Kicking off side two of "Speaking in Tongues", “Swamp” follows a slightly d… Read Full Bio ↴Kicking off side two of "Speaking in Tongues", “Swamp” follows a slightly different structure than the other songs on the album. Songs such as “Making Flippy Floppy”, “Girlfriend is Better”, and “Pull Up the Roots”, for example, are lyrically loose and impressionistic. Their words seem to exist only as components of the songs themselves instead of as a story or moral on top of the song; everything is given the same treatment and the song itself becomes the message. On the other hand, “Swamp” is oddly narrative, and while lyrical non-sequiturs feature in the song, they are written in as part of the story.

An outtake from "Speaking in Tongues", “Popsicle”, is tacked onto the 1992 Talking Heads compilation Sand in the Vaseline. This song resembles “Swamp” because of its recognizable narrative feel. According to the liner notes of the CD, “Popsicle” is one of Jerry Harrison’s favorites that the band recorded. If Jerry was so fond of this outtake, then it should make sense that the song wouldn’t just be forgotten, but in the DIY spirit of Talking Heads be reused somehow.

The verses of “Popsicle” are structured in an almost identical way to those on “Walk It Down”, a song that appears on their next album, "Little Creatures". This is one of the only concrete examples of how one Talking Heads song became reworked into another one.

Swamp
Talking Heads Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Now lemme tell you a story
The devil he has a plan
A bag a' bones in his pocket
Got anything you want
No dust and no rocks
The whole thing is over
All these beauties in solid motion
All those beauties, gonna swallow you up

Hi hi hi hi hi,
One time too many
Too far to go
I-We come to take you home

And when they split those atoms
It's hotter than the sun
Blood is a special substance
They gonna pray for that man

So wake up young lovers
The whole thing is over
Watch but touch monkeys
All that blood, gonna swallow you whole

Hi hi hi hi hi
What's that? Who's driving?
Where we goin'? Who knows?
I-We come to take you home

How many people do you think I am
Pretend I am somebody else
You can pretend I'm and old millionaire
A millionaire washing his hands
Rattle the bones, dreams that stick out
A medical chart on the wall
Soft violence and hands touch your throat
Ev'ryone wants to explode

And when your hands get dirty
Nobody knows you at all
Don't have a window to slip out of
Lights on, nobody home

Click click- see ya later
Beta beta- no time to rest
Pika pika- risky business
All that blood, will never cover that mess.

Hi hi hi hi hi
So soft hard feelings
What's that, who's driving
No tricks lets go
I-We come to take you home
I-We come to take you home

Hi hi hi hi hi
Etc.

Overall Meaning

The Talking Heads’s song Swamp features cryptic, surrealistic lyrics that paint a vivid picture of chaos and destruction. The song describes a devilish character with a plan and a bag of bones. The character is able to provide anything one could want, however, everything is false, without dirt or rocks, and it’s all over in the end. The song then shifts to describe the splitting of atoms, which produces a heat hotter than the sun. The lyrics discuss blood as a special substance, and that people will pray for the man with it. The final verse speaks to the disconnection from reality and the end result of the chaos. The song finishes with mentioning someone who is driving and the band coming to take the listener home.

The lyrics of Swamp are purposefully enigmatic and non-linear, forcing the listener to interpret them in a way that is both personal and abstract. The song could be viewed as a cautionary tale about giving in to temptations that are too good to be true or a warning about the dangers of technology and nuclear power. The song is also notable for the unusual juxtaposition of lyrics that are abstract and surreal, yet music that is straight-forward rock.

Line by Line Meaning

Now lemme tell you a story
Let me share something with you

The devil he has a plan
There's an ominous scheme at hand

A bag a' bones in his pocket
The devil has many tricks up his sleeve

Got anything you want
He'll tempt you with anything you desire

No dust and no rocks
All is well and quiet

The whole thing is over
The end has arrived

All these beauties in solid motion
The world's synchronous movements are mesmerizing

All those beauties, gonna swallow you up
The world's allure could consume you

Hi hi hi hi hi, One time too many Too far to go I-We come to take you home
Trying to escape a hopeless situation with someone else's help

And when they split those atoms It's hotter than the sun
Nuclear reactions are exceptionally powerful

Blood is a special substance They gonna pray for that man
Blood has unique meaning and value

So wake up young lovers The whole thing is over
Don't be naive; it's all over

Watch but touch monkeys All that blood, gonna swallow you whole
Observing others cuts both ways

What's that? Who's driving? Where we goin'? Who knows? I-We come to take you home
Lost, confused, and in desperate need of guidance

How many people do you think I am Pretend I am somebody else You can pretend I'm and old millionaire A millionaire washing his hands Rattle the bones, dreams that stick out A medical chart on the wall Soft violence and hands touch your throat Ev'ryone wants to explode
The imagination can wildly wander through many scenarios

And when your hands get dirty Nobody knows you at all Don't have a window to slip out of Lights on, nobody home
When you're in trouble, no one is around to help

Click click- see ya later Beta beta- no time to rest Pika pika- risky business All that blood, will never cover that mess.
The situation is full of danger

So soft hard feelings What's that, who's driving No tricks lets go I-We come to take you home I-We come to take you home Hi hi hi hi hi
Allowing oneself to be taken under someone's care to escape stress

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: CHRIS FRANTZ, CHRISTOPHER FRANTZ, DAVID BYRNE, JERRY HARRISON, TINA WEYMOUTH

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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