Well I found a bunch of letters
That were written for the fellow who broke your momma's heart
And the envelope folds smelled of her ancient perfume
I'll bet she didn't know
How to respond before the blankets of snow
Caught him out wandering alone
With no place to go

There were stars in the sky
There were houses on the hill
And there bottles of pills that were easy to buy
To keep her warm from the oncoming storm

Well I found them in the northwest corner of the attic in a box
Labeled tinsel and lights
Didn't know what I was I looking for
Maybe just a blanket or artifacts
Eisenhower sent him to war
He kept her picture in his pocket that was closest to his heart
And when he hit shore
Must have been a target for the gunman

There were stars in the sky
There were bunkers on the hill and there were caskets to fill
Where he will lie
Shrouded in the red white and blue with the stripes

There were stars in the sky
There were houses on the hill
And there were bottles of pills that were easy to buy
To keep her warm from the oncoming storm


Lyrics submitted by rosyquill

Houses on the Hill Lyrics as written by Ryan Adams Caitlin Cary

Lyrics © Kanjian Music, BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

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Houses On The Hill song meanings
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    General Comment

    Just heard this song for the first time last night...blew me away. So I'm assuming the letters he found we written to the woman's house for the man who was away at war and she didn't know how to respond because he was possibly dead, so she just packed them away.

    My favorite part is the "there were stars in the sky, there were bunkers on the hill and caskets to fill where he would lie, shrouded in the red, white and blue with the stripes"...wow.

    It's really powerful how you don't know that the man broke her heart by dying until the end.

    z4ckm0rrison January 18, 2008   Link

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