This Wheel's On Fire
Golden Earring Lyrics


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From the Albums:
* Lovesweat
* Naked II

If your memory serves you well
We were goin' to meet again and wait
So I'm goin' to unpack all my things
And sit before it gets too late
No man alive will come to you
With another tale to tell
But you know that we shall meet again
If your memory serves you well
This wheel's on fire
Rolling down the road
Best notify my next of kin
This wheel shall explode
If your memory serves you well
I was goin' to confiscate your lace
And wrap it up in a sailor's knot
And hide it in your case
If I knew for sure that it was yours
But it was oh so hard to tell
But you knew that we would meet again
If your memory serves you well
This wheel's on fire, rolling down the road
Best notify my next of kin, this wheel shall explode
If your memory serves you well
You'll remember you're the one
That called on me to call on them
To get you your favors done
And after ev'ry plan had failed
And there was nothing more to tell
You know that we would meet again
If your memory serves you well




This wheel's on fire, rolling down the road
Best notify my next of kin, this wheel shall explode

Overall Meaning

Golden Earring’s song “This Wheel’s On Fire” appears in two albums of the band, namely Lovesweat and Naked II. The song starts with the lines, “If your memory serves you well, We were goin' to meet again and wait, So I'm goin' to unpack all my things, And sit before it gets too late”, which suggests a story of an impending meeting. The lyrics follow with “No man alive will come to you, With another tale to tell, But you know that we shall meet again, If your memory serves you well”, portraying that the meeting will only happen if the person’s memory is reliable enough to remember the meeting.


The chorus, “This wheel's on fire, Rolling down the road, Best notify my next of kin, This wheel shall explode” creates a metaphorical representation of the situation. The wheel on fire that shall explode refers to a situation the person is in that is spiraling out of control, which can lead to harmful consequences.


The rest of the song talks about some plans that were made but failed and how everything led to meeting again. The song has a sense of mystery and intrigue, and the metaphorical use of the wheel sets the tone of the song, creating a feeling of desperation.


Line by Line Meaning

If your memory serves you well
If you can remember accurately


We were goin' to meet again and wait
We had planned to meet each other and wait for something together


So I'm goin' to unpack all my things
I will unpack all my belongings


And sit before it gets too late
And relax before it gets too late


No man alive will come to you
No one alive will approach you


With another tale to tell
With another story to share


But you know that we shall meet again
But you know that our paths will cross again


This wheel's on fire
This situation is out of control


Rolling down the road
Progressing rapidly


Best notify my next of kin
Better inform someone close to me


This wheel shall explode
This situation will end badly


I was goin' to confiscate your lace
I had planned to take away your lace


And wrap it up in a sailor's knot
And tie it into a knot like sailors do


And hide it in your case
And secret it in your possession


If I knew for sure that it was yours
If I was certain it belonged to you


But it was oh so hard to tell
But it was difficult to determine


You'll remember you're the one
You will recall that you are the person


That called on me to call on them
Who asked me to ask someone else for help


To get you your favors done
To assist you in completing your tasks


And after ev'ry plan had failed
And after every attempt had failed


And there was nothing more to tell
And there was no more information to share


You know that we would meet again
You know that we would cross paths again


This wheel's on fire, rolling down the road
This situation is spiraling out of control, progressing rapidly


Best notify my next of kin, this wheel shall explode
Better inform someone close to me, this situation will end badly




Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Richard Danko, Bob Dylan

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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