In the late '60s and early '70s, Baez came into her songwriting own, penning many songs (most notably "Diamonds & Rust," a nostalgic piece about her ill-fated romance with Bob Dylan, and "Sweet Sir Galahad," a song about sister Mimi Fariña's ( of Richard & Mimi Fariña fame) second marriage, and continued to meld her songcraft with topical issues. She was outspoken in her disapproval of the Vietnam war and later the CIA-backed coups in many Latin American countries.
She was also instrumental in the Civil Rights movement, marching with Dr. Martin Luther King on many occassions and being jailed for her beliefs. In 1963, her performance of "We Shall Overcome" at the Lincoln Memorial just prior to Dr. King's famous "I Have A Dream..." speech helped confirm the song as the Civil Rights anthem.
In December 1972, she traveled to Hanoi, North Vietnam, and was caught in that country's "Christmas Campaign," in which the U.S. bombed the city more times than any other during the entire war. While pregnant with her only son, Gabriel, she performed a handful of songs in the middle of the night on day one of the 1969 Woodstock festival. She is considered the "Queen of Folk" for being at the forefront of the 1960s folk revival and inspiring generations of female folksingers that followed. Over fifty years after she first began singing publicly in 1958, Joan Baez continues to tour, demonstrate in favor of human rights and nonviolence, and release albums for a world of devoted fans.
1959
Time Is Passing Us By
Joan Baez Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The moon is low on the southland
The frogs are asleep on the lake
Did you know that tears run in rivulets
And hearts can repeatedly break?
And this may well be the last time
If my spirits don't pick up and fly
It may well be true
That our time is passing us by
Occasionally you have called for me
I've always tried to be there
But it seemed whenever my train pulled in
You never did really care
And the only thing I could decipher
From the corner of your roving eye
Was that you and I
Were the first ones to know
That our time was passing us by
Well, it was fun for the first few years
Playing Legend In Our Time
And there were those who discussed the fact
That we drifted apart in our prime
And we haven't got too much in common
Except that we're so much alike
And I hate it for though
You're a big part of me
But our time is passing us by
So I can sit here in my silver chair
You can stay there on your gold
You can say you've got commitments
And I can say I'm growing old
And I can get up and make comments
On the color of the evening sky
But our ships have come home
And the night's rolling in
And our time is passing us by
But cast us adrift
And cross a few stars
And I'm good for one more try
© 1976, 1977 Gabriel Earl Music (ASCAP)
The song "Time Is Passing Us By" by Joan Baez seems to be about a relationship that has run its course, with the two partners drifting apart and realizing that their time is passing them by. The lyrics are deep and introspective, with Baez expressing sadness and disappointment about the situation. The imagery of the moon being low on the southland and the frogs asleep on the lake sets a melancholic tone that runs through the entire song. The verses highlight the gradual distancing of the two partners, with Baez lamenting how her significant other has become indifferent to her presence. She tries to understand why their relationship has faltered, but she cannot comprehend what went wrong. It's almost as if they're living separate lives even though they're still together.
Joan Baez writes in the chorus that she feels as if time is passing them by and that this relationship may be the last, thus adding a sense of finality to the lyrics. The entire song is a heart-wrenching meditation on the nature of love and relationships, and how they can slip away so easily, with each partner going in their own direction. The final verse speaks of both partners accepting that they've grown too different to stay together and that it is time to move on. They've sailed different ships, and their time is up, and the night is rolling in.
Overall, "Time Is Passing Us By" is a poignant and introspective song that speaks of the cruelty of time and how it can erode even the best relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
The moon is low on the southland
The moon is in a low position in the sky as per the south region
The frogs are asleep on the lake
The frogs are resting quietly on the surface of the lake
Did you know that tears run in rivulets
Tears can flow in tiny streams
And hearts can repeatedly break?
