Empty Chairs At Empty Tables
Eddie Redmayne Lyrics
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There's a pain goes on and on
Empty chairs at empty tables
Now my friends are dead and gone
Here they talked of revolution
Here it was they lit the flame
Here they sang about tomorrow and tomorrow never came
From the table in the corner
They could see a world reborn
And they rose with voices ringing
And I can hear them now
The very words that they have sung
Became their last communion
On this lonely barricade, at dawn
Oh my friends, my friends forgive me
That I live and you are gone
There's a grief that can't be spoken
There's a pain goes on and on
Phantom faces at the windows
Phantom shadows on the floor
Empty chairs at empty tables where my friends will meet no more
Oh my friends, my friends don't ask me
What your sacrifice was for
Empty chairs at empty tables
Where my friends will sing no more
The lyrics of Eddie Redmayne's "Empty Chairs At Empty Tables" convey a sense of profound grief and loss. The song is associated with the musical Les Misérables, in which Redmayne played the role of Marius, a young student revolutionary who survives the struggle but is left to mourn his friends' deaths. The opening lines describe a grief that cannot be adequately expressed or articulated, and a pain that seems to stretch on endlessly. Redmayne's character is mourning the loss of his fellow students, who gathered around the table to plot revolution, that was extinguished by the authorities, and who ultimately sacrificed their lives for their cause.
The song evokes the memory of the empty chairs at the table where Marius and his friends once gathered, now a symbol of the absence of the young lives taken too soon. The lyrics also reveal the feelings of guilt that Marius experiences, as he mourns his friends' deaths while continuing to live on, unable to fulfill the dreams they shared or participate in the world they envisioned. Marius struggles to make sense of the sacrifices his friends made and finds solace only in the memory of their voices, ringing out in defiant song against the oppressors.
Overall, "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" is a deeply moving song that captures the complex emotions of grief, loss, and survivor guilt, experienced by Marius and countless others who have lost loved ones in the fight for a better world.
Line by Line Meaning
There's a grief that can't be spoken,
The sorrow I feel is so immense, it's indescribable.
There's a pain goes on and on.
The pain of losing my friends is never-ending.
Empty chairs at empty tables,
The vacant chairs and tables serve as a tragic reminder of my departed friends.
Now my friends are dead and gone.
My dear friends have sadly passed away.
Here they talked of revolution,
Here is where my friends discussed the act of rebellion against injustice.
Here it was they lit the flame,
Here is where the spark of the revolution was ignited.
Here they sang about tomorrow and tomorrow never came.
My friends dreamed of a better future, but it never came to fruition.
From the table in the corner,
From this table in the corner, my friends could see hope for a new world.
They could see a world reborn,
My friends were able to visualize a renewed world.
And they rose with voices ringing,
My friends stood up and spoke with conviction.
And I can hear them now
I can still hear their passionate voices in my mind.
The very words that they have sung
The songs they sang were powerful and deeply meaningful.
Became their last communion
Their final gathering and performance became their last shared moment.
On this lonely barricade, at dawn.
In this desolate place, at the break of day, their story came to an end.
Oh my friends, my friends forgive me
Please forgive me for being the only one who survived.
That I live and you are gone
I feel guilty for being alive while you're no longer here with me.
Phantom faces at the window,
I see your faces as if they're ghosts in the window.
Phantom shadows on the floor,
The shadows of you walking on the floor haunts me like phantoms.
Empty chairs at empty tables where my friends will meet no more.
The empty chairs and tables where we used to gather are now a silent reminder that we'll never meet again.
Oh my friends, my friends don't ask me
Please don't ask me to explain your sacrifice.
What your sacrifice was for
I don't know what your selfless act was supposed to achieve.
Empty chairs at empty tables
The lifeless chairs and tables are all that remains.
Where my friend will sing no more.
The place where my friends used to sing and lift their voices in unison is now a place of silence.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Alain Albert Boublil, Claude Michel Schonberg, Herbert Kretzmer
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@carari4125
There's a grief that can't be spoken,
There's a pain goes on and on.
Empty chairs at empty tables,
Now my friends are dead and gone.
Here they talked of revolution,
Here it was they lit the flame,
Here they sang about tomorrow and tomorrow never came.
From the table in the corner,
They could see a world reborn,
And they rose with voices ringing,
And I can hear them now
The very words that they have sung
Became their last communion
On this lonely barricade, at dawn.
Oh my friends, my friends forgive me
That I live and you are gone
There's a grief that can't be spoken,
And there's a pain goes on and on
Phantom faces at the window,
Phantom shadows on the floor,
Empty chairs at empty tables where my friends will meet no more.
Oh my friends, my friends don't ask me
What your sacrifice was for
Empty chairs at empty tables
Where my friend will sing no more.
@jamesgeorge7579
I love how there is nothing elaborate about this scene, no epic cinematography, just a man sitting in a room, alone.
@susushisushi
technically the blonde girl was standing by the staircase😂 because she waits for him there when he’s done singing
@darkos1430
i think that if this film has a Cesar it isn’t just for a man sitting in a room alone
@aurorameyer159
But that establishing shot is just gorgeous. It's so, so beautiful. Marius is sitting there, alone. None of the triangular compositions that are used to establish power dynamics within a scene. He's small, and the camera is angled down. He's also along the line of the room into the vanishing point, disappearing both visually and into grief for his friends. It's absolutely gorgeous cinema and composition.
@najelam
That’s the point of the song though. You not a thespian 🎭 I see.
@malloryfallon6394
This whole scene is just heartbreaking!!
@froggiebcg
When you're the only one who studied for the final exams
@froggiebcg
YouTube Channel i’m 100% sure they died on the inside
@luciaramirez-leszko4215
Wow you really had to make me laugh at 2:30 at literally the most emotional part. But that was funny.
@_mel_9953
And then all your friends ask you to help them cheat but you can’t, so everyone fails except for you :,((