3 Meanings
Add Yours
Follow
Share
Q&A
The Kid Lyrics
I'm the kid who ran away with the circus
Now I'm watering elephants
But sometimes I lie awake in the sawdust
Dreaming I'm in a suit of light
Late at night in the empty big top I'm
All alone on the high wire
Look, he's working without a net this time
He's a real death-defier
I'm the kid who always looked out the window
Failing tests in geography
But I've seen things far beyond just the schoolyard
Distant shores of exotic lands
There's the spires of the Turkish empire
It's six months since we made landfall
Riding low with the spices of India
Through Gibraltar, we're rich men all
I'm the kid who thought we'd someday be lovers
Always held out that time would tell
Time was talking, I guess I just wasn't listening
No surprise if you know me well
And as we're walking toward the train station
There's a whispering rainfall
'Cross the boulevard you slip your hand in mine
In the distance the train calls
I'm the kid who has this habit of dreaming
Sometimes gets me in trouble too
But the truth is I could no more stop dreaming
Than I could make them all come true
Now I'm watering elephants
But sometimes I lie awake in the sawdust
Dreaming I'm in a suit of light
Late at night in the empty big top I'm
All alone on the high wire
Look, he's working without a net this time
He's a real death-defier
I'm the kid who always looked out the window
Failing tests in geography
But I've seen things far beyond just the schoolyard
Distant shores of exotic lands
There's the spires of the Turkish empire
It's six months since we made landfall
Riding low with the spices of India
Through Gibraltar, we're rich men all
I'm the kid who thought we'd someday be lovers
Always held out that time would tell
Time was talking, I guess I just wasn't listening
No surprise if you know me well
And as we're walking toward the train station
There's a whispering rainfall
'Cross the boulevard you slip your hand in mine
In the distance the train calls
I'm the kid who has this habit of dreaming
Sometimes gets me in trouble too
But the truth is I could no more stop dreaming
Than I could make them all come true
Add your song meanings, interpretations, facts, memories & more to the community.
This is a classic Wilcox song, except he didn't write it. Buddy Mondlock did.
For me, this song isn't just about fanciful, never-fulfilled wishes. For me, the dreams in this song carry hope. A boy who dreams of the spice trade while failing his test in school may yet succeed in his adult years -- even succeed brilliantly -- as this kind of imagination cannot be taught and is a power greater than rote knowledge.
Similarly, we don't know the ending of the lovers' tale. Does she stay? or not? Perhaps she does.
This song is my namesake. "Time was talking / guess I just wasn't listening / No surprise if you know me well." That's me to a T.
The end of the lovers' tale is that was all in his imagination. When you listen to the song, the music changes mid-verse, and at the same time the lyric goes from reality to the world of imagination. Only in imagination did they get together. Great tune!!
The end of the lovers' tale is that was all in his imagination. When you listen to the song, the music changes mid-verse, and at the same time the lyric goes from reality to the world of imagination. Only in imagination did they get together. Great tune!!
What a story, a beautiful bittersweet song. Another one so close to home for me, as I'm such the same way. Anyway.
He's a dreamer, obviously. The lyrics here are pretty straightforward. He dreams of taking risks ("I'm all alone on the high wire / He's a real death defier") but they're just dreams.
I love the third verse - he fails all his tests in geography (the real world) but has seen so much more than everyone else in his vivid dreams. So his dreams don't get him anywhere in the real world, and actually distract him from it, but he can't help it.
So, the same is true of his love. He dreams about it vividly and fails at it in the real world, and then comes the surprise when it actually happens - and it's the train's last call, his last chance, and we don't know what happens next...
This is another wonderful classic Wilcox song, full of metaphors and great insights. The guitar on this one is lovely too, very well played and perfectly fitting to the lyrics. Excellent song, and that last sentiment gives it all away: "I could no more stop dreaming / Than I could make them all come true"
When I was in high school we had to choose a song we related to and play it at our retreat (it was Catholic school -- we went on religious retreats once a year). I chose this one because I've always gotten in trouble for my day-dreamy nature and tendency to live in a fantasy world.