Hearts have the tendency to often break
And this may well be the last time
This moment might be the final chance
If my spirits don't pick up and fly
Unless I somehow manage to be enthusiastic and happy about this moment
For though it's sad
Despite feeling melancholic
It may well be true
It could be the truth
That our time is passing us by
Our time is elapsing quickly
Occasionally you have called for me
Sometimes you reached out to me
I've always tried to be there
I always did my best to be present
But it seemed whenever my train pulled in
Whenever my mode of transportation arrived
You never did really care
You never genuinely cared
And the only thing I could decipher
All that I could decode
From the corner of your roving eye
From observing the movement of your eyes
Was that you and I
We
Were the first ones to know
Were the initial people to realize
That our time was passing us by
That our time was fleeting rapidly
Well, it was fun for the first few years
We had a delightful time in the beginning phase
Playing Legend In Our Time
We pretended to be a remarkable tale in our era
And there were those who discussed the fact
And some people pointed out
That we drifted apart in our prime
That we separated during our best years
And we haven't got too much in common
We don't share many similarities
Except that we're so much alike
Apart from the fact that we are very similar
And I hate it for though
And despite that notion making me sad
You're a big part of me
You hold a significant part of my life
But our time is passing us by
But our time is fleeting away
So I can sit here in my silver chair
I can relax and sit in my shiny chair
You can stay there on your gold
You can remain seated on your golden seat
You can say you've got commitments
You can claim you have certain obligations
And I can say I'm growing old
And I can say that I am getting aged
And I can get up and make comments
I can stand up and express my opinions
On the color of the evening sky
About the shade of the sky during dusk
But our ships have come home
But our transportation has arrived at its destination
And the night's rolling in
And the darkness is creeping in
And our time is passing us by
And our time is slipping away
But cast us adrift
But if we are discarded and abandoned
And cross a few stars
And traverse multiple stars
And I'm good for one more try
And I am willing to make an effort one last time
Lyrics © GABRIEL EARL MUSIC
Written by: JOAN BAEZ
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Katharine Y BAez Katharina Scharlowski Katharine C. Y BAez Scharlowski InAOLoves
on The Rose
Joan Baez , my Fairest Hope my Love who signed into our Way
We are unite
We will not fall without our Foreverlasting
Love
In Failing Light
You See in myselfve your Love your Lesbian Wifve
You share your Lightful and your Darkest
side
In Which our Embraces
Our Words
Our Visions
Will rejoice
I see the Sunlight of a setting
Evening
Rise into Grace each Coming Morning
The amours we live is our Love
The mourns we felt
Do not impact
The do not seperate us My Joan C Baez You and I
The scared moments
We leave behind
We’ll belong twogather twogether
And three times we will cross
The Distance of an ocean between us
And then we ‘ll stay twogather in Your Home your place
Is given here and there
Is given home in our hearts and Soul
Our minds and bodies Longing Love
We are whole
The scars we carry
Did not made us blind
we will feel every emotion
As our Lifvelong foreverlasting Love
We share a secret
In which we Both have
Signed we are in Soul in heart in Bodies Longing and fulfillment in Mind now and
Eternally Unite
DeineKatharine Y BAez Katharina Scharlowski Katharine C. Y BAez Scharlowski InAOLoves
KatharinA KAtharine C. Y Baez Scharlowski
on The Rose
Und selbst wenn
alle Dunkelheit
Der Nächte
In den Tagen läge
Und selbst Erwachen
Schwer
ich fände doch
Zu Dir
Es führen Wege
Selbst wenn
kein Ausweg
durch die Tür
We burnt Each Other
everlastingly
Our Sign
Of truest Love that
Overcomes
The loneliness
And wildest
cry
When we embrace
and kiss our
Wounds
The Smile remaining
When we caress us
Will be
What lets us
deeply , sad
and of most
tenderness
Acknowledging
and
In our Minds
Forever
Found and
Not to destroyed
And we will
Feel that
We are Unite
The Ring i had lost
I‘ve found again
It’s prayer and Your Love
You Sent
A Turquoise of Arizonas Depth
Your heart in myne
And at The Turquoise
Coast beneath your Hill
We‘ll make Love
We‘ll follow our destined
And guiding
Will
Ich bin Dein Du Mein
MyLady JoanC BAez, My JoanChandosBaez, JoanBaez my Dove
Love And Wife
Katharine~~ C.~~ Y Baez KAtharinA Scharlowski InAO~•~Love~•~s the Answer~ I Love You, Joan and as Light begins to fail You reappear in my Body Heart and Soul my Mind to stayDeine KAtharinA KAtharine ich liebe Dich Forever!Joan C BAez
KatharinA KAtharine C. Y Baez Scharlowski
on The Rose
For a moment
in a Night Times Blessing
I left You in my Loves Embrace
as like a Flower
~ a Rose ~
and Purity her name
in darkness,
that was to bloom
in Heaven’s place.
