I'm going down
Won't you help me
Save me from myself
I hear the sound of the memory
Maybe time will tell

Suddenly my life is like a river
Taking me places I don't want to go
But like all good men who swim too well
It takes all that I have just to cry for help
Then that voice in my head tells me no

I'm going down
Won't you help me
Save me from myself
I hear the sound of the memory
Maybe, who can tell ?

Let me live my life beside the river
Take me to places where a child can grow
And then maybe the boy inside will forsake me
Maybe the child in me will just let me go

I'm going down
The cold, cold water is rushing in
I'm going down
And I would beg to be forgiven

If I knew my sin


Lyrics submitted by oofus

To Be Forgiven Lyrics as written by George Michael

Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

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To Be Forgiven song meanings
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    My Interpretation

    To me this song is solely about depression most probably caused by grief. "I'm going down.... won't you help me... save me from myself"... hes basically saying I need help, I'm drowning in my depression. "Suddenly my life is like a river.... taking me places I don't want to go." I believe this is about anselmo suffering and dying and him having to deal with that in his life, his mother hadn't sadly died at this point so life continued to be like a river taking him places he didn't want to go. "But like all good men who don't swim to well... it takes all I have just to cry for help" this screams depression... not swimming is not coping in life. Hes asking in the lyrics to "let me live my life beside the river (a reference to grove cottage where he later died) and he talks about the boy inside forsaking him... to me it tells me he just wants to try to cope and revert back to being a child so he doesn't have to deal with any of this. The whole older album is so beautiful and filled with sadness. So hard to think how hard he spiralled after the album was released and his mother lesley passed. I miss this man every single day.

    Tommcd14on June 26, 2021   Link

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