I Will. (No Man's Land.) Lyrics
Lay me down
In a bunker
Under the ground
I won't let this happen to my children
Meet the real world coming out of your shell
With white elephants
Sitting ducks
I will
Rise up
Little babies' eyes, eyes, eyes, eyes
Little babies' eyes, eyes, eyes, eyes
Little babies' eyes, eyes, eyes
This song is about a bunker that was destroyed during the first Gulf War that ended up being a bomb shelter full of women and children. From Thom:
"You said it’s the angriest thing you’ve ever written." Thom: "Yes. Well yeah, I guess it is. I mean… It’s quite simple really, I had an extremely unhealthy obsession, that ran through the ‘Kid A’ thing, about the first Gulf War. When they started it up they did that lovely thing of putting the camera on the end of the missile, and you got to see the wonders of modern military technology blow up this bunker. And then sometime afterwards in the back pages it was announced, that that bunker was not full of weapons at all, but women and children. And it was actually a bomb shelter. And so everybody… we all got to witness the wonders of modern technology. And it ran through so much stuff for so long for me. I just could not get it out of my head. It was so sick. And so that’s where the anger comes from. We did the most dreadful version of it. It was all that programmed… just a disaster. But interestingly something good came out, because we turned the tape over and it became ‘Spinning Plates’." (XFM, spring 2003)
when i first heard this song in meeting people is easy (it was just the harmony part at the end of the song) the notes were so perfect and so desperate...and i thought to myself "this is the most beautiful melody i have ever heard". now that i have heard the entire song and melody that goes with the harmony...it just really tears at my heart.
what i think this song means: the above comment about it being about war may very well be true. thom is very political and it seems to make perfect sence. however, when i think about the lyrics, i saw something different. the part at the end "little babies' eyes" reminded me that thom just had a child, and maybe this song is a sort of lullabye for his child. he doesnt want what happened to him to happen to his children...white elephants might have something to do with republicans.. (in my version of the song, he sings "with white elephants/ sitting ducks/ i will/ rise up") so im gonna put two ideas together.. maybe this song is about protecting your children from war. or about thom wanting to protect his child from war.
i hope you folks could follow my thoughts...im a bit scatterbrained.
I agree with you about the music- purely lovely. I also like Thom's voice in this song, because he's not in his falsetto. I love it both ways, but I also admire that he can sing well either way. Not like Chris Martin, unfortunately. Coldplay's only good song where Chris sings lower than usual, in my opinion, is Amsterdam.
I agree with you about the music- purely lovely. I also like Thom's voice in this song, because he's not in his falsetto. I love it both ways, but I also admire that he can sing well either way. Not like Chris Martin, unfortunately. Coldplay's only good song where Chris sings lower than usual, in my opinion, is Amsterdam.
And this song sorta sounds like "See You Soon" by them... hmm...
And this song sorta sounds like "See You Soon" by them... hmm...
I'd say your mostly right, though I don't think it's just about war. I think it's more so about the change in heart that came along with having kids. Cause at the start he's more just running away/hiding, but then it seems he gains the resolution for to rise up after staring into his little babies eyes and/or just having a baby.
I'd say your mostly right, though I don't think it's just about war. I think it's more so about the change in heart that came along with having kids. Cause at the start he's more just running away/hiding, but then it seems he gains the resolution for to rise up after staring into his little babies eyes and/or just having a baby.
Haven, you most likely got "Like Spinning Plates" which, insturmentally, IS this song being played backwards. The first few lines of which are sung backwards, too.
I've always felt that white elephants could refer to the republican party. I know this sounds kind of crazy considering the fact they are english. But the title of the album "Hail to the Theif" was inspired by the theories that George Bush "stole" the election. I don't believe the title to actually be about Bush himself, but about dictators like the one he is accused of being.
ok.. i played the song backwards, and I can make out some words, but not the same as the ones posted above... I wonder if I'm listening to a different song here...
i downloaded the songs so im sure they are right...i dont know what you got
believe it or not, i think this song is about war. "lay me down/ in a bunker/underground" = what soldiers/civilians do during war. "i won't let this happen to my childen / and / little babies' eyes" reflect the effect war can have on the youth...i'm sure the song is most likely about something else, but this is just my little interpretation..
side note: the way thom sings "little babies' eyes" along with the background vocals has got to be one of the most beautiful parts on the CD
beautifully put, saturnine
i think white elephant is like a white elephant sale, where you donate something you dont need or dont want anymore for a cause and then somebody buys it at auction and the proceeds go to charity. but before that he says meet the real world coming out of my shell. maybe a metaphor for absurd self sacrifice and the struggles of fatherhood. a good compliment to there there?i dunno
I think saturnine is right. Thom said in the NME that this is kind of a scary song about a guy who will do anything, including commit murder, to protect his family. Whether or not Thom is approving or disapproving of this idea is not clear.
"What would I do to protect my family?" is a question a lot of people find hard to answer, and I think Thom isn't really trying to answer it in this song, but instead to convey the feeling of being absolutely sure.