The poem's narrator describes his love for Annabel Lee, which began many years ago in an unnamed "kingdom by the sea". Though they were young, their love for one another burned with such an intensity that angels became jealous. For that reason, the narrator believes, the angels caused her death. Even so, their love is strong enough that it extends beyond the grave and the narrator believes their two souls are still entwined. Every night, he dreams of Annabel Lee and sees the brightness of her eyes in the stars. He admits that every night he lies down by her side in her tomb by the sea.
Annabel Lee
Joan Baez Lyrics
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In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of Annabel Lee,
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.
I was a child and she was a child,
But we loved with a love that was more than love,
I and my Annabel Lee,
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
And this was the reason that,long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud,chilling
My Annabel lee,
So that her high,born kinsmen came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulcher
In this kingdom by the sea.
And the angels,not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and me,
Yes!,that was the reason(as all men know,
In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud by night,
Chilling my Annabel lee,
That the wind came out of the cloud by night
Killing my Annabelle.
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we,
Of many far wiser than we,
And neither the angels in heaven above
Nor the the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee, and the moon never beams,
Without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee,
And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee,
And so,all the night, tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling my life and my bride,
In the sepulcher there by the sea,
In her tomb by the sounding sea.
Joan Baez's song "Annabel Lee" is a beautiful poetic narrative of a love that transcends time, death, and even the supernatural forces both above and below the sea. The singer (presumably a man) reflects upon his love for Annabel Lee, a beautiful maiden with whom he shared a deep and passionate love. As a child in a kingdom by the sea, they loved each other with a love that the angels in heaven coveted. However, their love was cut short when Annabel Lee was taken from him by her high-born kinsmen and placed in a sepulcher by the sea.
Despite her death, the singer's love for Annabel Lee is unwavering and unwaveringly strong. He believes that their love is stronger than that of those who are much older and wiser, and that their souls are forever intertwined. The singer is haunted by dreams of Annabel Lee and feels her presence when he looks at the stars. He lies down next to her in her tomb by the sea, and he is at peace knowing that they will forever be together.
The lyrics to "Annabel Lee" showcase the power of love in the face of tragedy and loss, and its ability to transcend even the most significant obstacles such as death.
Line by Line Meaning
It was many and many a year ago,
Years and years have passed since the events in this story took place.
In a kingdom by the sea,
The events in this story took place in a kingdom that was near the sea.
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
There was a young woman who lived in this kingdom that you may know.
By the name of Annabel Lee,
This young woman's name was Annabel Lee.
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Annabel Lee lived her life with one purpose in mind.
Than to love and be loved by me.
That purpose was to love and be loved by the singer of this story.
I was a child and she was a child,
Both the singer and Annabel Lee were young when they first met.
In this kingdom by the sea,
They were both in the same kingdom near the sea.
But we loved with a love that was more than love,
Their love was so strong that it surpassed normal love.
I and my Annabel Lee,
The artist and Annabel Lee were in love.
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Their love was so great that even the angels in heaven were envious.
Coveted her and me.
The angels coveted their love.
And this was the reason that,long ago,
This is the reason why something happened in the past.
In this kingdom by the sea,
The same kingdom near the sea where the story began.
A wind blew out of a cloud,chilling
A cold wind blew from a cloud.
My Annabel lee,
The wind chilled Annabel Lee.
So that her high,born kinsmen came
Annabel Lee's relatives came to take her away.
And bore her away from me,
They took Annabel Lee away from the singer of the story.
To shut her up in a sepulcher
They put Annabel Lee in a tomb.
In this kingdom by the sea.
The same kingdom near the sea where the story began.
And the angels,not half so happy in heaven,
Even the angels in heaven were not as happy as the artist and Annabel Lee were together.
Went envying her and me,
The angels envied their love.
Yes!,that was the reason(as all men know,
This is the reason for what happened in the story that everyone knows.
In this kingdom by the sea)
The same kingdom near the sea where the story began.
That the wind came out of the cloud by night,
The cold wind blew from the cloud at night.
Chilling my Annabel lee,
Annabel Lee was chilled by the cold wind.
That the wind came out of the cloud by night
The cold wind blew from the cloud at night.
Killing my Annabelle.
Annabel Lee died because of the cold wind.
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
The artist's and Annabel Lee's love was stronger than anyone else's love.
Of those who were older than we,
Their love was even stronger than the love of those who were older than them.
Of many far wiser than we,
Their love was even stronger than the love of people who were wiser than them.
