I'm Sorry that
I could never love you back
I could never care enough
In these last days

Her tears
Fell on her pages found me well
On her words I don't know what
To do or say

Wading through
Warm canals and pools clear blue
Where Tuscarawas flow into
The Great Lakes

Riding back
To where the highway met
Dead end tracks
The ground is now cement and glass
And far away

Heal her soul, carry her, my angel, Ohio

Green green youth
What about the sweetness we knew
What about what's good what's true
From those days

Can't count to
All the lovers I've burned through
So why do I still burn for you
I can't say

Sorry that
I could never love you back
I could never care enough in these last days

Heal her soul, carry her, my angel, Ohio

Children bless
And gather round the bed she rests
So poor and cold in their Midwest
Moon and sun

Flashes bringing on
My open eyes to lightning storm
The touch of mist felt soft, felt warm
On my face

Graving dreams
A million miles ago you seem
A star that I just don't see
Anymore

Words long gone
Lost on journeys we walked on
Lost are voices heard along the way

Sorry for
Never going by your door
Never feeling love like that
Anymore

Heal her soul, carry her, my angel, Ohio


Lyrics submitted by mab, edited by timbertime, PMWilson, phcfo

Carry Me Ohio Lyrics as written by Mark Edward Kozelek

Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.

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Carry Me Ohio song meanings
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  • +2
    General Comment

    Well, I've read through the other comments, but I think I take it a little differently. I don't think it's about a literal person, but rather a personification of Ohio. I think the author of the song is grieving the death of "green green youth" of the midwest by the modern destruction of the land and communities i.e "riding back/where the highway met dead end tracks/the ground is now cement and glass/so far away." He's singing about leaving and how, unlike other lovers, he still "burns" for her, however can't love her back in the same way anymore. The metaphorical use of an intimate relationship to describe his love for what is presumably his home town, illustrates how everything is relative and that places, just like people, change over time, but it's the memories that keep you bonded. It was a part of who you became, but the romance cannot last forever because ultimately lovers grow apart. Which pairs nicely with the morose tone and weeping inflections in his voice.

    krisssteeon January 13, 2010   Link

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