In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
President Joe once had a dream
The world held his hand, gave their pledge
So he told them his scheme for a savior machine
They called it the Prayer, its answer was law
Its logic stopped war, gave them food
How they adored till it cried in its boredom
Please don't believe in me, please disagree with me
Life is too easy, a plague seems quite feasible now
Or maybe a war, or I may kill you all
Don't let me stay, don't let me stay
My logic says burn so send me away
Your minds are too green, I despise all I've seen
You can't stake your lives on a savior machine
I need you flying, and I'll show that dying
Is living beyond reason, sacred dimension of time
I perceive every sign, I can steal every mind
Don't let me stay, don't let me stay
My logic says burn so send me away
Your minds are too green, I despise all I've seen
You can't stake your lives on a savior machine
The world held his hand, gave their pledge
So he told them his scheme for a savior machine
They called it the Prayer, its answer was law
Its logic stopped war, gave them food
How they adored till it cried in its boredom
Please don't believe in me, please disagree with me
Life is too easy, a plague seems quite feasible now
Or maybe a war, or I may kill you all
Don't let me stay, don't let me stay
My logic says burn so send me away
Your minds are too green, I despise all I've seen
You can't stake your lives on a savior machine
I need you flying, and I'll show that dying
Is living beyond reason, sacred dimension of time
I perceive every sign, I can steal every mind
Don't let me stay, don't let me stay
My logic says burn so send me away
Your minds are too green, I despise all I've seen
You can't stake your lives on a savior machine
Lyrics submitted by scottathon1
Saviour Machine Lyrics as written by David Bowie
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Only two comments? Disappointing, this song's so good. It's very sci-fi, could almost be the plot of an Asimov story or something. I always thought it was a somewhat cautionary tale about becoming too dependent on technology - this awesome computer that solved all the world's problems and was totally trustworthy actually went insane through boredom and started (at least) threatening to kill the people. Not so nice! (I guess it was UNDER PRESSURE). Moral: such powerful technology, computers smarter than humans, is not such a great idea.;)
I interpret it as a queer paradox of sort. If you invent a universal problem-solving machine, then the biggest problem in the world will be peoples' reliances on it. So what can the machine do to solve the problem, but rebel?
The machine was right, in a way: what's a world where people don't have to deal with their own problems? A world of children, that's what, which is bad. So it addresses that by becoming an enemy for the people to face.
I don't agree with the ideas that this song is about the future, it's about the past. I think this song is about Josef Stalin's (president Joe) brand of communism (saviour machine). Stalin was seen as the saviour of the Soviet Union when he took power. His controlling ideas took away individuality (creating boredom) and made him insane resulting in him killing many many people in his delusion of being God (Saviour). His ego pleads for death as he recognises his own madness and blood lust.
I would have personally interpreted the Saviour Machine to be a metaphor for a legalistic system in general, but I'm clearly in the minority.
I completely agree with the concepts other people have put forward. I think one of the most terrifying things about 'the machine' is that it felt pain and anguish in the knowledge that it would have to kill. The saviour machine has been made so human it is imperfect, just as the humans who built it are. A secondary message to this could be that perfection is unachievable for imperfect beings such as ourselves.
I feel like it;s about a political leader everyone puts their faith into to be saved from war, starvation, etc. He makes all these promises and the people believe in him. But the power/promises to uphold gets to his head and he cracks
I feel like it;s about a political leader everyone puts their faith into to be saved from war, starvation, etc. He makes all these promises and the people believe in him. But the power/promises to uphold gets to his head and he cracks
Bowie is warning us of where he is going. "please don't believe in me" "please disagree with me" David Jones was a failure. David Bowie was being formed. A sad self-recognition.
I think that the song
@Soviet_Steel
@Soviet_Steel Oops (Missclicked twice). What I meant to say is that I think that the song is about religion. A "SAVIOUR" machine that is called "Prayer". All the answers from the saviour is automatically turned into law. And the violence and death that is usually caused by religion. This is what I think at least