Jimmy Brown
Made of stone
Charlie Clown
No way home

Bring on the dancing horses
Headless and all alone
Shiver and say the words
Of every lie you've heard

First I'm gonna make it
Then I'm gonna break it
'Til it falls apart
Hating all the faking
And shaking while I'm breaking
Your brittle heart

Billy stands
All alone
Sinking sand
Skin and bone

Bring on the dancing horses
Wherever they may roam
Shiver and say the words
Of every lie you've heard

First I'm gonna make it
Then I'm gonna break it
'Til it falls apart
Hating all the faking
And shaking while I'm breaking
Your brittle heart

Brittle heart
Brittle heart
Brittle heart
And my little heart
Goes

Jimmy Brown
Made of stone
Charlie Clown
No way home

Bring on the headless horses
Wherever they may roam
Shiver and say the words
Of every lie you've heard

First I'm gonna make it
Then I'm gonna break it
'Til it falls apart
Hating all the faking
And shaking while you're breaking
My brittle heart
Brittle heart
Brittle heart
And our little heart
Goes

Bring on the new messiah
Wherever he may roam
Bring on the new messiah
Wherever he may roam
Bring on the new messiah
Wherever he may roam
Bring on the new messiah
Wherever he may roam


Lyrics submitted by typo, edited by smallwonderrobot

Bring On the Dancing Horses Lyrics as written by Leslie Thomas Pattinson Ian Stephen Mcculloch

Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

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Bring On The Dancing Horses song meanings
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33 Comments

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  • +3
    General Comment

    I feel like this song is about him wanting to end a relationship with this girl but shes in denial about their incompatability and he is too afriad to hurt her because shes emotionally weak ("First Im gonna make it, then im gonna break it till it falls apart. Hating all the fakin and shaking while im breakin your brittle heart"). So he continues to lie and say he loves her ("Shiver and say the words of every lie you've heard") even though he wants to be free from her and her baggage. To me the "dancing horses" symbolize his wanting to be free from her but "headless and alone" reminds him that he cant just pick up and leave.

    cmfitz93on August 28, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    I feel like this song is about him wanting to end a relationship with this girl but shes in denial about their incompatability and he is too afriad to hurt her because shes emotionally weak ("First Im gonna make it, then im gonna break it till it falls apart. Hating all the fakin and shaking while im breakin your brittle heart"). So he continues to lie and say he loves her ("Shiver and say the words of every lie you've heard") even though he wants to be free from her and her baggage. To me the "dancing horses" symbolize his wanting to be free from her but "headless and alone" reminds him that he cant just pick up and leave.

    cmfitz93on August 27, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    Ian stated many times that this song is about art and how we percive it, he says he refrenced statues because it's interesting how we'd rather look at a piece of art rather then look interally at ourselves and anylise the human exsparience directly. It's about the horror we are addressed with when we look internally and speak truthfully about being human. Humanity is like a bunch of headless horses lying to ourselves and others, and as soon as we speak the tuth it's too hard to hear. We'd rather observe from afar in the form of disconnected artworks.

    "It's about the way people would sooner look at statues than themselves. We revere things that tell us about ourselves. It's that thing of how we think art is very important. A life without art, who knows what that would be like? We think the Mona Lisa is this thing that's valuable, when something else isn't." "It's about, are we statues or are we human? Not like The Killers' thing but it's about heart and soul: 'Jimmy Brown, made of stone.' I'm not Jimmy Brown, I'm someone else. I'm the one who's just shivering and saying 'the words of every lie I've heard.'" - Ian McCulloch

    [Edit: Wanted to calrify my points further.]
    AquilineMorion August 21, 2023   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    No idea what this song is about, but its off the Pretty in Pink soundtrack which is great.

    Nikoson June 05, 2003   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Such a beautiful song. Such a juxtaposition of images such as "Frist I'm gonna make it, then I'm gonna break it til it falls apart..." with the somewhat romantic musical strains, make this song a mover and a shaker.

    Major Valoron April 12, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    a really good song drug abuse?

    whiskeyclonehotelon September 16, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I don't think it is about drug abuse, just about disillusionment in love. I love how Ian's voice sounds so painful while he pronounces the words "hating all the faking, shaking while I'm breaking your brittle heart"

    Cracked Pleasureson June 03, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    But why..."Bring down the dancing horses"?

    bear_hug20on July 25, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I have to admit I have no clue what this song is about either, very abstract lyrics. Although it does appear to be about some sort of broken heart thats about all I can make out.

    Such a beautiful song, it creates this "swimming" effect it almost makes you dizzy. Echo and the Bunnymen were great at making dark atmospheric pop songs, and like all their songs this one has a really dark undertone to it.

    Muzzyon October 18, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I can't really explain why, but I feel like this song is about a guy who's cheating on his girlfriend/wife, and I think he feels bad about it. I have no idea what the title means though.

    asdfasdf123123on December 20, 2007   Link

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