Gonna build me a log cabin on a mountain so high
So I can see my darling as she goes passing by
Oh the cuckoo, she's a pretty bird and she warbles as she flies
But she never says cuckoo 'till the fourth day of July
Now my horses, they ain't hungry and they won't eat your hay
So I'll ride on just a little further and feed them on the way
Oh the cuckoo, she's a pretty bird and she warbles as she flies
She will cause you never no trouble and she'll tell you no lie
You can see that I have wandered by the dust that's on my feet


Lyrics submitted by frootjoos

The Cuckoo Lyrics as written by Taj Mahal

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

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The Cuckoo song meanings
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    General Comment

    This song is beautiful, and I'm surprised someone hasn't commented on it before. It's not a very difficult song, but still.

    Really, I think it's just a song of an unrequited love. The verses suggest a man in love with a girl who doesn't seem interested in him, hence why he's building the cabin to watch her in the beginning and waiting for her in the end. The middle verse suggests a lot of wandering in pursuit of love, and it leads to the final verse where he settles down.

    The chorus, I think, is just there because it sounds good. Unless the cuckoo has some applicable symbolism I'm not aware of, it just seems to be a nice, earthy chorus to pull the song together.

    BaruchSon January 24, 2011   Link

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