While "Good" earned the band critical notoriety and substantial underground cred, they did not -- with this release or any subsequent -- break into the mainstream. After the release of Good, the band replaced Dupree with Billy Conway, a former bandmate of Sandman. Morphine's 1992 release of Cure for Pain, promoted by heavy touring, received some mainstream positive attention, selling over 300,000 copies worldwide and spawning a chart hit in many countries with the single Buena
Subsequent releases include Yes and Like Swimming.
On July 3, 1999, Mark Sandman collapsed on stage in Palestrina, Italy, a suburb of Rome. He was pronounced dead of a heart attack at the scene. He was 46. Morphine released The Night -- arguably their best effort -- posthumously in 2000.
After Sandman's death, the remaining band members reformed and continued to record as Twinemen and later as The Ever Expanding Elastic Waste Band
In 2004, the Mark Sandman box set Sandbox was released by Hi-n-Dry, Mark Sandman's own label. It contains two CDs and a DVD of previously unreleased material spanning Sandman’s musical career. The DVD features clips from early Sandman shows, interviews from the Morphine tours, and various videos from other Sandman solo and group projects, such as Treat Her Right.
"Some day there'll be a cure for pain,
And that's the day I throw my drugs away" - Mark Sandman
Links:
The Other Side - A Morphine Fanzine
Morphine at Myspace
Like Swimming
Morphine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And then some other strokes
I can never remember any real good jokes
Do you feel like swimming?
Do you feel like swimming?
Yes, right now
I know a way to swim all the way downtown
It's a lot like swimming the first time over your head
It gets easier when you move your arms and legs
And for air you lift your head, why don't we try it right now
Yes, right now
Yes, right now
Well, I know a way to swim all the way downtown
I know a way to swim all the way downtown
Well, I know a way to swim all the way downtown
I know a way to swim all the way downtown
We'll go by way of the garden
Fat with tomatoes and beans on the vine
Sweet like the way it was
Like swimming for the very first time
Do you feel like swimming?
Do you feel like swimming?
Well, I know a way to swim all the way downtown
I know a way to swim all the way downtown
I know a way to swim all the way downtown
I know a way to swim all the way downtown
Do you feel like swimming?
Do you feel like swimming?
The lyrics to Morphine’s song “Like Swimming” are about taking a plunge into the unknown, both literally and figuratively. The opening lines of the song evoke the experience of early childhood, learning to crawl and swim. The line “I can never remember any real good jokes” speaks to the innocence of youth, when the complexities of the world have yet to fully reveal themselves.
The repeated refrain of “Do you feel like swimming?” suggests a sense of adventure and a willingness to take risks. The singer offers a way to “swim all the way downtown,” suggesting that this adventure could lead to new and uncharted territories. The metaphor of swimming is used throughout the song to imply that navigating the challenges of life is like swimming in uncharted waters.
The final verse of the song takes us on a journey through a garden, “fat with tomatoes and beans on the vine,” a place that is “sweet like the way it was like swimming for the very first time.” This verse suggests that there are moments in life that remain pure and simple, even as we grow older and face more complex challenges.
Overall, “Like Swimming” is a song about taking risks and embracing the unknown, even when it’s scary. By comparing this experience to the act of swimming, the song suggests that life is not only a journey, but a kind of fluid space in which we must be willing to adapt and learn.
Line by Line Meaning
First I learned to crawl
Starting from the basic skills (crawling), I have learned how to swim with various additional techniques.
And then some other strokes
I have learned additional swimming strokes after learning the basics.
I can never remember any real good jokes
I cannot remember any jokes well enough to tell them effectively.
Do you feel like swimming?
Are you in the mood to swim?
Yes, right now
I am ready to swim immediately.
I know a way to swim all the way downtown
I am aware of a path to swim all the way downtown.
It's a lot like swimming the first time over your head
Swimming all the way downtown is similar to the feeling of swimming for the first time over your head.
It gets easier when you move your arms and legs
Swimming becomes easier once you start moving your arms and legs effectively.
And for air you lift your head, why don't we try it right now
You can breathe while swimming by lifting your head out of the water, would you like to try it now?
Well, I know a way to swim all the way downtown
I am familiar with a path through which one can swim all the way downtown.
We'll go by way of the garden
We will take a path that goes through the garden.
Fat with tomatoes and beans on the vine
The garden is full of ripe tomatoes and beans hanging from their stems.
Sweet like the way it was
The sweetness of the garden is reminiscent of the way things used to be.
Well, I know a way to swim all the way downtown
Again, I am aware of a path to swim all the way downtown.
Do you feel like swimming?
Do you feel like swimming again?
Do you feel like swimming?
Are you in the mood to swim again?
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: MARK J. SANDMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
JEDI artist
great band, cool song, nice name. ;)
Emanuel
Once time my girlfriend of that moment make me know more about this band, we used to gettin high with it, having sex, and just lyed on the bed smoking, real good times that i will never gonna forget. From Argentina. Morphine forever, great band
As The Crow Flies
If ever there were a song that just makes you want to get lit.
Hayden Samson
all my life ive been swiming .this song rules
Charles de Carvalho
Best Band of all times
Gabriela M
Amazing
Hélder Daniel Neves
I can not also remember any real good jokes! Genious Guys!
Dahstin
Do you feel like swimming?
nunzioforpresident
Unici...inimitabili
Sloppy Jonuts
Reminds me of my little brother who passed away a few months ago