"Wonderwall" as written by and Noel Gallagher....
Today is gonna be the day
That they're gonna throw it back to you
By now you should've somehow
Realized what you gotta do
I don't believe that anybody
Feels the way I do, about you now
Backbeat, the word was on the street
That the fire in your heart is out
I'm sure you've heard it all before
But you never really had a doubt
I don't believe that anybody
Feels the way I do about you now
And all the roads we have to walk are winding
And all the lights that lead us there are blinding
There are many things that I
Would like to say to you but I don't know how
Because maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall
Today was gonna be the day
But they'll never throw it back to you
By now you should've somehow
Realized what you're not to do
I don't believe that anybody
Feels the way I do, about you now
And all the roads that lead you there are winding
And all the lights that light the way are blinding
There are many things that I
Would like to say to you but I don't know how
I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall
I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall
I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
you're gonna be the one that saves me
you're gonna be the one that saves me
That they're gonna throw it back to you
By now you should've somehow
Realized what you gotta do
I don't believe that anybody
Feels the way I do, about you now
Backbeat, the word was on the street
That the fire in your heart is out
I'm sure you've heard it all before
But you never really had a doubt
I don't believe that anybody
Feels the way I do about you now
And all the roads we have to walk are winding
And all the lights that lead us there are blinding
There are many things that I
Would like to say to you but I don't know how
Because maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall
Today was gonna be the day
But they'll never throw it back to you
By now you should've somehow
Realized what you're not to do
I don't believe that anybody
Feels the way I do, about you now
And all the roads that lead you there are winding
And all the lights that light the way are blinding
There are many things that I
Would like to say to you but I don't know how
I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall
I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall
I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
you're gonna be the one that saves me
you're gonna be the one that saves me
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In other words, the song "Wonderwall" is basically about the butterflies you get in your stomach when your crush walks into the room and the thoughts that stem from those feelings.
"Today is gonna be the day
That they're gonna throw it back to you"
> He's saying today is your opportunity to express your love. You're going to be in the presence of your secret crush, and you better make your move.
"By now you should've somehow
Realized what you gotta do"
>He's saying that it's obvious you need to approach your crush and tell them how you feel. There's no other way. Silence leads to nothing. This, of course, is much easier said than done, due to fear of rejection.
"I don't believe that anybody
Feels the way I do, about you now"
>He's saying that nobody else in the world could possibly have stronger feelings toward this person at this exact moment in time. His crush is the only thing that's on his mind. From the moment he wakes up until he goes to sleep. He's infatuated with his crush.
"Back beat, the word was on the street
That the fire in your heart is out"
>His crush has been hurt so badly by relationships in the past, that he fears cynicism will ruin his odds at casting the spell that will capture his crush's heart.
"I'm sure you've heard it all before
But you never really had a doubt"
>He's certain his crush has been through it all in the past. She's entered relationships without second guessing and has been hurt because of it. He's afraid that this will scare her away from him.
"I don't believe that anybody
Feels the way I do about you now"
>He's saying that nobody else in the world could possibly have stronger feelings toward this person at this exact moment in time. His crush is the only thing that's on his mind. From the moment he wakes up until he goes to sleep. He's infatuated with his crush.
"And all the roads we have to walk are winding
And all the lights that lead us there are blinding"
>Relationships are so complicated and hard to obtain and maintain
"There are many things that I
Would like to say to you but I don't know how"
>He means exactly what is stated. He has so many things to say to his crush but is afraid to open his mouth and express his feelings because he fears rejection.
"Because maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall"
>It is possible that getting into a relationship with his crush will cure his loneliness and sadness and make him truly happy.
"Today was gonna be the day
But they'll never throw it back to you"
>In retrospect, he missed his opportunity to express his love. He remained silent and the opportunity to show his love is now gone. It's too late.
"By now you should've somehow
Realized what you're not to do'
>In retrospect, he realizes remaining silent and holding his feelings inside was the wrong thing to do, because now he is left wondering what could have been and it kills him inside.
"I don't believe that anybody
Feels the way I do, about you now"
>Still, he does not believe it is possible for anyone else on the planet to love her as much as he does, even though he was to scared of rejection to express his feelings.
"And all the roads that lead you there are winding
And all the lights that light the way are blinding"
>Relationships are so complicated and hard to obtain and maintain.
"There are many things that I
Would like to say to you but I don't know how"
>He means exactly what is stated. He has so many things to say to his crush but is afraid to open his mouth because he fears rejection.
"I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall"
>It is still possible that getting into a relationship with his crush will cure his loneliness and sadness and make him truly happy.
"I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall"
>It is still possible that getting into a relationship with his crush will cure his loneliness and sadness and make him truly happy.
"I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
You're gonna be the one that saves me
You're gonna be the one that saves me"
>He's now simply holding on to the fantasy that him and his crush will one day be together.
Just one tiny thing about your analysis.
Think about the song and one word that clings in your mind. What is this word you recall when thinking about the song ?
In my mind it's the word "Maybe", and I think the way he sings it is the most important thing in the song and the only tiny little thing missing in your comment.
The emphasis he puts on "Maybe" in regard to the next verse with "And after all" can't be innocent.
