Per the FAQ on Keane's website, Keane's drummer Richard Hughes, stated the following:
"We've been asked whether "Somewhere Only We Know" is about a specific place, and Tim has been saying that, for him, or us as individuals, it might be about a geographical space, or a feeling; it can mean something individual to each person, and they can interpret it to a memory of theirs... It's perhaps more of a theme rather than a specific message... Feelings that may be universal, without necessarily being totally specific to us, or a place, or a time..."
With the nostalgic sentiment and the overall tone of the song, I think Keane is attempting to express a Portuguese term known as 'saudade', which does not have a direct English translation but roughly means "that which we remember because it is gone."
Well dont you want to climb a mountain
yeah, dont you want to ride the river
drink from a magic fountain
give your woman all the love that you can give her
well dont you want to be an outlaw
don't you want to ride the range
don't you want to be an outlaw children
just like jesse, like jesse james
well now dont you want to swim the ocean
don't you want to climb the highest tree
drink some of momma\'s lovin\' potion
get your woman till she just cant see
don't you want to be an outlaw
just a poor boy out on the skids
don't you want to be an outlaw children
just like billy, just like billy the kid
well now billy he was a bad boy, he won the wild west
by the year of 21, as many notches on his gun
but someone laid him to an early rest
don't you want to climb a mountain
don't you want to ride the river
drink from a magic fountain
give your woman all the love that you can give her
don't you want to be an outlaw
don't you want to ride the range
don't you want to be an outlaw children
just like jesse
Jesse he was a bad boy, he won the wild west
as many notches on his gun as the years of 21
but someone laid him to an early rest
don't you want to climb a mountain
don't you want to ride the river
drink from a magic fountain
give your woman all the love that you can give her
don't you want to be an outlaw
don't you want to ride the range
don't you want to be an outlaw children
just like jesse, like jesse james
well dont you want to be an outlaw
don't you want to be an outlaw
just like jesse, just like jesse, just like jesse james
yeah, dont you want to ride the river
drink from a magic fountain
give your woman all the love that you can give her
well dont you want to be an outlaw
don't you want to ride the range
don't you want to be an outlaw children
just like jesse, like jesse james
well now dont you want to swim the ocean
don't you want to climb the highest tree
drink some of momma\'s lovin\' potion
get your woman till she just cant see
don't you want to be an outlaw
just a poor boy out on the skids
don't you want to be an outlaw children
just like billy, just like billy the kid
well now billy he was a bad boy, he won the wild west
by the year of 21, as many notches on his gun
but someone laid him to an early rest
don't you want to climb a mountain
don't you want to ride the river
drink from a magic fountain
give your woman all the love that you can give her
don't you want to be an outlaw
don't you want to ride the range
don't you want to be an outlaw children
just like jesse
Jesse he was a bad boy, he won the wild west
as many notches on his gun as the years of 21
but someone laid him to an early rest
don't you want to climb a mountain
don't you want to ride the river
drink from a magic fountain
give your woman all the love that you can give her
don't you want to be an outlaw
don't you want to ride the range
don't you want to be an outlaw children
just like jesse, like jesse james
well dont you want to be an outlaw
don't you want to be an outlaw
just like jesse, just like jesse, just like jesse james
Lyrics submitted by Bobo192
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