"I wanted to go
Where the antelope play now
I looked around
They've all gone away now
I wish I could drink where
The water is so clear
It might clear my mind
My mind
Comes and goes here"
The first stanza expresses that he wants to go somewhere beautiful in this world but its not possible. The antelope and clear water have gone away suggesting environmental destruction. Without "clean water" (natural purity) he cannot even think straight.
"Once I cut my hand
But the wound was not part of me
Now I'm a man
There's a wound at the heart of me
I wish I could leave
And I guess I would stay there
Wherever that is
That is
Far from anywhere"
Second stanza contrasts the cut of a hand with a "wound" in a "heart". A wound in a heart is a psychological scar- a pain to the true self, whereas a cut on a hand is superficial. Cutting a hand is a mistake more frequently made by children, and it's placement before the line "Now I'm a man" suggests growing up, when people tend to manifest more psychological problems. Then he goes into an escape fantasy.
"There's a stream running over
On distant shores
Everybody's swimming
In the water (and so on)
This is the escape fantasy, which ties into the unfulfilled desire for happiness in nature expounded in the first stanza.
"Baby I want to go where
Nobody will change me
Or change my mind
My mind
That contains me
And is contained by
The starlight surrounding us
Like falling rain
Pouring down on us"
In this fantasy realm the narrator will also be free of his psychological problems and insecurities. Interesting that in a previous stanza the body and self were dichotomized (the cut on the hand vs the wounded heart), and in this one the mind and the self are dichotomized. Not sure what the starlight/rain references mean, but they "contain" and "surround" the narrator, and are seen as positive.
Thats pretty much all the lyrics. The way I've written this it sounds kind of negative, but I actually think its a very positive and uplifting song about escapist fantasies with environmental undertones.
"I wanted to go Where the antelope play now I looked around They've all gone away now I wish I could drink where The water is so clear It might clear my mind My mind Comes and goes here"
The first stanza expresses that he wants to go somewhere beautiful in this world but its not possible. The antelope and clear water have gone away suggesting environmental destruction. Without "clean water" (natural purity) he cannot even think straight.
"Once I cut my hand But the wound was not part of me Now I'm a man There's a wound at the heart of me I wish I could leave And I guess I would stay there Wherever that is That is Far from anywhere"
Second stanza contrasts the cut of a hand with a "wound" in a "heart". A wound in a heart is a psychological scar- a pain to the true self, whereas a cut on a hand is superficial. Cutting a hand is a mistake more frequently made by children, and it's placement before the line "Now I'm a man" suggests growing up, when people tend to manifest more psychological problems. Then he goes into an escape fantasy.
"There's a stream running over On distant shores Everybody's swimming In the water (and so on)
This is the escape fantasy, which ties into the unfulfilled desire for happiness in nature expounded in the first stanza.
"Baby I want to go where Nobody will change me Or change my mind My mind That contains me And is contained by The starlight surrounding us Like falling rain Pouring down on us"
In this fantasy realm the narrator will also be free of his psychological problems and insecurities. Interesting that in a previous stanza the body and self were dichotomized (the cut on the hand vs the wounded heart), and in this one the mind and the self are dichotomized. Not sure what the starlight/rain references mean, but they "contain" and "surround" the narrator, and are seen as positive.
Thats pretty much all the lyrics. The way I've written this it sounds kind of negative, but I actually think its a very positive and uplifting song about escapist fantasies with environmental undertones.