
The time that Timothy lost
The time he wasted and can never get back
The time that Timothy lost
The time he wasted and can never get back
The time that Timothy lost
The time he wasted and can never get back
The time that Timothy lost ...
Repeating the main theme of the song
Contributed by Jason W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.