Ramblin boy you've been around
Dallas to the underground
High above and down below
And places I was scared to go
You sang it loud in case they heard
Hanging on to every word
Gentle as a lullaby
Firecrackers in your eyes

I would give anything
For one more night to run
And one last song to sing
You weren't asking much at all
Just catch you when you fall
On your own
The long way home

What's that sadness in your smile
You've been crying all the while
Could you lean upon my shoulder
In case you die or just get old
So what are we supposed to do
Just walk around forever blue?
And all this hurry up and wait
Was it chance or was it fate

I would give anything
For one more night to run
And one last song to sing
You weren't asking much at all
Just catch you when you fall
On your own
The long way home

You weren't asking much at all
Just catch you when you fall
On your own
The long way home


Lyrics submitted by ssg3487

Long Way Home Lyrics as written by Hayes Carll

Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Long Way Home song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

3 Comments

sort form View by:
  • 0
    General Comment

    in the beginning he's talking about himself in third person "Ramblin boy you've been around, Dallas to the underground, High above and down below". he then continues into the song as if he's reflecting on a previous relationship or lost love that he either gave up too soon on or gave up without trying. you almost get the feeling that the two spent time together through music or "running" around (I would give anything, For one more night to run and one last song to sing) because he wants to just got back to those times, at least once. such remorse and sadness.

    it's beautifully written and even better when heard live.

    melancholyjenon June 17, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I’ve got a song called “Long Way Home” about a good friend of mine named Aaron Wilkinson who died in NYC many years back. I know it touched the people who had a direct relation to Aaron, but it also seemed to reach a lot of folks who had never met him. I guess the sentiment of losing a friend or a loved one is something a lot of people can relate too.

    greg102099on September 08, 2016   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I'm not sure about all it means ... but I like meloncholyjen's comment that the first verse is in the 3rd person ... which comes out even more in the Kelly Willis/Bruce Robison version from 2013.

    In either version, this song is achingly beautiful.

    ken1026950on August 31, 2021   Link

Add your thoughts

Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.

Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!

More Featured Meanings

Album art
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines: "Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet" So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other: "I had all and then most of you" Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart "Some and now none of you" Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship. This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Album art
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
Album art
Holiday
Bee Gees
@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday". I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
Album art
No Surprises
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Album art
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.