Truth Only Smiles
Sweet Billy Pilgrim Lyrics


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Out here amongst the spit and hiss
Of dreams all black and pistol whipped
They crawl towards the morning with a sigh

With easy grace and needy hands
They murdered love’s sweet circumstance
And calmly fashioned flawless alibis
Tell me we’re leaving all this far behind us
Tell me the lights still flicker when we kiss
No doubts or denials
No truth, only smiles

On his eyes the pennies hide
The bruises of a sleepless night
As light comes crashing in from high above
He tries to speak of pain and loss
But on his lips her finger falls
When putting things in order ain’t enough

Tell me we’re leaving all this far behind us
Tell me the lights still flicker when we kiss
No doubts or denials
No truth, only smiles

To greet me when I get home
Darkness pricks me
Something’s wrong
Please say something




Anything
Take me away

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "Truth Only Smiles" by Sweet Billy Pilgrim are deeply introspective. The song is about a person who is struggling to come to terms with the painful reality of their life, which is filled with disappointment and heartbreak. The opening lines, "Out here amongst the spit and hiss / Of dreams all black and pistol whipped / They crawl towards the morning with a sigh," convey a sense of struggle and futility that pervades the entire song. The idea of dreams being "pistol whipped" suggests that the singer feels that their aspirations have been violently destroyed, leaving them with a sense of hopelessness.


The second stanza of the song continues with this theme, as the singer sings, "With easy grace and needy hands / They murdered love’s sweet circumstance / And calmly fashioned flawless alibis." Here, the singer is speaking about people who have destroyed their love, and yet they are still able to justify their actions with perfect alibis. This sense of callousness and cruelty in the face of heartbreak is further reinforced by the following lines, "Tell me we’re leaving all this far behind us / Tell me the lights still flicker when we kiss / No doubts or denials / No truth, only smiles." Here, the singer is pleading with his lover to pretend that everything is okay, to ignore the truth and simply smile, even though they both know that the love they once shared is dead.


The final stanza of the song is perhaps the most poignant, as the singer sings, "To greet me when I get home / Darkness pricks me / Something’s wrong / Please say something / Anything / Take me away." Here, the singer is expressing his deep sadness and loneliness, and he is begging his lover to say or do something to ease his pain. The desperation in these lines is palpable, and it highlights the fact that sometimes the truth can be too painful to confront.


Overall, "Truth Only Smiles" is a haunting and introspective song that speaks to the fragility of human relationships and the pain of heartbreak. The lyrics are beautifully written, and the sense of struggle and futility that runs through the song is both powerful and moving.


Line by Line Meaning

Out here amongst the spit and hiss
Amidst the chaos and noise of this world


Of dreams all black and pistol whipped
Where hopes are shattered and aspirations are quashed with violence


They crawl towards the morning with a sigh
People struggle to get through each day, with a feeling of disappointment and weariness


With easy grace and needy hands
People try to appear graceful but in reality, they are desperate and needy


They murdered love’s sweet circumstance
Love is destroyed in the face of adversity


And calmly fashioned flawless alibis
People hide the truth behind a façade of calmness, creating perfect lies to avoid taking responsibility


Tell me we’re leaving all this far behind us
Desire to escape from the past


Tell me the lights still flicker when we kiss
Hope for some kind of spark in otherwise bleak surroundings


No doubts or denials
No hesitation or rejection


No truth, only smiles
No honesty, only pretense


On his eyes the pennies hide
Tiredness is evident in the man's eyes


The bruises of a sleepless night
He has not slept properly, with physical traces of sleepless nights


As light comes crashing in from high above
With the sudden appearance of light, life feels overwhelming


He tries to speak of pain and loss
Attempts to discuss grief and suffering


But on his lips her finger falls
The woman silences him, doesn't want to hear the truth


When putting things in order ain’t enough
When simply making sense of things is not sufficient


To greet me when I get home
Hope for comfort upon returning home


Darkness pricks me
Feeling of uneasiness in the dark


Something’s wrong
Intuition tells the singer that something is amiss


Please say something
Begs for communication, for openness


Anything
Any kind of response or answer


Take me away
Desire to escape from the present situation




Contributed by Jeremiah F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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Comments from YouTube:

TheDaddyO44

3 dislikes already! This track is gorgeous just like the whole album! Man 'There ain't no Jesus in here'

Samuel Noble

Out here amongst the spit and hiss of dreams all black and pistol whipped…

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