And neither the angels in heaven above
Their love was so strong that not even the angels in heaven could separate them.
Nor the the demons down under the sea,
Even the demons under the sea could not separate their souls.
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Their souls will always be together.
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee, and the moon never beams,
The beauty of Annabel Lee and the connection between the singer and Annabel Lee will never fade.
Without bringing me dreams
The artist dreams of Annabel Lee every night.
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee,
The singer will always remember the beauty of Annabel Lee.
And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes
The stars remind the singer of Annabel Lee's bright eyes.
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee,
The singer will always remember the beauty of Annabel Lee.
And so,all the night, tide, I lie down by the side
The artist spends the night by Annabel Lee's tomb.
Of my darling my life and my bride,
Annabel Lee was the artist's life and his bride.
In the sepulcher there by the sea,
Annabel Lee's tomb was near the sea.
In her tomb by the sounding sea.
Annabel Lee's tomb was near the sea, which could be heard from the tomb.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: EDGAR ALLEN POE, JOHN CRITCHLEY, MIKE ROBBINS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Eli Vilnaei
It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of ANNABEL LEE;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.
I was a child and SHE was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea,
But we loved with a love that was more than love-
I and my ANNABEL LEE-
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My ANNABEL LEE;
So that her high-born kinsmen came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulcher
In this kingdom by the sea.
AND the angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and me-
Yes!-that was the reason (as all men know,
In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud by night,
Chilling my ANNABEL LEE;
That the wind came out of the cloud by night
Killing my ANNABEL LEE.
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we-
Of many far wiser than we-
And neither the angels in heaven above
Nor the the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful ANNABEL LEE...
And the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful ANNABEL LEE;
And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful ANNABEL LEE:
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling my life and my bride,
In the sepulcher there by the sea-
In her tomb by the sounding sea.
Hasan Tepe
Annabel Lee
It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of ANNABEL LEE;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.
I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea;
But we loved with a love that was more than love-
I and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsman came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.
The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and me-
Yes!- that was the reason (as all men know,
In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud by night,
Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we-
Of many far wiser than we-
And neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee.
For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling- my darling- my life and my bride,
In the sepulchre there by the sea,
In her tomb by the sounding sea.
Edgar Allan Poe
TheaterRaven
"We loved with a love that was more than love"—Mr. Poe, you may be remembered today mostly for your horror stories, but goodness, you could describe romance like no one else. Bravo, sir, and brava to Ms. Baez for this beautiful rendition. :)
Eli Vilnaei
It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of ANNABEL LEE;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.
I was a child and SHE was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea,
But we loved with a love that was more than love-
I and my ANNABEL LEE-
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My ANNABEL LEE;
So that her high-born kinsmen came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulcher
In this kingdom by the sea.
AND the angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and me-
Yes!-that was the reason (as all men know,
In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud by night,
Chilling my ANNABEL LEE;
That the wind came out of the cloud by night
Killing my ANNABEL LEE.
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we-
Of many far wiser than we-
And neither the angels in heaven above
Nor the the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful ANNABEL LEE...
And the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful ANNABEL LEE;
And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful ANNABEL LEE:
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling my life and my bride,
In the sepulcher there by the sea-
In her tomb by the sounding sea.
vincent laguna
Oh my God! Of all people, Edgar Allan Poe interpreted by Joan Baez! What a combination, perfect!! Joan Baez refreshes centuries old dried blood so vividly! It makes you go back to those times and sense what those feelings must've felt!
Catlover tea4
Perfection. Arrangement with voice with words with melody - too moving for words. No other combination could come close to working as well as this - nothing. Music has been in my heart since I can remember, so I'll just speak for myself.
edith mubauls
I love Joan baez
Gotta say, I greatly prefer the chords and arrangement here by Erik Quisling. Didn't care for stevie nicks interpretation either.
https://youtu.be/Q8Sbz7uoilU
Mei Douthitt
The words come not from Joan Baez, but from Edgar Allen Poe... one of my all-time favorite poems by Poe.
Arja Tappola
Joan, the one of the greatest singers in our time!
Richard Thomas
This poem frightened me as a child. I didn't know that Joan Baez had sung it until relatively recently. She also sang e. e. Cummings' All In Green Went My Love Riding -- equally effectively.
Hans Fried
Wow! a great poem, song with superb arrangement.
Dash Sitar
Her voice is healing me somehow