By the time of their debut album, 1980's Crocodiles - a moderate UK hit - the drum machine had been replaced by Pete de Freitas.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.
In My Time
Echo & the Bunnymen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Highway to the shore
At your wheel you steer me there
Steer me no more
Me no more
All my leaves are turning with
The changes of the seasons
And looking for a reason
In my time of living
I just wanted to be true
But i just took your giving
And i stole the truth from you
In the line of duty
I turned upon my heel
Peeled the skin off beauty
And too much was revealed
Much too real
All my pages into you
Like a book i never read
All my words are words
I wish i could have said
On your wings you carry me down
Highway to the shore
At your wheel you steer me there
Steer me no more
Me no more
All my leaves are turning with
The changing of the season
All my dreams are burning up
And running out of reasons
All my pages into you
Like a book i never read
All my words are words
I wish i'd never said
La la la la la la la la la la
La la la la
La la la la la la la la la la
La la la la
(hitchin' a ride)
La la la la la la la la la la
La la la la
(down your highway)
La la la la la la la la la la
La la la la
(hitchin' a ride)
La la la la la la la la la la
La la la la
(down your highway)
La la la la la la la la la la
La la la la
(hitchin' a ride)
La la la la la la la la la la
La la la la
(down your highway)
La la la la la la la la la la
La la la la
(hitchin' a ride)
La la la la la la la la la la
La la la la
(down your highway)
Hitchin' a ride
Hitchin' a ride
The opening lines of "In My Time" by Echo & The Bunnymen reveal a journey theme to the song, with the use of the imagery of wings or wheels carrying the persona towards something. There is a sense of the singer being led on by someone else as they surrender control, with the refrain "Steer me no more" suggesting a desire to take power back. The song feels like a meditation on regret, an admission of guilt and the struggle to move forward from it. The lyrics explore a sense of being tangled up in someone else's life, too wrapped up in them to think of oneself.
The second verse continues with a sense of introspection, focusing on change and loss, with the singer struggling to find meaning in those things, even calling for another person to help them live truthfully. The line "Peeled the skin off beauty" could refer to the pain of seeing the truth bare, of having life's illusions stripped away, leaving something ugly and raw behind. The final verse rounds off the meditation on past mistakes and regret, with the lyrics continuing to use the metaphor of reading as the singer struggles to come to terms with the past. The repetition of the lines "All my pages into you/Like a book I never read" hints at a feeling of being erased or consumed by someone else. The dreamy, atmospheric quality of the song, paired with the lyrics, gives a sense of aimlessness, longing, and regret.
Line by Line Meaning
On your wings you carry me down
You are carrying me along with you as you fly.
Highway to the shore
You are taking me to the shore, traveling at high speed like we're on a highway.
At your wheel you steer me there
You are driving and pointing us in the right direction.
Steer me no more
I am now capable of steering myself and don't need your constant guidance.
Me no more
You can stop trying to control me now.
All my leaves are turning with
I am changing, just like the leaves on a tree, as I experience new things.
The changes of the seasons
I am changing along with the natural cycles of life.
All my dreams are burning up
My dreams are disappearing, going up in flames, and I'm searching for a reason why.
And looking for a reason
I'm trying to make sense of why my dreams are disappearing.
In my time of living
As I go through my life,
I just wanted to be true
I wanted to be honest and genuine.
But i just took your giving
Instead, I accepted what was given to me without question.
And i stole the truth from you
I didn't acknowledge the truth that you presented me with.
In the line of duty
When I was performing my duty or obligation,
I turned upon my heel
I suddenly changed direction or reversed my course.
Peeled the skin off beauty
I revealed something that was previously hidden or unknown and too revealing.
And too much was revealed
I showed too much, which was too real or too personal.
All my pages into you
I poured all of myself into our relationship,
Like a book I never read
Like a book I never fully understood or comprehended.
All my words are words
I said a lot of words, but they didn't have any real meaning.
I wish i could have said
I regret not speaking up and having more meaningful conversations.
All my dreams are burning up
I'm losing my dreams and aspirations,
And running out of reasons
And I don't know why it's happening.
La la la la la la la la la la
Singing without meaningful words.
Hitchin' a ride
Looking for a free ride.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: IAN STEPHEN MCCULLOCH, LESLIE THOMAS PATTINSON, WILLIAM ALFRED SERGEANT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Marion Ziemke
Love this Band. They gave me comfort in a difficult time and when things got worse their music was still with me. Thanx.
Andrew Bleasdale
Stayed with me for life,good times bad times given me absolute memories and I know I'm not the only one✌
Darth Vader
once E&B cast away much of their post-punk sounds and developed their own unique sound they flourished, sounds rich and smooth and melodic