The classic song “The Living Years” from the album of the same name was to be the height of their critical success to date; the #1 single was written by and about the dissension between singer BA Robertson and his father, a situation that was never rectified prior to his father’s death, sung with great passion by Carrack. The album also featured the song “Nobody’s Perfect” which received considerable airtime as the music to a successful television advertising campaign for Tennants bitter. Their third album “Word of Mouth” followed in 1991 with less commercial and critical success although the lead single, with vocals by Paul Young, reached the Top 20. The fourth album “Beggar On a Beach of Gold” was a high watermark in the quality of their material, with both the album and first single “Over My Shoulder” charting well with many considering the album the band’s best work.
Nobody Knows
Mike And The Mechanics Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There's nothing wrong with you
Maybe we're just blind to see
Each other's point of view
Nobody knows what we had
Nobody knows what we had
You could do much worse than me
I could have walked right out on you
There was nothing stopping me
Nobody knows what we had
Oh, nobody knows what we had
We were running out of passion, we were running out of time
There's a face to fit the future, there's a face to fit the crime
Now the truth is on the table and the ghost is plain to see
There's nothing wrong with you or me, hey
Oh, nobody knows what we had
Nobody knows what we had
I won't live in your world
You can't live in mine
We don't hate each other darlin'
We just gave up trying
And nobody knows what we had
Nobody knows what we had
And nobody knows
We were running out of passion, we were running out of time
There's a face to fit the future, there's a face to fit the crime
Now the truth is on the table and the ghost is plain to see
There's nothing wrong with you or me, yeah
Maybe I'm not crying
Maybe I don't mind
But it hurts just knowing
That your children won't be mine
Nobody knows what we had
Nobody knows what we had
Maybe I don't mind
(Nobody knows what we had)
Maybe I'm not crying
(Nobody knows what we had)
'Cause nobody knows what we had
(Nobody knows what we had)
And nothing wrong, wrong with you
The song "Nobody Knows" by Mike And The Mechanics opens up with an acknowledgment that there is nothing wrong with the two people involved. The problem lies in their perception of each other. The singer talks about how they are unable to see things from each other's point of view. This could mean that they have grown apart over time, or maybe there was always a distance between them. The lyrics convey an implied sense of regret to this distance that has emerged between the two.
The song then goes on to talk about how nobody knows what they had, emphasizing how the relationship is unique and nobody else knows or understands it. The singer acknowledges that they could both do better or worse than each other, but that doesn't detract from the fact that there is something special between them. They had stopped trying to make it work, and the passion and time were running out. The singer then says that although they don't hate each other, they can't live in each other's worlds. Despite this, there is an undercurrent of sadness, and the singer acknowledges that it hurts to know that they won't have children together.
In summary, "Nobody Knows" is a poignant song about a relationship that has run its course. The lyrics attest to the fact that there's nothing wrong with the individuals involved, but circumstances, perceptions, and perhaps a lack of effort caused their paths to diverge.
Line by Line Meaning
There is nothing wrong with me
I am okay and there are no problems with me
There's nothing wrong with you
You are okay and there are no problems with you
Maybe we're just blind to see
Perhaps we are unable to recognize each other's perspective
Each other's point of view
The way each of us looks at things
Nobody knows what we had
No one knows about our past relationship
You could do much better
You deserve someone better than me
You could do much worse than me
There are people worse than me who you could be with
I could have walked right out on you
I had the option to walk out of the relationship
There was nothing stopping me
No obstacle prevented me from ending things
We were running out of passion, we were running out of time
Our affection for each other was fading, and we did not have much time left before our relationship ended
There's a face to fit the future, there's a face to fit the crime
There is someone else who will be better suited to our future, and someone else who will fit our past mistakes
Now the truth is on the table and the ghost is plain to see
The reality of our situation is clear and obvious
There's nothing wrong with you or me
Neither of us are to blame
I won't live in your world
I cannot conform to your way of living
You can't live in mine
You are unable to adjust to my lifestyle
We don't hate each other darlin'
We do not despise one another
We just gave up trying
We stopped making an effort to maintain our relationship
And nobody knows
No one is aware of what happened between us
Maybe I don't mind
Perhaps I am not bothered by the situation
But it hurts just knowing
It is painful to realize
That your children won't be mine
I will not have any children with you
Oh, nobody knows what we had
No one is aware of our past relationship
And nothing wrong, wrong with you
There is nothing wrong or at fault with you
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: CHRISTOPHER NEIL, MICHAEL RUTHERFORD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@dej1971
YVONNE MANSER
There is nothing wrong with me
There's nothing wrong with you
Maybe we're just blind to see
Each other's point of view
Nobody knows what we had
Nobody knows what we had
You could do much better
You could do much worse than me
I could have walked right out on you
There was nothing stopping me
Nobody knows what we had
Oh, nobody knows what we had
We were running out of passion
We were running out of time
There's a face to fit the future
There's a face to fit the crime
Now the truth is on the table
And the ghost is plain to see
There's nothing wrong with you or me
Hey
Oh, nobody knows what we had
Nobody knows what we had
I won't live in your world
You can't live in mine
We don't hate each other, darlin'
We just gave up trying
And nobody knows what we had
Nobody knows what we had
And nobody knows
We were running out of passion
We were running out of time
There's a face to fit the future
There's a face to fit the crime
Now the truth is on the table
And the ghost is plain to see
There's nothing wrong with you or me, yeah
Maybe I'm not crying
Maybe I don't mind
But it hurts just knowing
That your children won't be mine
Nobody knows what we had
Nobody knows what we had
Maybe I don't mind
(Nobody knows what we had)
Maybe I'm not crying
(Nobody knows what we had)
'Cause nobody knows what we had
(Nobody knows what we had)
And nothing wrong, wrong with you
Nothing wrong with me
@erickleefeld4883
It's amazing how in Mike's solo band, he had a lead singer who looked kind of like Phil!
@jjlp7587
he does a little.
@marianacaffaro
looked like and sings like Phill
@shaxan
And the drummer is kind of Mark Knopfler look-alike )
@baldassodouniversoparalelo6972
@Mariana Caffaro Wood I'm sorry, but Paul Carrack is a much better singer than Phil Collins, i like Phil, but his whiny voice does not help. I wonder if Genesis replaced Phil with Carrack instead of Ray Wilson.
@carlosrosilesortiz8097
Never looks like him and less hear like Phil, Paul Carrack is an amazed singer
@vernonhill7438
"maybe I'm not crying, and maybe I don't mind, but it hurts just knowing that your children won't be mine" 😭💔
@sarahjoelle4286
One of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard. It’s like someone sat down and designed the perfect song, tailored to me. Paul Carrack is an amazing singer.
@EJVotta
An incredibly beautiful song, both musically and lyrically. Then throw in Paul Carrack's amazing, soulful voice. This song is a classic. I don't understand why it hasn't gotten more air play.
@itsmylife842
Absolutely!!! I agree completely with both of you!!!