Come Heavy Sleep
Sting Lyrics


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Come heavy sleepe the image of true death
And close up these my weary weeping eyes
Whose spring of tears doth stop my vitall breath
And tears my hart with sorrows sigh swoln cries

Come and posses my tired thoughts worn soul
That living dies, that living dies, that living dies
Till thou on me be stoule

Come and posses my tired thoughts worn soul
That living dies, that living dies, that living dies
Till thou on me be stoule

Come shape of rest and shadow of my end
Allied to death child to his blackfac'd, his blackfac'd night
Come thou and charme these rebels in my breast
Whose waking fancies doe my mind affright

O come sweet sleepe come or I die for ever




Come ere my last, comes come ere my last sleepe comes
Or come, or come never

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "Come Heavy Sleep" by Sting and Edin Karamazov speak of a person who is overcome with grief and sorrow, and is seeking solace in the arms of sleep, which is represented as a kind of death that will bring an end to their pain. The opening line, "Come heavy sleep the image of true death" sets the somber tone for the song, and establishes the idea that sleep is a kind of escape from the trials and tribulations of life. The singer is asking for relief from their tears and sorrows, which are causing them physical pain and making it difficult to go on living.


The next two stanzas continue this theme, with the singer pleading for sleep to "possess [their] tired thoughts worn soul," and to keep them in its embrace until they can find some measure of peace. The repeated phrase "that living dies" underscores the idea that sleep is a kind of death, and emphasizes the desire for release that the singer is expressing.


The final stanza brings in additional imagery, referring to sleep as the "shape of rest" and the "shadow of my end." The singer addresses sleep directly, asking it to "charm these rebels in my breast," referring to their troubled thoughts and emotions. The final line, "Or come, or come never," suggests that the singer is willing to give up on life altogether if sleep does not come to their aid.


Line by Line Meaning

Come heavy sleepe the image of true death
Let sleep, which feels like true death, come heavily upon me


And close up these my weary weeping eyes
Close my tired and tear-filled eyes


Whose spring of tears doth stop my vitall breath
My tears are suffocating me and stopping me from breathing


And tears my hart with sorrows sigh swoln cries
My heart is broken by my sorrowful and painful cries


Come and posses my tired thoughts worn soul
Take hold of my exhausted mind and soul


That living dies, that living dies, that living dies
I am dying inside and losing my will to live


Till thou on me be stoule
Until you steal me away with sleep


Come shape of rest and shadow of my end
Come, sleep, the form of rest and the shadow of death that awaits me


Allied to death child to his blackfac'd, his blackfac'd night
Sleep is related to death, like a child to its black-faced mother, the night


Come thou and charme these rebels in my breast
Come and calm the tumultuous emotions in my heart


Whose waking fancies doe my mind affright
My fearful thoughts and worries in waking life trouble me


O come sweet sleepe come or I die for ever
Please come, sweet sleep, or I fear I will die


Come ere my last, comes come ere my last sleepe comes
Come before it is too late, before my last sleep comes


Or come, or come never
Please come, or else I fear I will never find peace




Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, PAUL RODRIGUEZ MUSIC LTD.
Written by: GEORGE ARTHUR KENTROS, JOHN DOWLAND, MATS OVE ANDERS OLOFSSON, MIKAEL CARL MARIN, PETER OLOFSSON, TONY BAUER

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