Wish You Were Here
Tom Yorke and Sparklehorse Lyrics
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Blue skies from pain
Can you tell a green field from a cold steel rail
A smile from a veil
Do you think you can tell
And did they get you to trade your heroes for ghosts
Hot ashes for trees
Cold comfort for change
And did you exchange a walk-on part in the war
For a lead role in a cage
How I wish, how I wish you were here
We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl
Year after year
Running over the same old ground
What have we found
The same old fears
Wish you were here
The lyrics in "Wish You Were Here" speak to the struggles and confusion of life. The opening lines, "So, so you think you can tell heaven from hell, Blue skies from pain, Can you tell a green field from a cold steel rail, A smile from a veil," suggest that it's difficult to decipher what's truly good and bad in life. One might be able to distinguish obvious contrasts like blue skies from pain, but other distinctions like green fields from cold steel rails or smiles from veils are more enigmatic. Later in the song, the lyrics take on a more personal tone, asking if the listener has given up their heroes for ghosts, a metaphor for abandoning their aspirations for empty, fleeting desires. Similarly, the lines "And did you exchange a walk-on part in the war, For a lead role in a cage" suggest that the listener has given up their freedom to be part of something greater, only to find themselves unhappy and confined.
What ties the song together is the repeated phrase "Wish You Were Here." It's not clear who the missing person is, but their absence is felt keenly. In the chorus, Tom Yorke and Sparklehorse sing "How I wish, how I wish you were here, We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl, Year after year, Running over the same old ground, What have we found, The same old fears, Wish you were here." The chorus conveys an overall tone of sadness and nostalgia.
Line by Line Meaning
So, so you think you can tell heaven from hell
Are you confident in your ability to distinguish good from bad?
Blue skies from pain
Can you differentiate happiness from sadness?
Can you tell a green field from a cold steel rail
Can you identify nature from man-made objects?
A smile from a veil
Can you recognize genuine happiness from a fake facade?
Do you think you can tell
Are you truly self-aware enough to answer these questions?
And did they get you to trade your heroes for ghosts
Were you convinced to give up your real idols and values for hollow promises?
Hot ashes for trees
Have you exchanged something meaningful for something worthless?
Hot air for a cool breeze
Have you mistaken something fake and insubstantial for something real and refreshing?
Cold comfort for change
Have you stuck with something familiar but unfulfilling instead of taking a risk and making a positive alteration?
And did you exchange a walk-on part in the war
Did you trade in a small, unnoticed role in a collective struggle for the miserable and satisfied isolation of a dominant role, free from strife?
For a lead role in a cage
Did you forfeit your freedom for a prominent but worthless position?
How I wish, how I wish you were here
I really miss you and wish you were with me right now
We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl
We're like fish in a small tank, swimming in circles with no real purpose or direction
Year after year
This has been going on for a long time, with no end in sight
Running over the same old ground
We keep repeating the same cycles and patterns, never moving forward or making progress
What have we found
We haven't achieved anything significant or discovered anything new
The same old fears
We're still held back by the same old anxieties and insecurities
Wish you were here
Life seems so much better and worthwhile when I'm around you
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: David Gilmour, Roger Waters
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Alucard Tepes
I've always loved this song by Pink Floyd (Due to friends that have parted ways since high school) but seeing it in Lords of Dogtown, the meaning is so much deeper than anyone will ever know.... (Nick, Dave, Tom, Joe.....I hope you know how much our friendship meant to me. I pray you all are well now.....God, do I Wish You All Were Here.......)
Javi Vercetti
❤️
Shari Montgomery
A total masterpiece ❤❤❤❤
ArseCrayonGaming
Fucking Hell. Chilled my spine. I didn't think anything could touch the original, this comes close
Hopernicus
No se sabe si canta o no Thom en este cover, unos dicen que grabó la voz desde el teléfono porque nunca se pudieron reunir en un estudio para grabarlo, pero era de tan mala calidad que solo quedó el ruido de la TV de fondo del cuarto de Thom, otros que ni siquiera grabaron con Sparklehorse. Lo que si se puede decir es que es un buen cover, el cual aparece en los créditos de la película Lords of the dogtown y en un recopilatorio de EMI del 97 llamado Come Again, donde es mencionado lo de la grabación de la voz de Thom desde el Teléfono.
Jaime González C.
Lo de Thom Yorke , es solo mito urbano. el que canta la canción es la voz del vocalista de Sparklehorse
Araceli Susana Lorenzetti
Buscando bajar este tema hace muchísimos años, di con este cover, que me pareció tan particular y diferente, y a partir de ese momento conocí a Radiohead y me enamoré locamente de su estilo! El pequeño fragmento de peli de fondo me parece que es argentina. Quizá la voz podría ser de Mirta Legrand; para mí es todo pura experimentación. Porque son fragmentos que se repiten y que proceden de distintas fuentes. No hay información sobre este cover?
David Jimenez
Muuuuchas gracias por la lista!
Baz Bolam
Apart from Tricky covering Public Enemy's Black Steel I think this is the best cover I've ever heard
Billza Music man
Love this. Was it ever put out for release ?