In the 90's Smyth wrote music for several movie soundtracks and was nominated for a Grammy and an Academy award for her song "Look What Love Has Done" from the 1994 Arnold Schwarzenegger movie "Junior".
She dated fellow New York musician Richard Hell (lead singer of Television and Richard Hell and the Voidoids) for two years, and they had a child together. Smyth married professional tennis player John McEnroe in 1997.
Beat of a Heart
Patty Smyth Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Was a little too much today
Love on the wing
Flew so high it just melted away
So sweet on the run
So little time to make you see
What can't be undone
But sometimes a fool
Gets lucky and wins
Sometimes the innocent pay
For an old man's sin
But when the amber light
Of daylight's gone
All I want to feel
Is the beat of a heart
The street that night
Had a little too much to say
And the look in your eyes
It was a little too far away
But sometimes a fool
Gets lucky and wins
Sometimes the innocent pay
For an old man's sin
Sometimes a fool
Gets lucky and wins
Sometimes the innocent pay
For an old man's sin
But when the amber light
Of daylight's gone
All I want to feel
Is the beat of a heart
Just a little life ticking away
The beat of a heart
You come take me far away (Musical Break)
Sometimes a fool
Gets lucky and wins
Sometimes the innocent pay
For an old man's sin
But when the tears are dark
And we stand as one
All I want to feel
And when the amber light
Of daylight's gone
All I want to hear
Is the beat of a heart
The beat of a heart
You come and take me far away
The lyrics of Patty Smyth’s song, Beat of a Heart, depict the theme of love and its inevitable conclusion. According to the singer, the heat of the sun was too much, and love flew too high and just melted away. Though the singer tried to make the love work out, the damage was already done, and all efforts were senseless. However, the singer believes that sometimes a fool gets lucky and wins, but sometimes, the innocent pay for an old man’s sin. Despite this, the singer expresses comfort in the beat of a heart as it reassures them that they are still alive.
Moreover, the singer sings about a street that had a little too much to say, and the look in someone's eyes was too far away. Even though the singer acknowledges that sometimes fools get lucky and win, they also acknowledge that the innocent may pay for an old man's sins. When all is said and done, however, the singer addresses how all they want to feel is the beat of a heart, even if it's just a little ticking away. The sight of people standing together, their tears dark, and hearing the beat of a heart brings comfort to the singer, and they desire to be taken away by this sound.
Overall, the lyrics convey the message that even though love could end in heartbreak, there can still be hope and comfort found in the heartbeat. It represents the soothing sound of life that exists as long as one is alive, regardless of the pains and struggles that come with love.
Line by Line Meaning
The heat of the sun
The day was really hot
Was a little too much today
It was almost unbearable hot
Love on the wing
The love they shared was still in the air
Flew so high it just melted away
Their love was intense but didn't last long
So sweet on the run
Their love was beautiful but had to move fast
So little time to make you see
It was hard to make them understand their love
What can't be undone
Their love can't be reversed
Was maybe never meant to be
Perhaps their love was destined to fail
But sometimes a fool
Occasionally a foolish person
Gets lucky and wins
Will succeed through chance
Sometimes the innocent pay
Sometimes innocent people suffer
For an old man's sin
Because of something an older person did in the past
But when the amber light
But when the day is over
Of daylight's gone
And it's nighttime
All I want to feel
All I want to sense
Is the beat of a heart
Is a heartbeat
The street that night
The road at night
Had a little too much to say
The street was busy and loud
And the look in your eyes
The look on your face
It was a little too far away
It was somewhat distant
But when the tears are dark
But when the sadness is overwhelming
And we stand as one
And we stand together
All I want to feel
All I want to sense
And when the amber light
And when the day is over
Of daylight's gone
And it's nighttime
All I want to hear
All I want to listen to
Is the beat of a heart
Is a heartbeat
Just a little life ticking away
The sound of a heartbeat represents life
You come take me far away
Take me on a journey to escape reality
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: KEITH MACK, PATTY SMYTH, ZACHARY HOLT SMITH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@jettyjumper21
The heat of the sun
Was a little too much today
Love on the wing
Flew so high it just melted away
So sweet on the run
So little time to make you see
What can't be undone
Was maybe never meant to be
But sometimes a fool
Gets lucky and wins
Sometimes the innocent pay
For an old man's sin
But when the amber light
Of daylight's gone
All I want to feel
Is the beat of a heart
The street that night
Had a little too much to say
And the look in your eyes
It was a little too far away
But sometimes a fool
Gets lucky and wins
Sometimes the innocent pay
For an old man's sin
Sometimes a fool
Gets lucky and wins
Sometimes the innocent pay
For an old man's sin
But when the amber light
Of daylight's gone
All I want to feel
Is the beat of a heart
Just a little life ticking away
The beat of a heart
You come take me far away (Musical Break)
Sometimes a fool
Gets lucky and wins
Sometimes the innocent pay
For an old man's sin
But when the tears are dark
And we stand as one
All I want to feel
And when the amber light
Of daylight's gone
All I want to hear
Is the beat of a heart
The beat of a heart
You come and take me far away
@lisajoye5721
Patty Smyth had one of the best female voices in music. Love her.❤
@mikelyons5632
Best voices period. I think female voices are generally better anyway. Here's is definitely top 5 all time, IMHO. 🙂
@geraldcorona9910
Well, it's been 40 yrs.
Just stopped by to check on something. ...... yup!!
I'm still in love with Patty! 😪
@08prema
Awe the 80’s can we just go back❤
@AgentJayZ
In 1985, I was a DJ at a hard rockin' bar. CCR, ZZ Top, Bob Seeger and Skynyrd... This was my favorite song, and I played it every night. Turned it up a bit past 10, and it was well received.
@swampy64-re5gc
Wouldn't it be great , I miss those days so much , definitely the best decade of my life , the music that fashion was just the best 🤡👍👍
@robertliddle4711
The song, her style, just scream the 80s and I miss it. She absolutely rocks.
@Serpico-official
Totally!! ❤
@AgentJayZ
In 1985, I was a DJ at a rough bar, and I played this song every night. Always cranked the amps into "yellow" for that first hit on the drums. Left it there until the song was ending. The building shook, and I loved every second of it.
@truxtc11
Patty’s just so cool. I remember being a kid and seeing her videos. I had such a huge crush on her. Lol God, the 80’s were a great time to be growing up.