I've seen you laugh at nothing at all
I've seen you sadly weeping
The sweetest thing I ever saw
Was you asleep and dreaming

Well you may not be beautiful
But it's not for me to judge
I don't know if you're beautiful
Because I love you too much

I've seen you laugh at nothing at all
I've seen you sadly weeping
The sweetest thing I ever saw
Was you asleep and dreaming

I've seen you when your ship came in
And when your train was leaving
The sweetest thing I ever saw
Was you asleep and dreaming


Lyrics submitted by Anne Arbour, edited by simonyyz

Asleep and Dreaming Lyrics as written by

Lyrics © ROUGH TRADE PUBLISHING

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Asleep And Dreaming song meanings
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6 Comments

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  • +2
    General Comment

    Beautiful song, to me it's almost like a parent to their child...the child is always beautiful to the parent (and let's face it, they are some ugly children out there), and the parent sees their child through the highs and lows. Let's face it, one of the most endearing sights in the world is that of a baby sleeping.

    TheDarkJayon January 18, 2010   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    this is the sweetest song ever.

    do i run rare?on April 16, 2005   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    this song reminds me of a person who told me that they'd watched me while I was sleeping. I doubt they'd sing this song about me though.

    I love how loving and tender he sounds here.

    delialon February 09, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    It's the little intracacies that no one else knows that make you love the ones you love. Sometimes just sitting watching the one you love simply breath makes you realize how lucky you are - the unspoken possibilities that two people share can be more convincing than words or actions could ever be.

    tubesockson July 08, 2002   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Possibility. Love. And, to an extent, how they can become synonymous.

    "I've seen you when your ship came in and when your train was leaving"

    He's seen you at your best and at your worst and as he says his love for you is so immense, so strong that the rest of world no longer matters:

    "I don't know if you're beautiful because I love you too much... "

    There is no room for any objectivity, his (and, hopefully, theirs) is a love that exists for its own realm. And isn't that the best sort? There's a Tom Waits song to back this up - "the only kind of love is blind love, stone blind love."

    Stephen Merritt writes a song like an angel. Trust.

    highway pigon August 23, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I love this song...it makes me sleepy in a happy way

    sugar0magnoliaon October 04, 2007   Link

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