By the time of their debut album, 1980's Crocodiles - a moderate UK hit - the drum machine had been replaced by Pete de Freitas. Their next, the critically-acclaimed Heaven Up Here, reached the Top Ten in 1981, as did 1983's Porcupine and '84's Ocean Rain. Singles like "The Killing Moon" (later used in the soundtrack to Donnie Darko, a film whose imagery owed much to the artwork of the band's early records.), "Silver," "Bring on the Dancing Horses," and "The Cutter" helped keep the group in the public eye as they took a brief hiatus in the late 1980s. Their 1987 self-titled LP was a small American hit, their only LP to have significant sales there.
McCulloch quit the band in 1988. De Freitas was killed in a motorcycle accident one year later. The others decided to continue, recruiting Noel Burke to replace McCulloch on vocals in Reverberation (1990), which did not generate much excitement among fans or critics. Burke, Sargeant and Pattinson split after that, but the surviving three fourths of the original band reformed in 1997 and released Evergreen (1997), What are You Going to Do with Your Life? (1999), Flowers (2001) , Siberia (2005), and the latest addition, The Fountain (2009). The group's old audience liked the return to their classic sound, and they also managed to gain a number of new, younger listeners.
Echo and the Bunnymen were managed early on by Bill Drummond, who went on to be a founder member of The KLF.
Gone Gone Gone
Echo & the Bunnymen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My head is full of brains
My instincts are to kiss this train
I hear it coming
You're conscience says "mind how you go"
Your ulcer still says no
Your morals ebb
Your morals flow
The normal rules do not apply
And mine is not to reason why
Gone, gone, gone
My arms are like two shipyard cranes
That may not work again
My fortunes wax
My fortunes wane
My senses sunder
A cup would cheer
The cheerless heart
The path I dare not chart
I look askance, not quite the part
Someone has blundered
The normal rules do not apply
And mine is not to reason why
Gone, gone, gone
To all this scoundrel scheme of things
To all the pain it brings
To all those who pull the strings
I said good riddance
So pass the time to coin a phrase
I'll mint a million ways
To counterfeit my salad days
And split the difference
The normal rules do not apply
And mine is not to reason why
The normal rules do not apply
And mine is not to reason why
Gone, gone, gone
The opening lines of Echo & the Bunnymen's song Gone Gone Gone set the tone for the rest of the lyrics. The singer’s head is compared to an unblocked drain, which suggests that their thoughts and emotions are flowing freely, without constraint or direction. The use of the word ‘brains’ reflects the complexity and multi-faceted nature of their mind. The next lines contain a paradox, where the singer’s instincts are telling them to do something self-destructive, to ‘kiss this train’, while their conscience warns them to be careful. This internal conflict reflects their turmoil and the confusion they are experiencing.
The theme of conflicting emotions continues throughout the song. The singer’s ‘ulcer’ represents the physical manifestation of their anxieties and fears, while their morals go back and forth, with no clear direction. Their mouth is ‘running’, perhaps indicating that they’re talking without thinking things through, or that their thoughts are tumbling out without any order. The refrain of the song, ‘gone, gone, gone’, could be interpreted as a lament for the loss of control, or a statement that the singer has already left and can’t be brought back.
The last verse of the song seems to suggest a turning point. The singer says ‘good riddance’ to the ‘scoundrel scheme of things’, which could refer to the external forces they feel are causing their turmoil. They have found a way to cope with their pain, even though it may not be honest or true to themselves. They are going to ‘counterfeit their salad days’ and ‘split the difference’, indicating that they will find a way to reconcile the opposing sides of their nature.
Line by Line Meaning
My head is like an unblocked drain
My mind is cluttered and chaotic
My instincts are to kiss this train
I'm irresistibly drawn to a dangerous situation
You're conscience says "mind how you go"
Your inner voice cautions you to be careful
Your ulcer still says no
You're stressed and anxious
Your morals ebb
Your values are weakening
Your morals flow
Your values are strengthening
Your mouth is running
You're saying things impulsively
The normal rules do not apply
The usual guidelines don't hold true in this situation
And mine is not to reason why
I don't need to understand why
Gone, gone, gone
Things have irreversibly changed
My arms are like two shipyard cranes
My arms are heavy and unresponsive
My fortunes wax
My luck is improving
My fortunes wane
My luck is declining
My senses sunder
I'm feeling disoriented
A cup would cheer
Having a drink would improve my mood
The cheerless heart
Someone who is continuously unhappy
The path I dare not chart
I'm hesitant to make important decisions
I look askance, not quite the part
I feel out of place
Someone has blundered
Someone has made a mistake
To all this scoundrel scheme of things
To all the dishonest happenings
To all the pain it brings
To all the suffering that results
To all those who pull the strings
To all those who manipulate from behind the scenes
I said good riddance
I'm happy to be rid of it all
So pass the time to coin a phrase
To fill the time, I'll come up with clever sayings
I'll mint a million ways
I'll come up with countless ideas
To counterfeit my salad days
To pretend like I'm in my carefree youth again
And split the difference
To take a compromise between two choices
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: LESLIE THOMAS PATTINSON, WILLIAM ALFRED SERGEANT, NOEL ANDREW BURKE, JAKE BROCKMAN, JOHN REECE DAMON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind