Well he was Thailand based
She was an airforce wife
He used to fly weekends
It was the easy life
But then it turned around
And he began to change
She didn't wonder then
She didn't think it strange
But then he got a call
He had to leave that night
He couldn't say too much
But it would be alright
He didn't need to pack
They'd meet the next night
He had a job to do
Flying to Cambodia
And as the nights passed by
She tried to trace the past
The way he used to look
The way he used to laugh
I guess she'll never know
What got inside his soul
She couldn't make it out
Just couldn't take it all
He had the saddest eyes
The girl had ever seen
He used to cry some nights
As though he lived a dream
And as she held him close
He used to search her face
As though she knew the truth
Lost inside Cambodia
But then a call came through
They said he'd soon be home
She had to pack a case
And they would make a rendez-vous
But now a year has passed
And not a single word
And all the love she knew
Has disappeared out in the haze
Cambodia - Don't cry now - No tears now
And now the years have passed
With not a single word
But there is only one thing left
I know for sure
She won't see his face again
She was an airforce wife
He used to fly weekends
It was the easy life
But then it turned around
And he began to change
She didn't wonder then
She didn't think it strange
But then he got a call
He had to leave that night
He couldn't say too much
But it would be alright
He didn't need to pack
They'd meet the next night
He had a job to do
Flying to Cambodia
She tried to trace the past
The way he used to look
The way he used to laugh
I guess she'll never know
What got inside his soul
She couldn't make it out
Just couldn't take it all
He had the saddest eyes
The girl had ever seen
He used to cry some nights
As though he lived a dream
And as she held him close
He used to search her face
As though she knew the truth
Lost inside Cambodia
They said he'd soon be home
She had to pack a case
And they would make a rendez-vous
But now a year has passed
And not a single word
And all the love she knew
Has disappeared out in the haze
Cambodia - Don't cry now - No tears now
With not a single word
But there is only one thing left
I know for sure
She won't see his face again
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He returned traumatized, cant talk, is not the same person. He never came back from Cambodia.
I can't believe some of the first few comments on here. Do some research on Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge. The resulting civil war and genocide (a by product of Vietnam) are the horrors the pilot witnessed, not specifically war in general or in particular the Vietnam war which had all but ceased.
@Meadowbrooke Actually he wouldn't have witnessed many horrors at all being several thousand feet up in the air. Aquarius answer is the most likely with the suggestion that he was captured and endured horrific torture before being released and somehow disappeared thereafter. POW/MIA
@Meadowbrooke Actually he wouldn't have witnessed many horrors at all being several thousand feet up in the air. Aquarius answer is the most likely with the suggestion that he was captured and endured horrific torture before being released and somehow disappeared thereafter. POW/MIA
Thai based F4 pilot gets shot down, captured,and is never heard from again. In a nutshell.
@Aqarius what about the lines
@Aqarius what about the lines
"But then a call came through They said he'd soon be home She had to pack a case And they would make a rendez-vous"
"But then a call came through They said he'd soon be home She had to pack a case And they would make a rendez-vous"
The pilot saw things, and probably did things that deeply affected him. Not just bombing or shooting, but something else, something covert. The guilt and horror slowly start to destroy him.
Then he says to "pack a bag", note, only one, and he'll meet her. Clearly he planned on going somewhere with her but why? And if they're going away why not tell her where? Because he was getting away from what he'd done, and possibly telling people about it. He is killed, but there's no mention of the air force telling her what happened.
If he was killed on a mission, even a secret one, you'd expect they'd tell the wife. Swear her to secrecy maybe, but still she'd be told. Otherwise she'd make a fuss and ask where he was, endangering security. But they didn't tell her, because he was probably killed by the people he worked with, to stop him talking.
Folks, please read about the Operation Freedom Deal, Nixon bombing Cambodia, the Kmer Rouge uprising and simply some history on Cambodia through the 70’s. Wilde’s FATHER wrote the song. When it came out in 1981, Kim was young (about 20) and probably didn’t even know how deep the song was. Watch the song’s video and you will see multiple images of warfare. He was a bomber and did not return from mission: either he crashed or tried to defect and got caught and killed. Prior, he was deeply troubled by information he could not share.
Are you kidding. He doesn't just get shot down, end of story. What about the clear assertion he is about to return but then she doesn't hear anymore about it. What has happened? Has he been found but now doesn't want to be with her, or did it wrong and he didn't make it? The lyric 'she will see his face again' a clear statement that the story is far from over.
Once again a work of subtle genius ignored by the masses.
Actually Aqarius is right. The story is about a P4 pilot. He changes because he sees the horrors of war. According to Kim Wildes brother who wrote the song he was shot down buy a surface to air missile. As for the open ending I too beleive that it relates to his capture and possible release ??? (This is a fictional character not based on anyone in real life...its a story)
Edit....
Edit....
And now the years have passed with not a single word But there is only one thing left I know for sure She won't see his face again
And now the years have passed with not a single word But there is only one thing left I know for sure She won't see his face again
More lyrics: http://www.lyricsfreak.com/k/kim+wilde/#share
More lyrics: http://www.lyricsfreak.com/k/kim+wilde/#share
http://www.wilde-life.com/encyclopedia/c/cambodia
I love the structure of this song, not the usual verse/chorus/verse but a story told in chapters. It's a minor masterpiece in its own way. To me it is all about PTSD and his wife's inability to reach him. The ending is ambiguous though, could mean he was killed or it could mean he never returned to the carefree person he was before he witnessed the true horrors of war. A great song, strangely overlooked.
So sad that the deep meaning of these lyrics were wasted on a \'radio friendly 80\'s pop-tune... wah- hey hey hey!\nMaybe I just have a grown up stick in my ass... not a boomer stick thank f*ck, but hey-ho!