Born and raised in rural Victoria, Cave studied art before fronting The Birthday Party, one of Melbourne's leading post-punk bands, in the late 1970s. They relocated to London in 1980, but, disillusioned by life there, evolved towards a darker, more challenging sound, and acquired a reputation as "the most violent live band in the world". At this time, Cave, with his shock of black hair and pale, emaciated look, became an unwilling gothic rock poster boy. Soon after the band's break-up in 1983, Cave formed Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Much of the band's early material was set in a mythic American Deep South, drawing on spirituals and Delta blues, while Cave's preoccupation with Old Testament notions of good versus evil culminated in what has been called his signature song, "The Mercy Seat" (1988). The 1990s saw Cave achieve greater commercial success with quieter, piano-driven ballads, notably the Kylie Minogue duet "Where the Wild Roses Grow" (1996), and "Into My Arms" (1997). More recent releases, including the band's 17th and latest LP, Ghosteen (2019), feature increasingly abstract lyrics from Cave, as well as elements of ambient and electronic music. Grinderman, Cave's garage rock side project, has released two albums since 2006.
Cave co-wrote, scored and starred in the 1988 Australian prison film Ghosts... of the Civil Dead (1988), directed by John Hillcoat. He also wrote the screenplay for Hillcoat's bushranger film The Proposition (2005), and composed the soundtrack with frequent collaborator Warren Ellis. The pair's film score credits include The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007), The Road (2009), Lawless (2012), and Hell or High Water (2016). Cave is the subject of several films, including the semi-fictional "day in the life" 20,000 Days on Earth (2014), and the documentary One More Time with Feeling (2016). Cave has also released two novels: And the Ass Saw the Angel (1989) and The Death of Bunny Munro (2009).
Cave's work has become the subject of academic study, and his songs have been covered by a wide range of artists, including Johnny Cash ("The Mercy Seat"), Metallica ("Loverman") and Snoop Dogg ("Red Right Hand"). He was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2007, and named an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2017.
The Train Song
Nick Cave Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Tell me how long's the train been gone?
And was she there?
And was she there?
Tell me how long's the train been gone?
Tell me how many coaches long?
Tell me how many coaches long?
And what did she wear?
Tell me how many coaches long?
Tell me when did the whistle blow?
Tell me when did the whistle blow?
And did she tie her hair?
And did she tie her hair?
Tell me when did the whistle blow?
In Nick Cave's song "The Train Song," the lyrics explore the pangs of longing and unanswered questions one experiences after a lover has left by train. The repetitiveness of the questions in each stanza emphasize the singer's desperation for answers. In the first stanza, the singer asks how long the train has been gone and if his lover was on it. The second stanza inquires about how many coaches were on the train and what his lover was wearing. Finally, in the third stanza, the singer wants to know when the whistle blew and if his lover tied her hair before she left.
The melancholic melody of the song enhances the idea of a long-lost love in a sorrowful but also haunting way - the train metaphors symbolize something that is always moving forward and can never be recovered. The repetition of the questions and phrases throughout the song leads the listener down the path of the singer's desperate search for answers that are forever out of reach.
Line by Line Meaning
Tell me how long's the train been gone?
Request for information on the duration of the train's absence
And was she there?
Enquiry about the presence of a particular individual
Tell me how many coaches long?
Request for information on the number of train compartments
And what did she wear?
Enquiry about the attire of a particular individual
Tell me when did the whistle blow?
Request for information on the time the train whistle sounded
And did she tie her hair?
Enquiry about the hairstyle of a particular individual
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@joehajj5823
Lyrics:
Pass me that lovely little gun
My dear, my darling one
The cleaners are coming, one by one
You don’t even want to let them start
They are knocking now upon your door
They measure the room, they know the score
They’re mopping up the butcher’s floor
Of your broken little hearts
O children
Forgive us now for what we’ve done
It started out as a bit of fun
Here, take these before we run away
The keys to the gulag
O children
Lift up your voice, lift up your voice
Children
Rejoice, rejoice
Here comes Frank and poor old Jim
They’re gathering round with all my friends
We’re older now, the light is dim
And you are only just beginning
O children
We have the answer to all your fears
It’s short, it’s simple, it’s crystal clear
It’s round about, it’s somewhere here
Lost amongst our winnings
O children
Lift up your voice, lift up your voice
Children
Rejoice, rejoice
The cleaners have done their job on you
They’re hip to it, man, they’re in the groove
They’ve hosed you down, you’re good as new
They’re lining up to inspect you
O children
Poor old Jim’s white as a ghost
He’s found the answer that was lost
We’re all weeping now, weeping because
There ain’t nothing we can do to protect you
O children
Lift up your voice, lift up your voice
Children
Rejoice, rejoice
Hey little train!We are all jumping on
The train that goes to the Kingdom
We’re happy, Ma, we’re having fun
And the train ain’t even left the station
Hey, little train!Wait for me!
I once was blind but now I see
Have you left a seat for me?
Is that such a stretch of the imagination?
Hey little train!Wait for me!
I was held in chains but now I’m free
I’m hanging in there, don’t you see
In this process of elimination
Hey little train!We are all jumping on
The train that goes to the Kingdom
We’re happy, Ma, we’re having fun
It’s beyond my wildest expectation
Hey little train!We are all jumping on
The train that goes to the Kingdom
We’re happy, Ma, we’re having fun
And the train ain’t even left the station
@MistaBaZ
@@antoniuerdei724 It could mean different things, depending on the listener. What the artist meant could very well be different from what many take away from it.
"Hey little train, we're jumpin on... the train that goes to the kingdom."
To some, that can be interpreted as greeting death with a bit of rejoice, possibly because of the idea of reconnecting with a lost loved one or being released from suffering. "I once was blind, but now I see"
The verses that came before it were very melancholy and dark. Yet, in between each was that brief reprieve where children sang "o children, lift up your voice", which could very well be a warning as well as a call for kids to stand up. At the end of such somber verses to transition into that powerful chorus, which everyone returns to this video for, I hear two things:
First is the possibility that everyone died in the story leading up to it and, as said, are reconnecting in the afterlife. "Have you left a seat for me"
Second is the possibility of overcoming all that strife and hardship, even if barely, and being able to leave it all behind. They're rejoicing, they're alive. "Was held in chains, but now i'm free"
@Courtneybenson907
Fun fact: Nick Cave was happy that one of his unpopular songs was featured in Harry Potter, and now everyone knows this song from it.
@sakatababa
unpopular?
damn, i haven't got that memo, it's one of my fav nick songs...
hell, who am i kidding. all nicks songs are my fav :)
@sakatababa
@Björn Pisano you're not the only one. try watching it with a girl that is a huge fan of the books and her moaning about every single scene.
on the point of alternative nick songs most i find appropriate to the sequence (in terms of complementing cinematography) are on latest albums except for the weeping song.
@BLARRR83
I love this song. It was immediate
@Qorvexx
That's horrible, no one even knows you, you cretin you couldn't even think of this, what's the matter, you didn't get your wand at Harry Potter world 🤣🤣
@marinacarratalaregadera9673
Unpopular ? It’s one of my fav songs ever.
@citrenee
I think this calls for another harry potter marathon...
@TheLegend-sq8ex
Tayter Kat just finished my marathon today. Boy was it good to watch those movies again
@megan4248
The Legend it really was
@eleanorcavanough.9341
Indeed 🥺