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Barcarola (You Must Be a Christmas Tree) Lyrics
Oh, no one else is happily, recklessly
Asking for more than what they may need
I can't say what I need
Oh, temper what you say if you've nothing nice to say
So my grandmother says to me
With her heart on her sleeve
So, sadly I left the door open
And I let the dog out in the snow
Oh where did she go?
Oh, father friend, will you punish me, punish me
With a look of contempt, with a look of contempt
I can't recall
Oh, I know you did right by me, right by me
Wagging your hands when you found me
With the bag of your things
Please, please don't be a stranger here
A stranger who takes from the world
Who takes from the world
You, you must be a Christmas tree, a Christmas tree
You light up the room, oh, you light up the room
Oh, you light up the room
So suddenly you kissed me
You tickled me in front of your mother, who looked away
With her hands on her face
Don't run away my friend
You won't be back again, you said you needed me
But I know that you needed yourself to be cleaned of me
Don't run away my friend, you won't be back again
You said you needed me
But I know that you needed yourself to be cleaned of me
Don't run away my friend, you won't be back again
You ran your hands through my hair, through the snow
Where the frost-blooded flows with the terrible ghost
Don't run away my friend, you won't be back again
You said you needed me
But I know
Asking for more than what they may need
I can't say what I need
So my grandmother says to me
With her heart on her sleeve
And I let the dog out in the snow
Oh where did she go?
With a look of contempt, with a look of contempt
I can't recall
Wagging your hands when you found me
With the bag of your things
A stranger who takes from the world
Who takes from the world
You light up the room, oh, you light up the room
Oh, you light up the room
You tickled me in front of your mother, who looked away
With her hands on her face
You won't be back again, you said you needed me
But I know that you needed yourself to be cleaned of me
You said you needed me
But I know that you needed yourself to be cleaned of me
You ran your hands through my hair, through the snow
Where the frost-blooded flows with the terrible ghost
You said you needed me
But I know
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I can't believe no one has commented yet on how beautiful this song is. One of his best Christmas song IMO.
very minor corrections on the lyrics. All and all great job.
Oh, no one else is happily, recklessly Asking for more than what they may need I can't say what I need
Oh, temper what you say if you've nothing nice to say So my grandmother says to me With her heart on her sleeve
So, sadly I left the door open And I left the dog out in the snow Oh where did she go?
Oh, father friend, will you punish me, punish me With a look of content, with a look of content I can't recall
Oh, I know you did right by me, right by me Wagging your hands when you found me With the bag of your things
Please, please don’t be a stranger here A stranger who takes from the world Who takes from the world
You, you must be a Christmas tree, a Christmas tree You light up the room, oh, you light up the room Oh, you light up the room
Please, solemnly you kissed me You tickled me in front of your mother, who looked away With her hands on her face
Don't run away my friend You won't be back again, you said you needed me But I know that you needed yourself to be cleaned of me
Don't run away my friend, you won't be back again You said you needed me But I know that you needed yourself to be cleaned of me
Don't run away my friend, you won't be back again You ran your hands through my hair, through the snow Where the frost-blooded flows with the terrible ghost
Don't run away my friend, you won't be back again You said you needed me But I know
Thank you very much! I took quite some time sitting here, listening to the song and typing up the lyrics as best I could, haha. I added your corrections. It truly is one of his best Christmas songs. It's a surprise to me that most don't even have this volume from Songs for Christmas.
Thank you very much! I took quite some time sitting here, listening to the song and typing up the lyrics as best I could, haha. I added your corrections. It truly is one of his best Christmas songs. It's a surprise to me that most don't even have this volume from Songs for Christmas.
i'm pretty sure it's "with a look of contempt" hence, the punishment
i'm pretty sure it's "with a look of contempt" hence, the punishment
You're right. I changed it
You're right. I changed it
Does anyone else think the "Don't run away my friend/You won't be back again" sounds like an interpolation of the chorus of Leslie Gore's "You Don't Own Me"? That's the first thing I thought of when I heard this song. Great track.
Sorry, that's Lesley Gore for anyone searching for it.
Sorry, that's Lesley Gore for anyone searching for it.
This is a beautiful song. I wonder if this song has thematic links Sufjan's "Predatory Wasp of the Palisades." Both songs speak of a relationship with a friend that seems emotional or romantic (with the friend and him kissing), in which the friend "runs away."
The friend in "Palisades" seems male, and I can't find anything in this song suggesting otherwise (nothing is overtly female about the friend). It may be that the "friend" who kissed him in this song the same "father friend" he mentions a few lines before (kinda unsettling, but who knows). Or maybe he's referring to a number of different characters as friends?
I suppose the dog he left out in the snow could be the friend as well. It may seem silly, but I've seen similar interpretations that "Palisades" was about a dog (c.f. "I can tell you, we swaggered and swayed").
I think you're right about the dog, aylamarax. I thought this when I first heard it - kind of a conversation between him and the dog. Then I learned that he did in fact lose a dog, who was run over by a snow plow. To me the song is about grief, and it's one of the saddest and most beautiful songs I've ever heard. But wonderful, because the dog still lives in the words and the music.
I think you're right about the dog, aylamarax. I thought this when I first heard it - kind of a conversation between him and the dog. Then I learned that he did in fact lose a dog, who was run over by a snow plow. To me the song is about grief, and it's one of the saddest and most beautiful songs I've ever heard. But wonderful, because the dog still lives in the words and the music.
I really like your take on it. I just don't think the dog is the friend, and I think that it's very intentional that Sufjan would say the dog is a she, maybe exactly so we know the dog is not a friend, since the friend is male. This would also give sense to the line when the friend tickles him, and his mother looks away with her hands on her face
I really like your take on it. I just don't think the dog is the friend, and I think that it's very intentional that Sufjan would say the dog is a she, maybe exactly so we know the dog is not a friend, since the friend is male. This would also give sense to the line when the friend tickles him, and his mother looks away with her hands on her face
I think this might be another song about Robyn, Sufjan's highschool girlfriend, who is also the subject of The Dress Looks Nice On You and Size Too Small.