Shadow face
Blowing smoke and talking wind
Lost my grip
Fell too far to start again
A sudden snake
Found my shape and tells the world
Remember this
Remember everything is just black
Or burning sun
And I hope it's a sweet ride
Sleep tight for me
Sleep tight for me I'm gone
Warm and sweet
Swinging from a windows ledge
Tight and deep
One last sin before I'm dead
A sucking holy wind
Will take me from this bed tonight
And bloody wits
Another hits me and I have to say goodbye
And I hope it's a sweet ride
Here for me tonight
'Cause I feel I'm going
Feel I'm slowing down
Blowing smoke and talking wind
Lost my grip
Fell too far to start again
A sudden snake
Found my shape and tells the world
Remember this
Remember everything is just black
Or burning sun
And I hope it's a sweet ride
Sleep tight for me
Sleep tight for me I'm gone
Warm and sweet
Swinging from a windows ledge
Tight and deep
One last sin before I'm dead
A sucking holy wind
Will take me from this bed tonight
And bloody wits
Another hits me and I have to say goodbye
And I hope it's a sweet ride
Here for me tonight
'Cause I feel I'm going
Feel I'm slowing down
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I agree with the very first post. Suicide or leaving someone you love, which can be like suicide (no pun intended) of your soul. I don't care to dissect all the lines, but some of my favorite lines are:
"Lost my grip, fell too far to start again" I know exactly how this feels. Basically saying that life has taken it's toll and knocked you down and you don't want to get back up anymore.
"A sudden snake, found my shape and tells the world Remember this, remember everything is just black or burning sun" I feel like this line is saying, when the shit went down, it exposed who I really am, which is someone who doesn't want to live.
This song defines just how versatile and brilliant Soundgarden was. This is certainly one of the hidden gems, not just from Down on the Upside but all SG tunes.
One of my two favorite songs off "Down on the Upside". And I agree... it's either about death or having to go far far away (I'm thinking more towards death). Chris Cornell's a great lyricist too.
This song is about sleep paralysis and shadow man a.k.a. the Old Hag... Cheers!
It's about someone with a terminal disease, who spends his last living night with his soul mate, knowing full well he will be dead and gone in the morning.
this is very uncharacteristic of me to say this cas i am sick of all the people thinking cornell is a stoner because of the black hole sun video clip but this song to me just screams out DRUG ADDICTION.
I know the chris had drug addictions when he was younger and is not proud of them and his shame is the shadow on his face as he uses drugs again, "Shadow face Blowing smoke and talking wind" plus talking wind means he is bullshitting and his words amount to bullshit when he is doing this. and yah it goes on, sweet ride is getting high sudden snake is cravings fell too far to start again means it fucked him up so much why would he want to do it anymore.
there is so much stoner imagery black or burning sun he is depressed without this escapism of drugs anyway thats my interpretation
@ThayilBeGod <br /> Well, Cornell did use drugs. I mean, "4th of July" was inspired by an acid trip.<br /> I understand your reluctance because so many people have wrongly interpreted many a lyric as drug related.<br /> But you are right about "Tighter and Tighter".<br /> <br /> And "Lost my grip/Fell too far to start again" is both his confession and his surrender.<br /> He knows that tonight's date with the needle will be his last. He's filling the syringe with his last bullet, and he hopes it's a sweet ride. And the snake wraps around him tighter and tighter til it squeezes the life out of him.<br />
@ThayilBeGod unfortunately you were right on about him being depressed without using drugs. RIP CC
This song and overfloater are the my two favorite songs on down on the upside
If you read the lyrics to "Like a Stone" by Audioslave this makes more sense
To say cornell wasnt on drugs during down on the upside, is rediculous...did you see him in the videos off those albums? In Blow up the outside world he looked so skinny it was scary
This song is about hoping that the drug he has just bought/taken will actually have effect. A real junky mentality that cornell either experienced once, because it would seem past tense.
Either way this song is the shit, i love it. Overfloater, never named and this song are the best off the album
Might as well light the blunt. I love this song. I'm listening to it right now in fact. Long live Soundgarden.
To me this entire album is about the band breaking up. In a way all of your thoughts on the song meaning could fit.