Guitarist best known for his work with Roxy Music, although he also recorde… Read Full Bio ↴Guitarist best known for his work with Roxy Music, although he also recorded a number of well-regarded albums in the 70s under his own name, with 801 and Quiet Sun. Manzanera continues both to produce and record, with later works incorporating more and more Latin influences (Manzanera's mother is Colombian).

Wish You Well
Phil Manzanera Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Goodbye old friend
Off with Saint Serene
Out on flight nineteen
I wish you well

If what you say is true
And there's another state
We'll meet again some day

As we wander through

You found a way
To make yourself be heard
Seems like the time had come
To leave the people's world

Goodbye old friend
Off with Saint Serene
Out on flight nineteen
I wish you well

And somewhere
Far on a red horizon
Your flame
Lightens a darkened mind
And somehow
It doesn't seem so surprising
'Cos the truth
Was right there before your eyes

I wish you well I wish you well
I wish you well I wish you well

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Phil Manzanera's song, "Wish You Well," touches on the bittersweet theme of bidding farewell. The song is an ode to a friend (or possibly a lover) whom the singer bids goodbye to as they embark on a journey ("off with Saint Serene") on flight nineteen, leaving behind their former life ("to leave the people's world") and searching for a higher state of being ("if what you say is true and there's another state"). The singer wishes their friend well in their new journey, expressing the hope that they will meet again someday as they wander through life.

The lyrics of this song can be interpreted in several ways. One interpretation can be that the "Saint Serene" mentioned refers to the heavenly state that the singer's friend has attained, and that it is through death that they were able to achieve it. "Flight nineteen" may symbolize the journey towards higher consciousness, or the journey towards the afterlife. Another interpretation can be that the friend is leaving behind their past life and embarking on a spiritual journey of self-discovery, seeking new experiences and new realities.

Overall, this song captures the mixed emotions that come with saying goodbye to someone you care about deeply. It consoles with the idea that the paths of those we love may cross once again as we all travel through the journey of life.

Line by Line Meaning

Goodbye old friend
Saying farewell to an old friend

Off with Saint Serene
Leaving this world with a peaceful state of mind

Out on flight nineteen
Departing on a journey to a new place

I wish you well
Wishing happiness and success to the departed friend

If what you say is true
Acknowledging the possibility of an afterlife

And there's another state
Believing in the existence of an afterlife

We'll meet again some day
Hope of meeting again in the afterlife

As we wander through
Journeying through life with the possibility of an afterlife

You found a way
Discovering a way to express oneself

To make yourself be heard
Finding a way to communicate effectively

Seems like the time had come
Feeling like it was time to depart from this world