Rocket Man
William Shatner Lyrics


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She packed my bags last night pre-flight
Zero hour nine a.m.
And I'm gonna be high, as a kite by then
I miss the earth so much, I miss my wife
It's lonely out in space
On such a timeless flight

And I think it's gonna be a long long time
Till touch down brings me round again to find
I'm not the man they think I am at home
Oh no, no, no, I'm a rocket man
Rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone

And I think it's gonna be a long long time
Till touch down brings me round again to find
I'm not the man they think I am at home
Oh no, no, no, I'm a rocket man
Rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone

Mars ain't the kind of place to raise your kids
In fact it's cold as hell
And there's no one there to raise them if you didn't
And all this science, I don't understand
It's just my job, five days a week
A rocket man, a rocket man

And I think it's gonna be a long long time
Till touch down brings me round again to find
I'm not the man they think I am at home
Oh no, no, no, I'm a rocket man
Rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone

And I think it's gonna be a long long time
Till touch down brings me round again to find
I'm not the man they think I am at home
Oh no, no, no, I'm a rocket man
Rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone

Now I think it's gonna be a long long time
And I think it's gonna be a long long time




And I think it's gonna be a long long time
And I think it's gonna be a long long time

Overall Meaning

The song "Rocket Man" by William Shatner speaks about the experience of being an astronaut in space. The singer is leaving Earth, and his wife, probably on a space mission. He is anticipating that he'll be high on drugs during the trip and he discusses how he'll miss the earth and his wife, and that space is lonely. The first half of the song is about his experience in space, and the second half is about how he doesn't feel like he fits in or is understood by the people back home. The line "I'm not the man they think I am at home" seems to indicate that he doesn't feel understood or appreciated by those on earth. He explains that Mars is not a good place to raise children and talks about how he doesn't understand the science behind the work he's doing as an astronaut, but that it's just his job.


Overall, "Rocket Man" is a contemplative song about the human experience of being alone in space and feeling disconnected from life back on Earth. It speaks to the loneliness and isolation felt by astronauts away from home, and the difficulty in reconciling their experiences with those of the people back on Earth who can't relate.


Line by Line Meaning

She packed my bags last night pre-flight
My wife helped me prepare for my space mission.


Zero hour nine a.m.
My mission is set to launch at precisely 9:00 am.


And I'm gonna be high, as a kite by then
I will be lifted off the ground and feel euphoric during my space mission.


I miss the earth so much, I miss my wife
I feel homesick, and I miss the comforts of Earth and being near my wife.


It's lonely out in space
I am feeling solitary in space with no one to talk to.


On such a timeless flight
The journey feels eternal without any sense of time.


And I think it's gonna be a long long time
I believe my space mission will last much longer than expected.


Till touch down brings me round again to find
Until I return back to Earth, I will not feel like myself again.


I'm not the man they think I am at home
People have a perception of me, but they do not know the real, vulnerable person I am.


Oh no, no, no, I'm a rocket man
I am a space traveler, not the person others think I am.


Rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone
I am struggling with a sense of isolation, emotional instability, and resource depletion in space.


Mars ain't the kind of place to raise your kids
Mars is not a viable option for human habitation and family-raising.


In fact, it's cold as hell
Mars is an inhospitable, harsh environment with freezing temperatures.


And there's no one there to raise them if you didn't
If people were to have children on Mars, there would be nobody to help raise them.


And all this science, I don't understand
I am not knowledgeable about every aspect of science related to my space mission.


It's just my job, five days a week
Working for a science organization is just my job, and I only work on it five days per week.


A rocket man, a rocket man
I am a space travel professional responsible for piloting and operating a spacecraft.


Now I think it's gonna be a long long time
I still believe my space mission will take a long time to complete.


And I think it's gonna be a long long time
I am still convinced that my space mission will take a significant amount of time to finish.


And I think it's gonna be a long long time
I still strongly believe that my space mission will go on for a prolonged period.


And I think it's gonna be a long long time
I am quite sure that my space mission will last longer than expected.




Lyrics © DistroKid, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Elton John, Bernie Taupin

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Comments from YouTube:

@christophercoles4401

The greatest thing about Shatner's "singing" performances is that you can never tell if he's serious or if it's a goof. That's genius!

@Shlankyman545

He’s very serious.

@christophercoles4401

@@Shlankyman545 He appears to be but .... I don't know.

@mvader7188

Father of spinal tap...

@christophercoles4401

@@Koji-888 It was the '70s. Today he'd get cancelled just for smoking.

@KonElKent

Per his most recent memoir, "Boldly Go...", projects like The Transformed Man and Has Been are very serious. But he's not above having a laugh, like his rendition of "Tears for Caesar" in Free Enterprise.

16 More Replies...

@stflaw

I think we're all missing the truly impressive aspect of this performance; he managed to time his cigarette to the song almost exactly.

@joecraig6701

Back then proper smoking was taught in acting classes. A lot of actors did cigarette ads for extra income, like John Wayne and Yul Brynner , both of whom died of lung cancer.

@olgamurillo4421

that's a blunt man

@joshthej3di681

Kirk was high af

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