This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Lay down
Your sweet and weary head
The night is falling
You have come to journey's end
Sleep now
And dream of the ones who came before
They are calling
From across the distant shore
Why do you weep?
What are these tears upon your face?
Soon you will see
All of your fears will pass away
Safe in my arms
You're only sleeping
What can you see
On the horizon?
Why do the white gulls call?
Across the sea
A pale moon rises
The ships have come to carry you home
And all will turn
To silver glass
A light on the water
All Souls pass
Hope fades
Into the world of night
Through shadows falling
Out of memory and time
Don't say
We have come now to the end
White shores are calling
You and I will meet again
And you'll be here in my arms
Just sleeping
And all will turn
To silver glass
A light on the water
Grey ships pass
Into the West
Your sweet and weary head
The night is falling
You have come to journey's end
Sleep now
And dream of the ones who came before
They are calling
From across the distant shore
Why do you weep?
What are these tears upon your face?
Soon you will see
All of your fears will pass away
Safe in my arms
You're only sleeping
What can you see
On the horizon?
Why do the white gulls call?
Across the sea
A pale moon rises
The ships have come to carry you home
And all will turn
To silver glass
A light on the water
All Souls pass
Hope fades
Into the world of night
Through shadows falling
Out of memory and time
Don't say
We have come now to the end
White shores are calling
You and I will meet again
And you'll be here in my arms
Just sleeping
And all will turn
To silver glass
A light on the water
Grey ships pass
Into the West
Lyrics submitted by merchantpierce, edited by king102575
Into the West Lyrics as written by Philippa Boyens Howard Shore
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
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Great version of a great song,
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I like to think of the song as Elrond talking to his wife Celebrian before she departs for the grey havens. For those of you who don't know the story, Celebrian was the daughter of Galadriel and Celeborn. She had three children with Elrond; Twin boys Eledan and Elohir, and a daughter Arwen. Some time after Arwen's hirth, Celebrian decided to visit her parents in Loth Lorien. While traveling over the Misty Mountains, she is captured and tortured by orcs. She was there for a while before her sons came and rescued her. She was taken to Loth Lorien to heal, but she remained psychologically scarred. She could not remain in Middle Earth, and sailed across the sea to Valinor. This song makes me think of Elrond spending one last night with his wife before she leaves him. Much sadder when you know the story. Such a good song.
@Wiccanbabe Update: I am singing this song at my great grandfather's funeral. We weren't really close, but I think that it's the best I can do for him and the people attending the funeral.
@Wiccanbabe I never knew this. Thank you so much for sharing, i always knew there had to be a story behind this song, it is so powerful and sad. This is the song i plan on having when i pass away, as i know the lyrics will reassure me that there is a beautiful hereafter waiting for me. Blessed Be )O(
You and I seem to have some things in common, at least as regards our reactions to this song!<br /> <br /> "Into the West" reminds me of the parting of Elrond and Celebrían too. Of course, I'm pretty sure that in the context of the film, it's plainly intended to be directed to Frodo (and perhaps, to a lesser extent, Bilbo), but it is easy to see it in different and/or broader terms.<br /> <br /> My brother, sister, and I sang this song, accompanied by my half-sister (she's a professional musician), at my father's memorial service, about a year ago. He was a huge Tolkien fan and had been very impressed by the Peter Jackson films, and he was particularly fond of this song. I can't listen to it anymore without thinking of him. We were very close. He read The Hobbit to me, a chapter or so each night, when I was very little, which contributed greatly to my lifelong love of reading. It also encouraged me to learn to read: I was determined to be able to read along when we continued on to The Lord of the Rings.<br />