A Real Hero

This song is about Chesley Burnett "Sully" Sullenberger III, the famed airline pilot of U.S. Airways Flight 1549 who successfully made an emergency landing onto the Hudson River, saving the lives of all 155 passengers and crew.

Be a human being ( being bein being... ) And a real hero ( hero hero hero... )

Back against the wall and odds With the strength of a will and a cause Your pursuits are called outstanding You're emotionally complex

Against the grain of dystopic claims Not the thoughts your actions entertain And you, have proved, to be

A real human being, and a real hero Real human being, and a real hero Real human being, and a real hero Real a human being ( being being being... )

A pilot on a cold, cold morn' One hundred fifty-five people on board All safe and all rescued From the slowly sinking ship

Water warmer than His head so cool In that tight bind knew what to do And you, have proved, to be

A real human being, and a real hero Real a human being, and a real hero Real a human being, and a real hero Real a human being Real a human being ( being being being... ) Real a human being.

Aside from Captain Sullenberger III, I think that this song is about the emotional and 'human' investment it takes to be a hero. You must be willing to look beyond peoples faults and misgivings in order to summon the will to save them.

ALSO, DRIVE WAS AN AMAZING MOVIE!!! haha

Can I just say how much I love the soundtrack from the movie, Drive? The 80sish synth music really characterized the movie and the Driver.

This song is one of my favorites, and I liked the reference to the pilot, Sullenberger III in the second verse. In relation to Drive, the lyrics synchronize what the Driver does. He's a bit of an antihero, for sure. But he loves Irene and her son and he successfully cleans up the chaos her husband left behind. "And you, have proved, to be A real human being, and a real hero"

back against the wall and odds

your pursuit are called outstanding

While the postmodern context of the film "Drive" may twist the meaning of the lyrics for its own, arty benefit a lot, I still find it a bit hard to believe that people took the song meaning completely at face value, with no sardonic subtext. OK, it is a tribute to a pilot who made a fine job. But isn't it also a critique of society, saying that, while, yes there are people who act heroically (whatever it means, maybe the song writers don't think they fully know) this prevalent attitude in society is also rather absurd, in the way it is clung on to?

"Your pursuits are called outstanding You're emotionally complex"

Come on, it's not straight down the line here.

"Water warmer than His head so cool In that tight bind knew what to do"

To me this is the epitomé of intended ambivalence, a kind of paradox of reality where oppositional meanings are very strong in their own rights.

My interpretation of these lyrics is that they are speaking about people in general and saying that we all have the potential to do great, selfless and sometimes heroic things thus showing what it means to be human and proving that although the daily news is full of doom and gloom (dystopic claims) there really is good in the world. The 2nd verses uses Captain Sullenberger III as an example.

When using the word great I am not just refering to saving lives but also to the small every day things like helping others and putting other peoples needs in front of your own.

We all should strive to be the kind of people that this song refers to and hope that we to have proved to be real human beings.

One of the most meaningful and Beautiful songs I've ever heard.

@ Winterfit. So because a female is singing it's assumed that it was written from a female perspective? This song was written by two MEN: David Grellier & Austin Garrick!

Not only is this a fantastic movie sound track, it's also quite meaningful in my opinion.

Most songs written from the perspective of a female are male bashing, for instance Lilly Allen etc but this song different because it is a celebration of masculinity, which makes a really nice change.