Little birds born without a mother or a father
I can feel their feathers forming in the running water
Now there is another in the middle of my mouth
A hundred altogether inside of me now
Little birds, little birds, come into my body

Mother, they're within me every moment I'm awaking
Bodies multiplying till they finally overtake me
Put your ears up to my mouth and you can hear them singing
Put your hands within me and you'll know what I am feeling
I just want to swallow up and promise to protect them

Daddy, come towards me, I could see his hands are shaking
Put his hands against me, he could feel their bodies breaking
Pushed me to the floor and put his hands up for a beating
"I don't want to hear it anymore" he kept repeating
"Do you really want the burning hell to come and get you?"

"Did you see the burning hell? It took your baby brother?
Did you see how far he fell and how he made us suffer?
Another boy in town at night, he took him for his lover
And deep in sin they held each other

So I took a hammer, nearly beat his little brains in
Knowing God in heaven no could never could forgive him
So I took a hammer, nearly beat his little brains in"

Little boy born without a mother or a father
Taken to the river and then pushed into the water
And the priests are singing that the hell was getting hotter
La, la-la la la

Father, Son and Holy Ghost, the only ones to save him
From the thing he loves the most but we know will betray him
Father, Son and Holy Ghost, the only ones to save him

And here beneath the water
I can see how the light
Distorts so strange
And this is how
I would like to leave my body
And start again


Lyrics submitted by subverted0, edited by danzase6, kirkweigensber, putainan

Little Birds [Demo - 1998] Lyrics as written by Jeff Mangum

Lyrics © ROUGH TRADE PUBLISHING

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Little Birds song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

49 Comments

sort form View by:
  • 0
    General Comment

    I agree with subvert over there. The idea of ending your life being baptized is darkly ironic, juxtiposing suicided (impure) with an important religeous ritual (pure). very funny kinda. in a dark dark way.

    Theosepiphaneson April 07, 2004   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
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him. There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Album art
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
Album art
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988. "'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it." "There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
Album art
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
Album art
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it. “I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.