By the time of their debut album, 1980's Crocodiles - a moderate UK hit - the drum machine had been replaced by Pete de Freitas.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.
Ocean Rain
Echo & the Bunnymen Lyrics
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And now my hurricanes
Have brought down
This ocean rain
To bathe me again
My ship's a sail
Can you hear its tender frame
Screaming from beneath the waves
All hands on deck at dawn
Sailing to sadder shores
Your port in my heavy storms
Harbours the blackest thoughts
I'm at sea again
And now your hurricanes
Have brought down
This ocean rain
To bathe me again
My ship's a sail
Can you hear its tender frame
Screaming from beneath the waves
Screaming from beneath the waves
All hands on deck at dawn
Sailing to sadder shores
Your port in my heavy storms
Harbours the blackest thoughts
All hands on deck at dawn
Sailing to sadder shores
Your port in my heavy storms
Harbours the blackest thoughts
All at sea again
And now my hurricanes
Have brought down
This ocean rain
To bathe me again
My ship's a sail
Hear its tender frame
Screaming from beneath the waves
Screaming from beneath your waves
Screaming from beneath the waves
Screaming from beneath the waves
All hands on deck at dawn
Sailing to sadder shores
Your port in my heavy storms
Harbours the blackest thoughts
The lyrics to "Ocean Rain" speak to the state of feeling lost and adrift, both physically and emotionally. The use of hurricane and ocean imagery sets the scene of a stormy, tumultuous environment that the singer is struggling to navigate through. The repetition of phrases like "all at sea again" and "screaming from beneath the waves" emphasize the feeling of being overwhelmed and engulfed by the external forces that surround them.
The mention of a ship and its tender frame screaming from beneath the waves adds a layer of vulnerability and danger to the situation, as if the singer is being tossed about in a violent sea. The line "your port in my heavy storms harbours the blackest thoughts" adds a touch of melancholy, suggesting that the person or place the singer is seeking refuge in may not be enough to ease their troubled mind. Overall, the lyrics paint a picture of someone struggling to find their way in a turbulent world, seeking comfort and reassurance but ultimately left to face their inner demons alone.
Line by Line Meaning
All at sea again
Feeling lost and adrift once more
And now my hurricanes
My inner turmoil and chaos
Have brought down
Have caused to descend
This ocean rain
A deluge of emotions
To bathe me again
To immerse and overwhelm me
My ship's a sail
My life is a journey
Can you hear its tender frame
Can you sense how fragile it is
Screaming from beneath the waves
Struggling to stay afloat
All hands on deck at dawn
Everyone needed to work together
Sailing to sadder shores
Heading towards more sorrowful times
Your port in my heavy storms
I rely on you in my darkest moments
Harbours the blackest thoughts
But being with you brings out my deepest fears
I'm at sea again
Once more feeling lost and adrift
And now your hurricanes
Your own turmoil and chaos
To bathe me again
Overwhelming me with emotions once more
Hear its tender frame
Understand how fragile my life is
Screaming from beneath your waves
Overwhelmed by your presence
All hands on deck at dawn
Still needing everyone to work together
Sailing to sadder shores
Still heading towards more sorrowful times
Harbours the blackest thoughts
You still bring out my deepest fears
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Cloud9, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: IAN STEPHEN MCCULLOCH, LESLIE PATTINSON, PETE FREITAS, WILLIAM SERGEANT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind