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If You Never Got Sick Lyrics
That ain’t a parachute
That ain’t a rip cord
That ain’t a body of water
We’re headed for
There’s so little time left
So much to be done
Even you are going to need someone
That ain’t a trick of light
Or the morning haze
Coming in from the lake
Getting into your eyes
It’s the invisible breath
Of a storm on the rise
That I feel whenever you arrive
I may not be quick
I maybe never was
But tell me what the hell it is
That you’ve become
Baby if you never got sick
I wouldn’t get to hold you
Baby if you never got sick
I wouldn't get to hold you
This ain’t no righteous love
Even a good one
These ain’t the kinds of returns
That I was thinking of
I’m unbearable now
You ain’t seen nothing yet
You’ll see me dead
Before you see me quit
That ain’t a jug of wine
That you’ve been drinking from
Now lay back now baby
Let your fever come
I will bury you in
Just to dig you out
I haven’t a use
For being proud
The deeper the slide
The higher the rise
Now don't be disappointed how I'm using my line
Baby if you never got sick
I wouldn’t get to hold you
Baby if you never got sick
I wouldn't get to hold you
I think I made a mistake
I think I pushed when you said wait
But I never get to hold you
Ooh, ooh, ooh
I followed you deep into a barren field
There was someone you were running from
When I needed to sleep
That’s when you disappeared
But I did get the impossible done
Now I always knew
That there was God inside you
I just never did learn which one
Baby if you never got sick
I wouldn’t get to hold you
Baby if you never got sick
I wouldn't get to hold you
Baby if you never got sick
I wouldn’t get to hold you
Baby if you never got sick
I would never get to hold you
Song Info
Submitted by
planetearth On Apr 10, 2004
More The Wallflowers
One Headlight
Three Marlenas
6th Avenue Heartache
Closer To You
Heroes (David Bowie cover)
Awesome song, but the pre-chorus for the second verse is missing.
Sorry, that's how the lyrics are listed in the liner notes that come with the CD. I corrected the part before the chorus and the other verse. I think I got the words right, but it's hard to tell.
I've always loved this song, but I don't think that I ever really understood it until last night. I was at the Wallflowers concert in Cleveland and for whatever reason I just had an epiphany about it.
this song is about someone who is strong and doesn't allow their partner to ever take care of them. When they start to get sick, their partner sees it as an opportunity to finally be there for them.
There’s so little time left So much to be done Even you are going to need someone
I will bury you in Just to dig you out I haven’t a use For being proud
he doesn't care about being proud... he just wants to take care of his partner (who normally won't allow any help) and help them feel better. :-)
I'll agree with that. I'm actually a lot like that partner, not allowing help or anything, until I'm sick and I can't be independent any longer.
i agree that this song is about not being able to help a strong partner until they're sick, but i get a vibe that it's almost like the person singing is trying to MAKE the other person sick or weak...
I think I made a mistake I think I pushed when you said wait But I never get to hold you
It almost sounds to me like the person was so tired of not being able to take care of their partner that they felt the only way they could do it is if they made their partner feel weak or incompitent.
This song paints a different picture for me.
I see a disintegrating relationship with an emotionally damaged woman. She goes to him for physical comfort. He's so infatuated that he's eager just to be used.
He knew her before, and picked her up when she was on the rebound. Now he's doomed to be the rebound guy. If he had waited, maybe they could have had something. But then if he had waited, maybe he wouldn't have gotten anything.
It took me a while to get the imagery. The parachute is referencing the relationship, about to crash and burn. With the "jug of wine," he says she's using him; drinking his blood. The barren field is the loveless place she's gone after a failed relationship. No good comes from following somebody there.
What I find gripping is on one hand his awareness of the doomed, destructive nature of the relationship and on the other his powerlessness in the face of his lust and emotion. He never talks about her qualities, just the feeling that grips him. Despite all his critical awareness, he can hope: Even you are going to need someone.