The song was promoted with a video that tells the story of a fashion model. The model faints during an outdoor photo session, then walks away from the session into a forest. There she recovers her lost youth and then travels into outer space in a scene reminiscent of 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Southern Sun
Paul Oakenfold Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I release
Once was mine
Now undone
Turned blue
Like New Orleans
And went down like
A southern sun
I still feel you
Beneath my skin
I am tempted
To throw my senses in
Cause it's easier to fly
Than to face another day
In Southern Sun
And your love is all around
Piece by piece
I release
Once was mine
Now undone
Turned blue like New Orleans
And went down like
A southern sun
I still feel you
Beneath my skin
I am tempted
To throw my senses in
Cause it's easier to fly
Than to face another day
In Southern Sun
And your love is all around
And in the air to set me free
Set me free
You last like a sun
I'm deflated
I am pieces on the wind
Unrelated
I still feel you
Beneath my skin
I am tempted
To throw my senses in
Cause it's easier to fly
Than to face another day
In southern sun
And your love is all around
In the air to set me free
Cause it's easier to fly
And in the air to set me free
The lyrics of Paul Oakenfold's "Southern Sun" depict the aftermath of a painful separation. The singer has been gradually "releasing" the pieces of what used to be a shared life, now "undone". The analogy of the color blue, reminiscent of the blues music genre which originated in New Orleans, enhances the feeling of sadness and loss. The ultimate collapse of the relationship is compared to a southern sun, suggesting a sudden and inevitable end, possibly due to external factors.
The singer, however, still feels the presence of the other person "beneath my skin" and is tempted to surrender to this remaining connection, to "throw my senses in". This emotional attachment, although painful, seems to offer a familiar comfort that contrasts with the challenges of facing "another day in Southern Sun" and implies the possibility of flying away, escaping the reality of the situation to an unknown destination. The reference to the other person's love being "all around" and "in the air" suggests a lingering power that can both constrain and liberate.
The lyrics of "Southern Sun" create a powerful atmosphere of melancholy, longing, and emotional conflict. The use of vivid analogies and images generates a sense of depth and complexity that invites the listener to reflect upon their own experiences of loss and love.
Line by Line Meaning
Piece by piece
Gradually, one by one, I am letting go of the things that used to belong to me
I release
I am intentionally letting go and sending away everything that I used to have
Once was mine
I used to have it and possess it under my control
Now undone
Now, I am separating myself from everything that I used to have by undoing my connection to it
Turned blue
I am experiencing sadness and melancholy
Like New Orleans
Similar to the sadness and devastation experienced in the aftermath of the hurricane in New Orleans
And went down like
Things and situations are descending into sadness and depression like the setting of the sun
A southern sun
The sun is setting in the south, indicating the end of a season and the beginning of a new one
I still feel you
Even though I am trying to let you go, your memory and the feelings you represent are still with me
Beneath my skin
Your memory is ingrained in my being and is part of who I am
I am tempted
I am drawn to the idea of completely immersing myself in you and your memory
To throw my senses in
I want to indulge in the feelings and sensations that thinking of you brings me
Cause it's easier to fly
Avoiding the pain of thinking about you is easier and more appealing than having to face it head-on
Than to face another day
Confronting the pain and sadness that thinking of you brings is too difficult to bear
In Southern Sun
The sun and the environment reflect and amplify the sadness and depression I feel
And your love is all around
Everywhere I look and everything I do constantly reminds me of the feeling of love that I had with you
You last like a sun
Your memory and the feelings you evoke linger and persist like the consistency of the sun in the sky
I'm deflated
I am feeling dejected and resigned
I am pieces on the wind
I am fragmented and scattered as if blown apart by the wind
Unrelated
I am disconnected from everything else around me, as if I do not belong or fit in
And in the air to set me free
The memory of your love and the pain it brings is all around me, but it is also what will ultimately allow me to move on and be free
Set me free
I am asking to be let go from the pain and sadness that thinking of you inevitably brings
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: CARMEN T. RIZZO JNR, JAMIE MUHOBERAC, PAUL OAKENFOLD, CARLA ROSANNE WERNER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@chrisk9552
Love this song !!!
Piece by piece
I release
Once was mine
Now undone
Turned blue
Like New Orleans
And went down like
A southern sun
I still feel you
Beneath my skin
I am tempted
To throw my senses in
Cause it's easier to fly
Than to face another day
In Southern Sun
And your love is all around
Piece by piece
I release
Once was mine
Now undone
Turned blue like New Orleans
And went down like
A southern sun
I still feel you
Beneath my skin
I am tempted
To throw my senses in
Cause it's easier to fly
Than to face another day
In Southern Sun
And your love is all around
And in the air to set me free
Set me free
You last like a sun
I'm deflated
I am pieces on the wind
Unrelated
I still feel you
Beneath my skin
I am tempted
To throw my senses in
Cause it's easier to fly
Than to face another day
In southern sun
And your love is all around
In the air to set me free
Cause it's easier to fly
And in the air to set me free
@macooler
I was in high school when I listened to it at full volume in my parents' car on the way to school. Years later, I hear it on the cockpit speakers of one of the planes of which I am a Pilot, before taking off or when we land and shut down systems. This song is still epic. Good and bad memories, but after all, they will last forever. Now I keep hearing it a little higher up, I hear it at 30,000 feet up.
@BSA77
I salute you pilot 🤚
@jasonpritchard6587
Yea my late mate out me into this fella n this track
Still play few times a year....
Beautiful track despite like you say good s n bad memories... Mostly good 👍✌️🙏
@glennchee4140
Me too...high school and having smacking session
@inTrue_love
that's beautiful .. ❤️❤️
@teodordamian
KLM? Heard it on a klm flight to Doha, Qatar many many many years ago…
@user-ol5yk9yl4w
Я услышал этот трек в 2000 году примерно в плеере диске. Прошло 23 года, а слышу как в первый раз. Мурашки по коже, не только у меня, а кто слышет этот божественный трек. Это искусство музыкального произведения!
@Vladimirovich187
Окенфольд Бог
@is_rous
Недооценённый шедевр. Слушала песню эту в 4-5 года. Сейчас мне почти 23... Это просто невероятные ощущения
@gmbt777
трек 2002 года