The Mutton Birds was formed in 1991 in New Zealand, by Don McGlashan, forme… Read Full Bio ↴The Mutton Birds was formed in 1991 in New Zealand, by Don McGlashan, formerly of Blam Blam Blam (guitar, vocals and euphonium), Ross Burge (drums), David Long (guitar) and Alan Gregg (bass guitar). They scored several hits in New Zealand, including "Nature", "Dominion Road", "Your Window", "Anchor Me" and Blue Öyster Cult's "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" which was featured in the movie "The Frighteners" directed by Peter Jackson.

Their music is clearly influenced by bands like R.E.M., although their sound is distinctively brighter and janglier, featuring contrast-filled intrumentation and catchy and crisp hooks and unusual chord progressions, giving vivid life to Don McGlashan's lyrics, dominated by poetic imagery and everyday themes.

Their debut The Mutton Birds (1992) was followed by Salty in 1993. In 1995 a compilation of their two first albums, titled Nature, was released outside of New Zealand. Also around this time the first two albums were re-released within NZ as a box set entitled Box of Birds. After moving to England the band released Envy of Angels in 1996, and it is perhaps their strongest album in terms of songwriting and arrangements. After a limited-edition collection of singles and B-sides (Too Hard Basket) and a live album (Angle of Entry), they released Rain, Steam and Speed in 1999.

Flock - The Best of The Mutton Birds was later released in New Zealand and Australia.

Like This Train
The Mutton Birds Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

(Don McGlashan)
I never thought that it would come to this
To watch myself leaving you behind
But you went to great lengths to clear my way
And like this train, you'll take a long, long time
To reach the end of the line
Like I did
Like I did

The farms and the rivers slide away out there
These towns all look like our home town
No one could blame you for getting out of there
But like this train, you'll take a long, long time
To reach the end of the line
Like I did
Like I did
You say they'll change in time
We won't feel so strange, but I
I don't believe you
I don't believe you
The power lines are dancing overhead
The wind is shaking up the trees
I wish I'd known how I could have made you see
But like this train, you'll take a long, long time
To reach the end of the line
Like I did
Like I did
Like this train, you'll take a long, long time
To reach the end of the line
Like I did
Like I did
Like this train

Like this train
Like this train

Overall Meaning

The Mutton Birds’ song “Like This Train” is a melancholic song about the end of a relationship that the singer had cherished. The song contemplates the moment when the singer finally leaves their partner behind, despite their attempts to clear the way for him. He recognizes that she will also likely take a long time to come to terms with the end of the relationship, much like the train they both stand beside. The farms and rivers slide by, just as the towns begin to look more and more like their own hometown - which emphasizes that all of these places begin to blur together without one's true love by their side. The power lines dance above and the wind shakes up the trees, the singer is disappointed that he didn’t know how to make the relationship work, but it has left the station already.

The entire song can be deciphered as a metaphor for the ups and downs of a relationship that once seemed bound for the future but eventually falls apart, and how both parties deal with the aftermath of turning it dirty. It also comments on the time it takes to move on and recover from the pain of heartbreak, as it takes time for a train to reach the end of the line, much like people need time to reach a sense of closure for a lost romance. The song ends with “Like this train,” the repeated refrain, which adds to the feeling that this leaving the relationship is a journey that the singer and his partner must make together, although separately.

Line by Line Meaning

I never thought that it would come to this
I did not expect that this moment will arrive

To watch myself leaving you behind
To witness my separation from you

But you went to great lengths to clear my way
You made a great effort to remove obstacles for me

And like this train, you'll take a long, long time
Similar to this train, it will take you a considerable amount of time

To reach the end of the line
To finally get where you intend to go

The farms and the rivers slide away out there
As we pass by, the farms and rivers outside keep sliding away

These towns all look like our home town
All these towns look alike, just like our hometown

No one could blame you for getting out of there
It's understandable if you wanted to leave there

You say they'll change in time
You say things will improve over time

We won't feel so strange, but I
We won't feel uncomfortable, but I

I don't believe you
I don't think you're right