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We Were Wealth Lyrics

though i am grown,
i am living like a child now.
i wish, i want:
giving myself everything
fearing the release,
keeping the peace

say, for instance,
i pay money for an object
sight unseen,
how is it that it speaks for me,
borrowed never earned,
in debt from birth

fill the days at any cost and spent your earnings,
ease the losses

we were wealth and we were money,
of the world and needing nothing
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Cover art for We Were Wealth lyrics by Wye Oak

this is my interpretation. can anyone fill in the blanks?

I'm with you on the first 10 lines (did you get some of that from my submission to lyrics.wikia, or did we get the same independently?) I'm hearing more syllables than "poor old lover", and there's definitely an S in the middle of the following line:

Poor o never heard/hurt In days/terms/times of pr__

The closing lines, combining my take with yours, I think it's:

Feel the days end and we close down Spend your moment We shall all see If we run or fly we run away On my own and We will go free We will go free We will go free...

nice work rocketcar.

i think i did adapt from your lyrics.wikia post.

i've made some changes above using your take and reevaluating.

i think it's "i'm living like a child NOW" sounds like one syllable not "at home" i don't think it's "i pay money for a second chance", seems like it should be two syllables not three, and it has a more open sound like the words "now" or "ouch" do. hmm... as far as the "poor old lover" line goes i think you're right that it has the word "never" in there, but i think that she's just elongating...

Cover art for We Were Wealth lyrics by Wye Oak

i know nothing definitively here, but i just have a couple suggestions...

it sounds like she might be saying "FEELING the release," as opposed to "FEARING" it, but i'm not sure.

say, for instance i pay money for AN OBJECT sight unseen how is it that it speaks for me poor --- (i don't know what she's saying here... but it sounds like it ends with "never owed")

INSTEAD OF: feel the days end and we close down I HEAR: fill/feel the days at any cost i'd

and then rather than "if we run or fly," i hear "cause we were wealth and"

i know it's a far stretch... :)

I think you're right on a bunch of that, mostly because of context -- it makes the lines make more sense. Especially "we were wealth" being a line in the song.

It's pretty much impossible to get the words right from one recording; often a few live versions (even on youtube) will confirm a word or phrase without a doubt. Unfortunately there's only one muddy version of this on youtube that I've found.

Cover art for We Were Wealth lyrics by Wye Oak

sorry, meant for that to be a reply to Justus0

Cover art for We Were Wealth lyrics by Wye Oak

i've re-interpreted... who knows how many times i will do this with these songs? this is my favorite on the album, though.

though i am grown i'm living like a child now i wish, i want giving myself everything fearing the release keeping the peace

say, for instance i pay money for an object sight unseen how is it that it speaks for me --- i'll never own/or never owed indifferently (i'm fairly certain this isn't what she's saying here, but if i pretend i can almost pull it off)

feel/fill the days at any cost i'd spend you'll/your own and we shall all see (?)

'cause we were wealth and we were running/lonely i'll fly home and we will go free we will go free we will go free we will go free we will go free

not a far stretch at all!

definitely is "if we were wealth and..." after there it gets shaky...

possibly something like "if we were wealth and / we were golden / on our own and / we will go free" i'm less sure of the rest now that you've got the section onto its correct start.

if made the appropriate changes above.

i always thought she was saying "we were golden," but i started to doubt myself after reading other interpretations and trying to contextualize.

i have to say these civilian lyrics began to feel like a little project we were both working on. it's been both mind-numbing and really quite fun, though that may seem an unlikely pairing :) i think it's safe to say that it'll never be 100% complete.

Cover art for We Were Wealth lyrics by Wye Oak

lyrics updated above according to Wye Oak.

Lyric Correction

where did you get the lyrics-- i mean, how? damn it, i refuse to read them! haha. i will NOT have wye oak just giving out their lyrics on a whim, after all this time and effort. i have come to enjoy the mystery of not necessarily knowing.

(i'll probably succumb and read them a little later... maybe when i'm mildly intoxicated)

:)

Cover art for We Were Wealth lyrics by Wye Oak

"though I am grown, I am living like a child now." grown person living without worries or stresses (I'd assume on account of the distraction of a great love)

"i wish, i want: giving myself everything, fearing the release, keeping the peace" letting herself go within the love- giving her whole heart, "keeping peace" to avoid confrontation which may lead to "the release" (/breakup)

"say, for instance I pay money for an object; sight unseen, how is it that it speaks for me" if I buy something with money, I do not experience it as I experience real life/love. With love, I have senses. Without, I am blind (sight unseen). How does having something so meaningless (in comparison) help me?

...don't know the lyrics here...

"feel the days at any cost" how much the camping trip/concert/afternoon lunch costs is an absurd thing to worry about when it's to spend time with your lover. just do lots of things with them.

"spend your own and we shall all see" as I am spending all my energy/devotion on you, spend all yours on me. maybe we will last/work out.

"cuz we were wealth and we were money" separately, we were both totally equipped (emotionally/mentally) for a big, devoted love

"I'll fly home and we will go free" even when we are separate/alone, we'll still be like children [mentioned in the first line- carefree]

It's about the change in perspective love brings about. How "worldly" matters suddenly seem superfluous with a new lover. It's about wanting love for no one's sake but your own. For stability, comfort, joy, warmth...

My Interpretation
 
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