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Don't Be Scared Lyrics
When
Whenever Paul
thinks of rain
swallows fall
in a wave
and tap
on his windows
with their beaks
And when Paul
thinks of snow
soft winds blow
'round his head
and the phone
rings just once
late at night
like a bird
calling out,
"Wake up, Paul.
Don't be scared,
don't believe you're all alone."
"Wake up, Paul,"
whisper clouds rolling by
and the seeds
falling from the branches
and they're out from the branches
and they're
falling from the branches of the trees
out from the branches
falling from the branches
and they're
falling from the branches
of the trees
Whenever Paul
thinks of rain
swallows fall
in a wave
and tap
on his windows
with their beaks
thinks of snow
soft winds blow
'round his head
and the phone
rings just once
late at night
like a bird
calling out,
"Wake up, Paul.
Don't be scared,
don't believe you're all alone."
whisper clouds rolling by
and the seeds
and they're out from the branches
and they're
falling from the branches of the trees
falling from the branches
and they're
falling from the branches
of the trees
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Just wanted to add that these lyrics are attributed to Rennie Sparks because this is a Handsome Family song (like "Tin Foil" on Fingerlings 3).
This song is strikingly beautiful, full of brilliant darkness and swelling wonder. The vocal harmonies in Bird's version reflect (for me) the eerie comfort of that single, birdlike ring of the phone... Nora's voice creeps from a silvery echo into a strong reedy tension with Bird during the song's climax, making the sensed company/other fierce, corporeal, firmly benevolent.... And then it all falls away, and the seeds fall from the trees.
In Bird's hands, I see it as a song that struggles with the melancholy of human solitude and the lurking wonder of the world, which we perceive briefly but powerfully and fail to grasp.
God, it's great. Over the years, this has grown to be my favorite track on Weather Systems.
Your thoughts are beautifully expressed.
Your thoughts are beautifully expressed.
One Andrew Bird playlist I have ends with "Spare-ohs" followed by "Lazy Projector" (which starts with a quote from Spare-Ohs), and finishes with "Don't be Afraid", since it is in the same key as Lazy Projector and offers a kinder, gentler way to face pain or melancholy, recognizing you are not alone...
One Andrew Bird playlist I have ends with "Spare-ohs" followed by "Lazy Projector" (which starts with a quote from Spare-Ohs), and finishes with "Don't be Afraid", since it is in the same key as Lazy Projector and offers a kinder, gentler way to face pain or melancholy, recognizing you are not alone...
Oh, I think this song is about growing up. The seeds falling from the branches of the trees means facing the world on your own, as it often feels like when you grow up. This song, however assures us that we aren't alone.
Andrew Bird is the greatest.
On his website, the lyrics are credited to "Rennie Sparks," but having the song here at least provides an open forum for talking about it.
I haven't really given a great deal of thought to the meaning of the song, but I will say that it makes you feel better when you're down...
I can't believe there are only two comments on this song! I haven't thought too deeply about it but I really like it. Also one of my favorites on Weather Systems.
Yeah, this song is so lovely.
I swear, this song always makes me feel better whenever I am having a bad day. I don't know why. I think it's beacause it mentions snow. Since moving from the east coast to California, I have always badly missed all that snow. This kindof just makes me feel goooood.
This is a cover. The original band is The Handsome Family. Ronnie Sparks leads the band with spouse, Brett Sparks. The versions are different. I was almost surprised that there could be a slower version than The Handsome Family's. The Giant of Illinois is another one of The Handsome Family's songs.
oops thats been said already. my bad.
oops thats been said already. my bad.
This is truly beautiful. I love the harmony especially. It's a wonderful song that seems to be about the beauty and strangeness of the world and how it's ok if you're a little strange too.
Andrew Bird's older brother is "on the spectrum." This isn't a secret-- Tea and Thorazine is about being in care. I always suspected that Rennie Sparks wrote this for Andrew, for his brother. It's the first of her songs that he's recorded, until he finally just went and made a whole record of Handsome Family tracks.
Seen through that data, the song seems clear to me. This doesn't mean my eyes don't get foggy sometimes when I sing along.