She Took a Long Cold Look
Syd Barrett Lyrics


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A D
She took a long cold look at me
D A
and smiled and gazed all over my arm
A D
she loves to see me get down to ground
D A
she hasn't time just to be with me
A D
her face between all she means to be
D A
to be extreme, just to be extreme
A D
a broken pier on the wavy sea
D A
she wonders why for all she wants to see...


G
But I got up and I stomped around
E E7
and hid the piece where the trees touch the ground...

(Then, to imitate Syd trying to play while turning his lyric
sheet, just
strike the A and the low E about 467823823 times...)

A D
The end of truth that lay out the time
D A
spent lazing here on a painting green
A D
a mile or more in a foreign clime
D A
to see farther inside of me.
A D
And looking high up into the sky




D A
I breathe as the water streams over me...

Overall Meaning

In "She Took a Long Cold Look," Syd Barrett tells a story of a woman who is fascinated by him but cannot take the time to be with him. She gazes at him, smiles at him, and watches him get down to earth, but this is all interrupted by the woman's desire to be extreme. She is drawn to the idea of being wild and dangerous, but it prevents her from being close with him. Syd then describes a moment of clarity in which he found the end of truth and spent time lazing about on a painting green. He traveled miles and miles to discover himself better, and to look high in the sky to breathe deeply as the water streams over him.


It is possible that "She Took a Long Cold Look" is a reflection of Syd's relationship with his first girlfriend, Libby Gausden, whom Barrett would continue to mention in various songs. The title of this song lends itself to the idea that this woman is the one who is taking a long, cold look at Syd, but the lyrics could also imply that Syd is also taking a long, cold look at himself.


Interestingly, Syd was known for writing songs with cryptic and often obscure lyrics, and "She Took a Long Cold Look" is no exception. The song features nonsensical lines such as "a broken pier on the wavy sea" and "the end of truth that lay out the time." This type of language was intended to create a surreal and dreamlike atmosphere around the song.


Line by Line Meaning

She took a long cold look at me
She gazed at me for an extended period, with an air of detachment


and smiled and gazed all over my arm
She looked at my arm with admiration and approval, while smiling


she loves to see me get down to ground
She enjoys watching me be humble and subservient


she hasn't time just to be with me
She is too busy to spend time exclusively with me


her face between all she means to be
Her true identity is obscured between all of her different personalities


to be extreme, just to be extreme
She values radicalism and extremism for its own sake


a broken pier on the wavy sea
She sees herself as a fragmentary, wrecked structure in an unstable environment


she wonders why for all she wants to see...
She is puzzled as to why she desires certain things, despite their lack of meaning


But I got up and I stomped around
Despite her detachment, I was compelled to take action and assert myself


and hid the piece where the trees touch the ground...
I concealed something significant in a hidden, natural spot


The end of truth that lay out the time
A revelation that marks the end of a period of stagnation


spent lazing here on a painting green
Time spent idling on a peaceful backdrop


a mile or more in a foreign clime
In a distant, unfamiliar place, a long way from home


to see farther inside of me.
To gain a deeper understanding of my own self


And looking high up into the sky
Observing the vastness of the universe above


I breathe as the water streams over me...
As water flows over me, I feel reinvigorated and renewed




Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: SYD BARRETT

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Most interesting comment from YouTube:

raul macias

From MIKE WATKINSON'S ~ "Crazy Diamond SYD BARRETT & the Dawn of Pink Floyd" ~ [Malcolm] Jones: "When I first heard the finished product it came as a shock. This wasn't the Syd of two or three months ago. I felt angry. It's like dirty linen in public and very unnecessary and unkind. Keeping conversation in is all very well if it enhances the record but I fail to see how the sound of pages being turned can do anything for Syd. I fail to see the he point " MIKE WATKINSON ~ Gilmour also regrets this part of the album which, given another chance, he'd do differently. "It's very hard to say whether one's decisions are the right ones or the wrong ones but those are the decisions we made. We wanted to inject some honesty into it to try and explain what was going on. We didn't want to appear cruel but there is one bit I wish I hadn't done in retrospect. Don't forget we were digging around for stuff to put on the album. Questioned about the exclusion of 'Opel', Gilmour cannot remember the track and wrongly assumes it to be an alternative title for one of the released songs. Sadly, it appears that during the scramble of the final recording and mixing, this classic Barrett track was overlooked. Personally, I believe David Gilmour and Roger Waters blew it. They didn't need to record any more Barrett material! They had the album completed!!! Here's how the album should have been released ~ "THE MADCAP LAUGHS"
SIDE ONE ~
1. TERRAPIN
2. IT'S NO GOOD TRYING
3. LOVE YOU
4. NO MAN'S LAND
5. LANKY PART ONE
6. HERE I GO
SIDE TWO ~
1. OCTOPUS
2. GOLDEN HAIR
3. LONG GONE
4. OPEL
5. BOB DYLAN BLUES
6. LATE NIGHT
BOB DYLAN BLUES was another track recently discovered, from the 'Madcap' sessions, during production for the Best Of Syd Barrett collection released in 2010 entitled ~ "An Introduction To SYD BARRETT". It is very obvious David Gilmour didn't search hard enough! He missed 'OPEL' and 'BOB DYLAN BLUES' !!! Gilmour really botched "The Madcap Laughs" release!!!



All comments from YouTube:

Flannel Daniel

very simple chord progression but absolutely prefect timing. this song is magic.

Danny Workman aka Zombywoof

The simple things are sometimes the best! :)

Dani Siders

"And looking high up into the sky I breathe as the water streams over me..." What an ending I love those lyrics.

Big John is Back

This album is so good it made me question my existence

MeanMar Kat

I absolutely love this song

Raphael Saleh

Syd é demais

Iva Bolin

The Floyd's unforgotten hero! May he shine on.

Brian Nava

truly poetic, what a genius <3

Trez3 Beats

acho que ele cantava fora do tempo de propósito mesmo, acho artístico de certa forma...

Gretchen Ann

Beautiful song .

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