Here Comes the Flood (1990 Version) Lyrics
When the night shows
The signals grow on radios
All the strange things
They come and go as early warnings
Stranded starfish have no place to hide
Still waiting for the swollen Easter tide
There's no point in direction
We cannot even choose a side
[Verse 2]
I took the old track
The hollow shoulder, across the waters
On the tall cliffs
They were getting older, sons and daughters
The jaded underworld was riding high
Waves of steel hurled metal at thе sky
And as the nail sunk in the cloud
The rain was warm and soakеd the crowd
[Chorus]
Lord, here comes the flood
We'll say goodbye to flesh and blood
If again the seas are silent, in any still alive
It'll be those who gave their island to survive
Drink up, dreamers, you're running dry
When the flood calls
You have no home, you have no walls
In that thunder crash
You're a thousand minds, within a flash
Don't be afraid to cry at what you see
The actors gone, there's only you and me
And if we break before the dawn
They'll use up what we used to be
[Chorus]
Lord, here comes the flood
We'll say goodbye to flesh and blood
If again the seas are silent, in any still alive
It'll be those who gave their island to survive
Drink up, dreamers, you're running dry
About
Shaking the Tree: Sixteen Golden Greats features a new recording of “Here Comes the Flood”, the closer to Peter Gabriel’s 1977 debut album. Gabriel had long taken issue with producer Bob Ezrin’s bombastic approach to the material and especially “Here Comes the Flood”, motivating him to record a much sparser, more tranquil rendition on Robert Fripp’s 1979 debut album Exposure.
The 1979 version, which features Gabriel on piano accompanied only by Fripp’s tape-delayed guitar, would become the basis for the 1990 re-recording, which strips the song back even further to feature just Gabriel at the piano. This version of the song would become the basis for all later live renditions.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
- 3.Sledgehammer
- 5.Mercy Street
- 8.San Jacinto
- 9.Here Comes the Flood (1990 Version)
- 10.Red Rain
- 12.Shock the Monkey
- 13.I Have the Touch
- 14.Big Time
- 15.Zaar
- 16.Biko