B-side to the Syncronicity II single. The song was a composition cowritten … Read Full Bio ↴B-side to the Syncronicity II single. The song was a composition cowritten by Andy Summers and Sting. As Sting remembers, "It's a set of chords Andy came up with and I wrote some lyrics to them by the swimming pool in Monserrat. It's very dark but that was The Ghost in the Machine period. Very intense."

Once Upon A Daydream
The Police Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Once upon a daydream
I fell in love with you
Once upon a moonbeam
I gave that love to you
Once upon a lifetime
I know it must be true
When the months had turned us
I'd have to marry you

Once upon a daydream
Doesn't happen anymore
Once upon a moonbeam
This is no place for tenderness

Once her daddy found out
He threw her to the floor
He killed her unborn baby
And kicked me from the door
Once upon a nightmare
I bought myself a gun
I blew her daddy's brains out
Now hell has just begun

Once upon a daydream
Doesn't happen anymore
Once upon a moonbeam
This is no place for sentiment

(Oh)
Once upon a lifetime
A lifetime filled with tears
The boy would pay for his crime
With all his natural years
Once upon a daydream
He'd make you his someday
Once upon a moonbeam
He'd dream his life away

Once upon a daydream
Doesn't happen anymore
Once upon a moonbeam
This is no place for miracles

Once upon a daydream
Once upon a daydream
Once upon a daydream

Once upon a day
Dream

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to The Police's song "Once Upon A Daydream" narrate a tragic story of forbidden love, parental disapproval, and bloodshed. The singer of the song sings about falling in love with someone and giving that love to them under the light of the moonbeam. The singer seems to feel that this love is true and everlasting, but society and time turn against them. When the singer wants to marry the person they fell in love with, their father finds out and throws the lover to the floor. Tragically, the lover loses their unborn baby, and the singer is forced to leave. In his despair, he takes up the gun, vows revenge, and kills the lover's father.

The song suggests that dreams of true love and romance are no longer possible. The harsh realities of life have shattered any concept of sentiment or miracles. It's a sad tale that speaks of broken dreams and promises, the misery of tragedy, and the endurance of loss.

Line by Line Meaning

Once upon a daydream
In a moment of imagination

I fell in love with you
I became infatuated with you

Once upon a moonbeam
In a moment of magical thinking

I gave that love to you
I expressed my affection to you

Once upon a lifetime
At some point long ago

I know it must be true
I'm certain of my feelings

When the months had turned us
As time went by and we grew closer

I'd have to marry you
I would commit to you for life

Doesn't happen anymore
That kind of fanciful thinking no longer exists

This is no place for tenderness
The world is harsh and unforgiving

Once her daddy found out
When her father discovered our relationship

He threw her to the floor
He violently abused her

He killed her unborn baby
He caused her to miscarry

And kicked me from the door
He forcefully removed me from the house

Once upon a nightmare
In a horrific situation

I bought myself a gun
I acquired a firearm

I blew her daddy's brains out
I killed her father in an act of vengeance

Now hell has just begun
The consequences of my actions will haunt me forever

This is no place for sentiment
There is no room for sensitivity in this world

A lifetime filled with tears
Years of sorrow and regret

The boy would pay for his crime
The man would face punishment for his actions

With all his natural years
For the rest of his life

He'd make you his someday
He would pursue you until you were his

He'd dream his life away
He would waste his life on idle fantasies

This is no place for miracles
The world is not kind enough to allow for miracles

Once upon a day
In a time long ago

Dream
Imagining a better reality

Lyrics © A SIDE MUSIC LLC D/B/A MODERN WORKS MUSIC PUBLISHING, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ANDY SUMMERS, GORDON SUMNER

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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