I am a lineman for the county
And I drive the main road
Searchin' in the sun for another overload
I hear you singin' in the wire
I can hear you through the whine
And the Wichita lineman is still on the line
I know I need a small vacation
But it don't look like rain
And if it snows that stretch down south won't ever stand the strain
And I need you more than want you
And I want you for all time
And the Wichita lineman is still on the line
And I need you more than want you
And I want you for all time
And the Wichita lineman is still on the line
And I drive the main road
Searchin' in the sun for another overload
I hear you singin' in the wire
I can hear you through the whine
And the Wichita lineman is still on the line
I know I need a small vacation
But it don't look like rain
And if it snows that stretch down south won't ever stand the strain
And I need you more than want you
And I want you for all time
And the Wichita lineman is still on the line
And I need you more than want you
And I want you for all time
And the Wichita lineman is still on the line
Lyrics submitted by goodreverend, edited by Mellow_Harsher
"Wichita Lineman" as written by Jimmy Webb
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
I agree completely with your interpretation. Maybe it's my own projection, but just the tone of this song is somber. I guess I can easily be interpreted as being away from the one loves him too, but it feels like unrequited love to me
I agree completely with your interpretation. Maybe it's my own projection, but just the tone of this song reflects a somber feeling.
Opinionhead - your interpretation is the correct one.
nice.
For me ,sitting in the backseat of my dads Ford station wagon, driving home at dusk, after a Sunday visit from my uncles.
I don't think it's saying he's dependent, per se. It's saying he both needs and wants her(a safer way for him to say he loves her), and he's illustrating how intense his feelings are by pointing out that if he could "want her for all time" yet also need her EVEN MORE than that, it must mean his feelings are very real, very deep. I think it's using one to emphasize the other and emphasize BOTH at the same time.
I've always felt it's pretty much the narrator attempting to be flowery and emotional, trying to get across how much he cares. I imagine the guy is very work-oriented, not very open with his feelings, and that line is his way of trying to express the vastness of his love for her. It really paints a picture in my mind. As in: "I want you for all time, see? And yet somehow I find that I also NEED you even MORE than I want you...which is overhwelming, because I never knew I could need and want a person so much."
In my mind it's one of those scenes where a person deeply loves someone but can't directly say it, due to being reserved/not knowing how to express it, so the person outlines it with lines like the ones above.
Makes the hopeless romantic in me sigh.
I think what I like is the spareness of the arrangement, how it paints a picture of a guy against a background of big, open country and wide sky, squinting into the sun as he checks the wires. The whole song is kind of poignant, giving the impression of his loneliness as he works long hours alone, while thinking of the woman he loves. Even after hearing it a million times, it still always touches me.