Ulalume
Jeff Buckley Lyrics

The skies were ashen and sober,
The sky was grey and dull.

The leaves they were crisped and sere,
The leaves were dry and withered.

The leaves they were withering and sere;
The leaves were drying up and deteriorating.

It was night in the lonesome October
It was a lonely October night.

Of my most immemorial year;
It was a very old memory.

It was hard by the dim lake of auber,
It was near the murky Lake Auber.

In the misty mid region of weir,
In the foggy and unknown region of Weir.

It was down by the dank tarn of auber,
It was near the damp water of Auber.

In the ghoul-haunted woodland of weir.
In the spooky and haunted forest of Weir.

Here once, through an alley, titanic,
Once we walked through the giant cypress trees.

Of cypress, I roamed with my soul,
I wandered through the cypress grove with my soul.

Of cypress, with psyche, my soul.
My soul was with Psyche in the cypress trees.

These were days when my heart was volcanic
Those were the times when I had strong emotions.

As the scoriac rivers that roll,
Like the streams of volcanic lava that move.

As the lavas that restlessly roll
Like volcanic lava flowing steadily.

Their sulphurous currents down Yaanek
The streams of lava were coming down the volcano.

In the ultimate climes of the Pole,
In the northernmost regions of the earth.

That groan as they roll down Mount Yaanek
The lava streams make a loud sound as they roll.

In the realms of the Boreal Pole.
In the domain of the northern regions.

Our talk had been serious and sober,
We were having a heavy conversation.

But our thoughts they were palsied and sere,
We knew our thinking was becoming sluggish and weak.

Our memories were treacherous and sere,
We couldn't remember things well.

For we knew not the month was October,
We didn't realize it was October.

And we marked not the night of the year
We did not take note of the night of the year.

(Ah, night of all nights in the year!);
It was the most important night of the year.

We noted not the dim lake of Auber
We didn't pay attention to the dark Lake Auber.

(Though once we had journeyed down here),
Though we had been there before.

Remembered not the dank tarn of Auber,
We didn't recall the moist water of Auber.

Nor the ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir.
Nor did we remember the haunted grove of Weir.

And now, as the night was senescent
As the night was coming to a close.

And star-dials pointed to morn,
When the stars showed the morning was near.

As the star-dials hinted of morn,
The star positions suggested the arrival of dawn.

At the end of our path a liquescent
Near the end of the way, a liquid light appeared.

And nebulous lustre was born,
A hazy, dull light appeared.

Out of which a miraculous crescent
From the midst of it emerged an extraordinary crescent.

Arose with a duplicate horn
A crescent moon with two protrusions appeared.

Astarte's bediamonded crescent
A diamond-studded crescent moon, which is Astarte's symbol.

Distinct with it's duplicate horn.
Clear, with noticeable double projection.

And I said: 'She is warmer than Dian;
I thought it was brighter than the goddess of moon, Diana.

She rolls through an ether of sighs,
It moved through the light with a delicate softness.

She reveals in a region of sighs:
It showed itself in a clouding, mystifying atmosphere.

She has seen that the tears are not dry on
It noticed that my tears didn't dry up.

These cheeks, where the worm never dies,
On my cheeks, which are always moist with tears.

And has come past the stars of the Lion,
Came through the Leo constellation.

To point us the path to the skies,
It showed us the way to the heavens.

To the lethean peace of the skies;
To the undisturbed peace of the sky.

Come up, in despite of the Lion,
Come up, against the opposition of the Leo constellation.

To shine on us with her bright eyes,
To give us light with her radiant eyes.

Come up through the lair of the Lion,
To pass through the Leo constellation and its hideouts.

With love in her luminous eyes.'
With a loving light in the eyes.

But Psyche, uplifting her finger,
But Psyche, lifting up her finger.

Said: 'Sadly this star I mistrust
Sadly, I don't trust this star, she said.

Her pallor I strangely mistrust;
I find its pale color questionable.

Oh, hasten! oh, let us not linger!
Oh, hurry! Let's not delay.

Oh, fly! let us fly! for we must.'
Fly, because we have to.

In terror she spoke, letting sink her
She spoke with great fear, lowering her wings.

Wings until they trailed in the dust;
Dropping her wings to the ground, letting them drag in the dust.

In agony sobbed, letting sink her
She cried out in pain, letting her wings fall.

Plumes till they trailed in the dust,
Until her feathers dusted the ground.

Till they sorrowfully trailed in the dust.
Sadly, they lay on the ground.

I replied: 'This is nothing but dreaming:
This is just a dream, I said.

Let us on by this tremulous light!
Let's follow this trembling light.

Let us bathe in this crystalline light!
Let's bathe in this clear light.

Its sibyllic splendor is beaming
Its remote and prophetic splendor is shining.

With hope and in beauty to-night;
Providing hope and beauty tonight.

Ah, we safely may trust to its gleaming,
We can trust this shining light.

And be sure it will lead us aright.
And be confident it will guide us correctly.

We safely may trust to a gleaming
We can be assured that the shining light

That cannot but guide us aright,
Will guide us in the right direction.

Since it flickers up to heaven thru the night.'
Since it brightly shines up to the sky in the night.

Thus I pacified Psyche and kissed her,
So I calmed Psyche and kissed her.

And tempted her out of her gloom
And tempted her to the light out of her sadness.

And conquered her scruples and gloom;
And overcame her hesitation and sadness.

And we passed to the end of the vista,
And then we proceeded to the end of the view.

But were stopped by the door of a tomb,
But we were blocked by the entrance to a tomb.

By the door of a legended tomb.
By the entrance to a mythological tomb.

And I said:'What is written, sweet sister,
I asked, my dear sister, what is written on the tomb.

On the door of this legended tomb?'
What is written on this mythological tomb's door?

She replied: 'Ulalume! Ulalume!'
She said, 'Ulalume, Ulalume!

'Tis the vault of thy lost Ulalume!'
It is the tomb of your lost Ulalume, she told me.

Then my heart it grew ashen and sober,
My heart became grey and serious.

As the leaves that were crisped and sere,
Just like the dry, withered leaves.

As the leaves that were withering and sere,
The leaves were drying up and deteriorating.

And I cried: 'It was surely October
I cried, it must be October.

On this very night of last year
On this exact night, last year.

That I journeyed, I journeyed down here,
That I ventured and came here.

That I brought a dread burden down here,
That I brought a terrifying burden here.

Of this night of all nights in the year,
It was the most critical night of the year.

Ah, what demon has tempted me here?
What devilish force has made me come here?

Well I know, now, this dim lake of Auber,
Well, now I know, this gloomy Lake Auber.

This misty mid region of Weir,
This foggy area of Weir.

Well I know, now, this dank tarn of Auber,
Now I understand this wet and murky Auber water.

This ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir.'
This forest populated by haunted creatures of Weir.

Said we, then--the two, then--'Ah, can it
We then asked each other, 'Could it be?

Have been that the Woodlandish ghouls,
Have the forest ghouls

The pitiful, the merciful ghouls,
The compassionate and merciful ghouls,

To bar up our way and to ban it
Blocked our way and prohibited

From the secret that lies in these goals,
Access to the secret hidden in the hills,

From the thing that lies hidden in these goals,
The thing that is concealed in these hills,

Had drawn up the spectre of a planet
Had brought up the ghost of a planet.

From the limbo of Lunar souls--
From the limits of Lunar spirits.

This sinfully scintillant planet
This wickedly shining celestial body.

From the Hell of the planetary souls!'
From the hell of the planetary spirits!