Shearwater is an American indie rock band from Austin, Texas, led by multi-… Read Full Bio ↴Shearwater is an American indie rock band from Austin, Texas, led by multi-instrumentalist and lead singer Jonathan Meiburg

The band was formed by two members of Okkervil River, back-up vocalist and accordion/keyboard player Jonathan Meiburg and singer and guitarist Will Sheff, so they could write quieter songs. Beginning in 2005, Sheff lessened his role in the band, leaving Meiburg as the band's songwriter from Palo Santo on.

Band members today include Jonathan Meiburg, Thor Harris, Kim Burke, Lucas Oswald, with many contributions from others. The touring band in 2012 featured producer/drummer Danny Reisch and guitarist/vocalist Mitch Billeaud of The Lemurs and Christiaan Mader of Brass Bed.

To date, Shearwater has released nine full-length albums The Dissolving Room, Everybody Makes Mistakes, Winged Life, Palo Santo, Rook, The Golden Archipelago, Animal Joy, and Jet Plane & Oxbow as well as EPs Thieves and The Snow Leopard, and a split LP with Okkervil River entitled Sham Wedding/Hoax Funeral, as well as an album of covers of former touring partners, Fellow Travelers, released in November 2013.

As an ornithologist and writer, Meiburg has a unique perspective. The songs of Palo Santo were partly written at the Galápagos Islands in the footsteps of Charles Darwin. Rook was influenced by studies in the Falklands Islands and by the current mass extinction we are living through. The Golden Archipelago examined the destruction of island cultures in the 20th century and beyond. Animal Joy returned to more personal concerns; Meiburg stated repeatedly in interviews that the foundational idea is that life is most real when "the blood flows fastest and closest to the surface." Fellow Travelers started as a small home EP and expanded into a full album celebrating relationships with the other bands they've met along the way.

Long Ride
Shearwater Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Amy Jeanne, you're in my dream.
Your eyes they seem like stars
And all this seems like scaffolding
To lift up who you are.

The hospital, the long ride home,
Your hands as new as snow.
You lie asleep in the backseat

And I can feel you glow.

Overall Meaning

This song, Long Ride is a poignant ode to someone that the singer, Jonathan Meiburg, has deep affection for. The opening line "Amy Jeanne, you're in my dream" establishes that this person is close to the singer's heart, so much so that they appear in his dreams like a recurring thought. The comparison to stars in the following line underscores the sense of admiration and wonder that the singer has for Amy Jeanne.

The next two lines highlight the theme of the song - that everything around them seems like scaffolding, meant to elevate who Amy Jeanne is. It is a metaphor for how the singer sees Amy Jeanne as someone who stands out, someone special who deserves to be raised up above the ordinary. The imagery of scaffolding indicates that the process of lifting someone up is ongoing, that there is always construction and development going on.

The second stanza recounts a hospital visit and the long ride home. New hands, fresh like snow highlight the sense of newness, a clean slate, and a new start. The sense of care and tenderness in the line "And I can feel you glow" reinforces the idea that there is a sense of intimacy between the singer and Amy Jeanne, that he is well aware of her radiance, and cares about her deeply.

Line by Line Meaning

Amy Jeanne, you're in my dream.
In the singer's dream, Amy Jeanne is present or perhaps the object of the dream.

Your eyes they seem like stars
The singer is drawn to and captivated by the beauty of Amy Jeanne's eyes, which remind them of stars.

And all this seems like scaffolding
Everything that has led up to this moment feels like a temporary structure or support system.

To lift up who you are.
It is all meant to make Amy Jeanne shine or be lifted up in some way.

The hospital, the long ride home,
Refers to a specific memory or experience of a journey from the hospital to home.

Your hands as new as snow.
Amy Jeanne's hands are described as pure and untouched, like freshly fallen snow.

You lie asleep in the backseat
Amy Jeanne is asleep while travelling in the back seat of a vehicle.

And I can feel you glow.
The artist has a sense of Amy Jeanne's radiance or inner beauty even while she sleeps.

Contributed by Daniel P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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