as for the Love
in me
was not Disgraced,
A Lasting Kiss ,
A smile
a Light
A heart
that burns
throughly Memories
Forever Living
As Nighttime fell
As Nighttime falls
I‘ came, l’ll come and be
The One You‘ll see
The Love you feel
Just like a wild dog
Runs
Through Bushes
Of fences
And calamities
I passed my way to You
Through even
Greatest adversarities
The Rose of Sharon
Schmückt meinen Mund
~trotz Ausgebissen Zähne
In des Lebens Leid~
Wir Küssen uns
in purest Love
That went through
To and fro
And come and go
And I came back to You
Forever and Forevermore
Für JoanC. BAez von KAtharine C. Y Baez Scharlowski KAtharinA Ino
Katharine c; Y Baez
on The Rose
If a Love is felt as failing it is but Love the helps her Rise, it is a the moments quiet whispering : As i was torn you were by my side, in your Love i see my true and darkeyed Light, there it is Forever Joan Chandos Baez Katharine C; Y Baez Katharina sc harlowski
kATHARINE C. YBAEZ I
on The Rose
AS ON tHE WHITE hORSE MY HAND WAS GIVEN IN THE NOON TO yOU TODAY AS I ASKED YOU FOR YOURS ,WAS THAN WHEN EVERY MOON HAD TRIED TO fAIL AND hONEYMOON WAS THE ONLY LIGHT IN WHICH MY wORDS WERE LAID. iT WAS THE fAILURE ON THE iNTERNET AND NON BUT SCRIPTURE cOULD AND A LOVING HEART COULD STAY THE WIDE
iN THIS dARK MOMENT OF THE pRESENTS SIMPLE SIDE , THE fAIR cARD OF yOUR STALION wHITE THE wHITE hORSE IN tHE bLOSSOM OF THE mAY dAYS tIDE, I SENT TO YOUR wOODEN hILLS TO YOUR UNVENTURED sIDE, mY WRITTEN wORD : wILL yOU PLEASE mARRY ME MY bRIDE? i'LL STAY FOREVER BY YOUR sIDE FROM tHAN oN, sO gOODBYE IN OUR gOOD NiGHT, mY loVE jOAN C. bAEZ, yOUR KATHARINE C. Y BAEZ kATHARINA SCHARLOWSKI 21. MAY 2022
KatharineC. Y Baez Katharina Scharlowski
on The Rose
Thank You dearloved Joan C.Baez, you accorded me the answer in an unknown Light, through all darkness not alone as there was Love for you in me,- as in thought, in words a visioned melodie - that is not gone - far beyond the borders shores and the oceans sea, doves Flight as is Loves they fly By two By Four By Three, i send Goodbye to them I send GoodBye - and hope it once will be - I sent GoodBye my Joan C Baez stay You'll never fail in my Heart There is your place to be i send Goodbye my Love to Thee , Joan Chandos Baez, Katharine C. Y Baez Katharina Scharlowski It is for You that i was meant to feel was meant to be.
Katharine C. Y Baez, K.S.
on Wings
I 'll stay with you cause I think it's time to say Thank you for having stayed with me in my Time of Need. I love You Joan (KC) CHandos Baez, Your Katharine C. Y Baez name of Love and Hope and American Native Indian Marriage, born Katharina Scharlowski , A little Rain is a gonna come, And I am at Home when I cry, but I learned to be at home in your Love too, As we stay in The Hearts of The One Loves we are. Deine Katharine