Originally coming to fame in the mid-1960s singing orchestral pop ballads as the frontman of The Walker Brothers, Walker went on to a solo career balancing a light entertainment/MOR ballad approach with increasing artistic innovations in arrangement and writing. Despite a series of acclaimed albums, a disastrous drop in sales forced him back into straight Middle of the road recordings with little of his own artistic input. This in turn eventually led to a Walker Brothers reunion in the mid-1970s (although the latter eventually moved, by mutual consent, into more avant-garde areas).
From the mid-1980s, Walker revived his solo career while drastically reinventing his artistic and compositional methods, via a series of acclaimed and vividly avant-garde albums. These combined his iconic voice with an unsettling avant-garde approach which owed more to modernist and post-modernist classical composition than to his pop singer past. This change in approach has been compared to "Andy Williams reinventing himself as Stockhausen".
Walker has been a continuing influence on other artists, in particular The Last Shadow Puppets, Marc Almond, Goldfrapp, Douglas Pearce of the band Death in June, Billy MacKenzie of The Associates, David Sylvian, Julian Cope, Antony Hegarty, Thom Yorke, Steven Wilson, David Bowie, Leonard Cohen, Trey Spruance, Perry Blake, Radiohead, Noah Lennox, Mikael Åkerfeldt, and the Divine Comedy/Neil Hannon.
Walker continued to release solo material until his death, and was signed to 4AD Records. As a record producer or guest performer he worked with a number of artists including Pulp, Ute Lemper, Bat For Lashes and Sunn O))).
I Will Wait For You
Scott Walker Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I will wait for you
For a thousand summers
I will wait for you
'Til you're back beside me
'Til I'm holding you
'Til I hear you sigh
Here in my arms
Anywhere you wonder
Anywhere you go
Everyday remember
How I love you so
In your heart believe
What in my heart I know
That for evermore
I'll wait for you
The clock will tick away the hours, one by one
And then the time will come when all the waiting's done
The time when you'll return and find me here and run
Straight to my waiting arms
If it takes forever
I will wait for you
For a thousand summers
I will wait for you
'Til you're her beside me
'Til I'm holding you
And for evermore
Sharing your love
And for evermore
Sharing
Your love...
At its core, Scott Walker's "I Will Wait For You" is a song about enduring love and devotion. The singer in the song promises to wait for their beloved, even if it takes forever, for a thousand summers, until their lover is back by their side, held in their arms, and sighing. The lyrics convey a willingness to wait despite the passage of time, and the singer assures their lover that they will always be waiting for them.
The song also highlights the idea of loving someone from a distance. "Anywhere you go, every day remember how I love you so" suggests that the singer and their lover are separated, perhaps by distance or circumstance, but that their love endures despite this. The line "In your heart believe what in my heart I know" emphasizes the strength of the singer's love and their belief that it will eventually bring them back together.
The second half of the song is more upbeat, propelled by the promise that someday the waiting will be over and the singer's lover will return to them. The clock ticking away the hours represents the passing of time, but it also underscores the idea of patience and endurance. The triumphant final lines ("sharing your love...") suggest that the wait has been worth it, and that the lovers can finally be reunited.
Line by Line Meaning
If it takes forever
No amount of time will be too long for me to wait for you
I will wait for you
I am committed and devoted to waiting for you
For a thousand summers
I am willing to wait for you for a very long time
'Til you're back beside me
I will keep waiting until you return to my side
'Til I'm holding you
I long to hold and embrace you
'Til I hear you sigh
I want to be so close to you that I can hear every sound you make
Here in my arms
I want you to feel safe, loved and protected in my arms
Anywhere you wonder
You can go anywhere you want to, I will still wait for you
Anywhere you go
No matter where you go, my heart will follow you
Everyday remember
I want you to remember every day how much I love you
How I love you so
My love for you is deep and infinite
In your heart believe
I want you to believe in my love for you
What in my heart I know
My love for you is true and unwavering
That for evermore
My love for you will endure for all eternity
I'll wait for you
I am committed to waiting for you
The clock will tick away the hours, one by one
Time will pass slowly, but I will still wait for you
And then the time will come when all the waiting's done
Someday, you will return to me and my waiting will come to an end
The time when you'll return and find me here and run
When you finally return to me, you will find me waiting and ready to welcome you back
Straight to my waiting arms
I will be waiting to hold you tightly as soon as you return
And for evermore
My love for you will last for all eternity
Sharing your love
I want to share your love and be with you always
Lyrics © WARNER CHAPPELL MUSIC FRANCE
Written by: JACQUES LOUIS RAYMOND MARC DEMY, MICHEL LEGRAND, NORMAN GIMBEL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind