In a sea of faces, in a sea of doubt
In this cruel place your voice above the maelstrom
In the wake of this ship of fools I'm falling further down
If you can see me, Marian, reach out and take me home

I hear you calling Marian
Across the water, across the wave
I hear you calling Marian
Can you hear me calling you to
Save me, save me, save me from the grave

Marian
Marian, there's a weight above me
And the pressure is all too strong
To breathe deep
Breathe long and hard
To take the water down and go to sleep
To sink still further
Beneath the fatal wave
Marian I think I'm drowning
This sea is killing me

I hear you calling Marian
Across the water, across the wave
I hear you calling Marian
Can you hear me calling you to
Save me, save me, save me from the grave

Was ich kann und was ich könnte
Weiß ich gar nicht mehr
Gib mir wieder etwas schönes
Zieh mich aus dem Meer
Ich höre dich rufen Marian
Kannst du mich schreien hören
Ich bin hier allein
Ich höre dich rufen Marian
Ohne deine Hilfe, verliere ich mich in diesem Ort

I hear you calling Marian
Across the water, across the wave
I hear you calling Marian
Can you hear me calling you to
Save me, save me, save me from the grave

Marian
Marian
Marian
Marian
Marian
Marian
Marian
Marian
Marian
Marian
Marian
Marian


Lyrics submitted by o0Sid0o, edited by thielj, aguirre67

Marian [Version] Lyrics as written by Wayne Hussey Andrew Eldritch

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

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Marian song meanings
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30 Comments

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  • +2
    General Comment

    He's drowning under the pressures of the world, and reaching out to Marian for comfort. I think a lot of people can relate to this. Music-wise, this is one of the most depressive songs I've ever heard. I love it.

    Evil Edon January 08, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    Maybe he is singing about depression and he fears that he will commit a suicide if he is not helped by this Marian.

    Infion March 01, 2005   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    The first verse seems like it could refer to some of Eldritch's many problems at the time, including tension between band members ("ship of fools"?) and general disdain for many elements of their audience - "sea of faces"?

    The Knaveon May 17, 2005   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    The part in german goes saying: what i can do and what i could do, I dont know anymore give me something beautiful again, pull me from the sea i hear you calling, Marian, you can hear me crying, i am here alone... I hear you calling, Marian, without your help i’m losing myslef in this place

    I always believed the song is about someone who is desperate and full of trouble, and without exit, and is calling out to his last good beacon, Marian... the only person he can relate to in the troubled times, someone who probably represents something pure for him and that is what he needs to be safe. It's how i've always looked at it.

    TigerlilyGirlon July 07, 2006   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    Is Marian a specific person or does she represent the idealised notion we all secretly have that, there is someone out there who will save us from the world and ultimately ourselves? Is it referring to the need to find them, thus freeing ourselves from personal responsibility for our own happiness?

    What ever the truth is, it's one of the greatest songs ever written...

    herrogon January 08, 2007   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    This song creates such a dark and depressing atmosphere, matching the lyrics so well.

    I have no clue what it's really about, but judging by the mood of the song, it sounds like it's about a man on the verge of suicide. He's searching for someone to pull him out of a deep depression, I'm not sure if he actually knows Marian, or he's just calling out to someone in general.

    Muzzyon February 09, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    Very dark song indeed, one of my all time favorites.

    I agree with Herrog, I don't think Marian is an actual person, but just a representation of anyone who can help this lonely man. I'm just coming out of high school now, and I'm at that point in my life where I have to decide what I'm gonna do ya know, and it's depressing to think about sometimes. I listen to this song and find myself crying out for my own Marian to come save me sniffle

    Neonknighton April 02, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    Its just me, or the difference between the two german lyrics is that the 1st one has some orthographical errors? In my opinion Marian should've been a real person therefore the (otherwise strange, unexplainable) german "plugin".

    throberton August 29, 2009   Link
  • +1
    Song Meaning

    Love this song, but had not thought about its meaning other than it being imagistic. That it's primarily about a real woman makes sense.

    A second layer of interpretation is more tenuous. Marian is an anagram (version) of Marina, which is a TS Eliot poem. In turn, Marina is an imagining of a scene in the myth of Pericles who finds his lost daughter. In the poem, Eliot contrasts the fate of Pericles with Heracles, who killed his children in a fit.

    Worth looking up the Eliot poem, which has a similarly dreamlike atmosphere to the Sisters track.

    feufolleton January 13, 2017   Link
  • +1
    My Opinion

    One of the best goth songs ever composed!!!

    CyberPsychoKittenon February 21, 2023   Link

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