Composition
In the documentary In Dreams: The Roy Orbison Story, Bono tells how he woke up for a concert's sound check, following a late night listening to the soundtrack to David Lynch's Blue Velvet, and had the tune in his head, figuring it was another Orbison song ("In Dreams" was the only Orbison song on that album). During the sound check he performed it for the other members of U2, who agreed that the track sounded like an Orbison song.[2] A short while later, Orbison met the band backstage at one of their concerts and subsequently asked Bono if he would like to write a song with/for him. Orbison invited Bono to contribute guitar and produce on the track. The album Mystery Girl was named after the song.
Music video
The video for the song was directed by David Fincher and it aired first in April 1989.
She's a Mystery to Me
Roy Orbison Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Take me to some twilight land
Where all but love is grey
Where I can't find my way
Without her as my guide
Night falls I'm cast beneath her spell
Daylight comes our heaven turns to hell
She's a mystery to me
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
In the night of love words tangled in her hair
Words soon to disappear
A love so sharp it cut
Like a switchblade to my heart
Words tearing me apart
She tears again my bleeding heart
I want to run she's pulling me apart
Fallen angel cries and I just melt away
She's a mystery to me
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
Haunted by her side is the darkness in her eyes
That so enslaves me
But if my love is blind
Then I don't want to see
She's a mystery to me
Night falls I'm cast beneath her spell
Daylight comes our heaven turns to hell
Am I left to burn and burn eternally
She's a mystery to me
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
She's a mystery girl
The song "She's a Mystery to Me" by Roy Orbison portrays a haunting love that is impossible to understand. The singer is deeply in love with the woman but is also terrified of her power over him. The song describes a relationship that is mysterious and unknown, a place that is dark and without love, except for the love that he shares with her. The chorus states that she is a mystery girl, and the singer cannot comprehend nor control what is happening between them.
The song starts by describing how the singer is lost without the woman, and how she is always there to guide him through the "twilight land." However, as the daylight comes, their heaven turns into hell, and he questions how long he must suffer eternally for his love for her. The relationship between the two is encapsulated in the idea that their love is so intense that it is like a sharp switchblade, which leaves him ripped apart.
The second verse dives deeper into the emotional intensity of their relationship. The singer says that the woman has torn his heart again, leaving him feeling lost and disconnected. Although he wants to run away, he can't help but stay, utterly entranced by her. The love he has for her is consuming him and turning him into the person he never expected to be.
Overall, the song is about the conflicting emotions and power struggles within a relationship. The singer loves this woman but is terrified of her power over him. He is unable to understand her, and she is a mystery to him, yet he cannot help but be captivated by her at the same time.
Line by Line Meaning
Darkness falls and she will take me by the hand
Night comes and she leads me to a mysterious place
Take me to some twilight land
Takes me to a place that is not quite light, yet not quite dark
Where all but love is grey
A place where everything is dull and lifeless, except for the love we share
Where I can't find my way
I am lost and need her to guide me
Without her as my guide
I cannot navigate my way through this mysterious place without her
Night falls I'm cast beneath her spell
When the night comes, I am entranced by her
Daylight comes our heaven turns to hell
Once daylight comes, our love becomes complicated and difficult
Am I left to burn and burn eternally
I feel like I am trapped in love and cannot escape, even if it burns me
She tears again my bleeding heart
She hurts me again, causing my heart to ache
I want to run she's pulling me apart
I feel like I want to run away, but at the same time, I am being pulled towards her
Fallen angel cries and I just melt away
She has such an effect on me that I feel like I am melting in her presence
In the night of love words tangled in her hair
When we are together in the dark, our words become tangled and confusing
Words soon to disappear
Our words are fleeting and do not last long
A love so sharp it cut
Our love is intense and painful
Like a switchblade to my heart
Our love hurts me like a sharp object piercing through my heart
Words tearing me apart
Our words are tearing me apart emotionally
Haunted by her side is the darkness in her eyes
I feel like there is a dark presence in her eyes that haunts me
That so enslaves me
This darkness has such a strong effect on me that I feel enslaved by it
But if my love is blind
If my love is irrational and unwise
Then I don't want to see
I do not want to see the truth if it means losing her
She's a mystery to me
She is an enigma that I cannot understand
She's a mystery girl
She continues to be a mystery even after spending time together
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Paul Hewson, David Evans
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@jamessullivan6583
Even Elvis Presley once said Roy Orbison has the best voice.
@kevinmarum1006
Presley makes sense to me...🙂 she's a Mystery to me...she's a mystery girl...its in her eyes.
@clearcreek69
Roy Orbison could play this song at the end of a concert & the audience will call for an encore many times
@thingfish000
Elvis was a Mississippi boy but not a fool. He knew his peers and recognized what they did well.
@lonkylaine
Elvis said God sang through Orbison's voice.
@BOBGARDNER-re5rh
As did Springsteen.
@dirkhorstmann6624
My dad bought me this record when i was just a kid, and i still own it. Thanks dad, for showing me high-class music. R.I.P. daddy, i'll love you forever ❤
@aidanfitzpatrick4052
Everything about Roy Orbison is just pure class, a voice like velvet. Never to see his style and class again.
@mred9361
He showed that you don't have to be scandalous or contraversal to be a star.
@denisrodrigue829
He's sing with his soul