Burn Lyrics

[Verse 1]
"Don't look, don't look," the shadows breathe
Whispering me away from you
"Don't wake at night to watch her sleep
You know that you will always lose
This trembling, adored
Tousled, birdmad girl"


[Chorus 1]
But every night I burn, every night I call your name
Every night I burn, every night I fall again

[Verse 2]
"Oh, don't talk of love," the shadows purr
Murmuring me away from you
"Don't talk of worlds that never were
The end is all that's ever true
There's nothing you can ever say
Nothing you can ever do"

[Chorus 2]
Still every night I burn, every night I scream your name
Every night I burn, every night the dream's the same
Every night I burn, waiting for my only friend
Every night I burn, waiting for the world to end
[Verse 3]
"Just paint your face," the shadows smile
Slipping me away from you
"Oh, it doesn't matter how you hide
Find you if they're wanting to
So slide back down and close your eyes
Sleep a while, you must be tired"

[Chorus 3]
But every night I burn, every night I call your name
Every night I burn, every night I fall again
Every night I burn, scream the animal scream
Every night I burn, dream the crow black dream

Every night I burn, scream the animal scream
Every night I burn, dream the crow black dream

[Refrain]
Dream the crow black dream
Dream the crow black dream
Dream the crow black dream
Dream the crow black dream

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About

Genius Annotation

James O'Barr, creator of the comic book The Crow, is a big fan of The Cure. In fact, he dedicated a full page in his book to reprinting the lyrics of their song “The Hanging Garden”. When the 1994 film based on the comic was in production, O'Barr asked The Cure for the use of “The Hanging Garden”. Robert Smith was, in turn, a fan of The Crow and instead wrote “Burn” for the film.

“Burn” was written and recorded while the band had only two members – Smith & drummer Boris Williams, and it was completed in only two days:

I had the idea, and we just recorded it, me and him, in the studio.

In 2020, Stabbing Westward covered the song .

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did The Cure say about "Burn"?
Genius Answer

At the first live performance of “Burn”, Smith reportedly told the crowd:

Here’s another song about New Orleans. One we’ve never played.

Note: the other song written about New Orleans is “Fascination Street”, which was inspired by a ‘band adventure’ to Bourbon Street in 1985.

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