The important thing about the way he feels is not that his crush saves him. No, what's the most important is that he THINKS that MAYBE she COULD save him.
Like : "Maybe, maybe you're gonna be the one that saves me from my loneliness and despair, maybe you could bring me joy and we could live together, maybe we could start a real relation and be happy together for the rest of our lives, but what's important after all, is that now, today, at the present time, you're my little wonder wall, my little piece of heaven that makes me feel good and happy. No matter what's next, no matter if it's over in one week, one year or ten years, no matter if you say no today or if we get married one day, the important thing is the way I feel today by singing this song, telling you these words, thinking about you all the time, these little butterflies I have in my stomach when I think about you".
To me, what transpires behind that "Maybe / And after all" is that she already cured him. He's afraid to tell her, because just like you said in your comment, he has strong feelings for her and maybe could hurt her or scare her, but by feeling this way he's already cured from his loneliness and that's what matters.
Just like survivors from a crash or something like that, they often survive by themselves, help themselves survive. The only thing they need to survive is not someone helping them but having hope that someone CAN save them.
by the way: lets hear it for the man up stairs, plus five to Him.
I was going with it until I saw that....
The Movie, “Wonderwall” (1968) is about an aging, absent-minded biologist named Collins who has spent a lifetime peering through the small aperture of a microscope. Then, a young model named Penny Lane moves in next door. One night he sees a ray of light coming from the wall in his darkened flat and discovers a peephole into which he can observe Penny’s apartment. Peering through this aperture opens a completely fantastic and alien world of sex, drugs, psychedelia, and of course Penny naked. Collins gradually withdraws further and further into the wonderwall; or perhaps with a different perspective, allows his mind to expand into this new universe untethered by “ego” or “reality”. As he begins to drill more peepholes, and his observations become increasingly more fantastic and psychedelic. The act of observing another life unobserved by the subject (similar to the relationship of artists to their fans) has become transformational- it’s not really just about his love interest in Penny anymore- the wonderwall opens up an entirely new reality where none of the banality or limitation of actual life applies.
Noel’s wonderwall is music, and his Penny Lane is Paul McCartney. He has spent his whole life peering into the light coming through the aperture of media- his observations of his hero living a public life. Through music Noel is having an imaginary dialogue with Paul. The relationship of the speakers is that of mentor/role model and student. Noel is struggling internally with the idea that songwriting and performance has nothing to do with artistic authenticity- it’s just acting and burlesque to the Collins’ of the world- the word on the street. Noel wishes Paul would respond to criticism of his later work by producing new great material but that's a bit ironic if satisfying the masses means being inauthentic to one's artistic self.
(There is also another subtext I've heard that Noel may believe that Paul is actually William Campbell, and that it's time to come clean about it, but that's another thing entirely, and if true, it still fits with the song as laid out here. I don't really have a comment on PID theories)
Noel is living in both worlds right at the time of the songwriting: like Collins did at his wonderwall- and Noel feels himself being drawn into the same vortex of alternate reality now that he has been crowned “the next Paul”, and he’s scared he’ll follow Paul’s road. He’s met the real Paul, and so he has to square his fantasy version to a new reality- one which ultimately will help him define his own artistic identity. But the dialogue from Noel's perspective is still internal- the Paul inside his head is not the real Paul.
The dialogue’s subtext is that of disenchantment. You can almost hear Noel saying “Paul, you’re the greatest singer songwriter of the 20th century and it’s been 25 years since you put out a decent album. Buck up man, because people are saying you’re soft, and I’m afraid if I follow your steps I’ll get the same. But ultimately if it’s a road I must follow, maybe by continuing to place my faith I’ll ultimately save myself from what happened to you and John. If I go off the path now, I’m lost: since everything I am, I learned from you peering through the Wonderwall.
I had fuzzily thought that song was declaring someone was like their "Wonderwall", which seemed to mean someone who was great but also lost to them like this movie and album which fell into obscurity. I've also then read Noel saying this song was about "an imaginary friend whos gonna come and save you from yourself". This set of thoughts of yours brings all of that together. Thank you.
Today is gonna be the day
That they're gonna throw it back to you (you are in charge of my decisions now as I am in a coma)
By now you should've somehow
Realized what you gotta do (you have some plan in your head formulating)
I don't believe that anybody
Feels the way I do, about you now (I loved you more than anyone loved you)
Back beat, the word was on the street
That the fire in your heart is out (you are so numb, there is nothing)
I'm sure you've heard it all before
But you never really had a doubt
I don't believe that anybody
Feels the way I do about you now
And all the roads we have to walk are winding
And all the lights that lead us there are blinding (this is going to be a very rough trip and you must make it on your own).
There are many things that I
Would like to say to you but I don't know how (I can't communicate now, and before because of my brain tumor I could express myself properly.
Because maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall (you've always been there for me holding me up while I have been so sick)
Today was gonna be the day
But they'll never throw it back to you
By now you should've somehow
Realized what you're not to do
I don't believe that anybody
Feels the way I do, about you now
And all the roads that lead you there are winding
And all the lights that light the way are blinding
There are many things that I
Would like to say to you but I don't know how
I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall
I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
And after all, you're my wonderwall
I said maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me
You're gonna be the one that saves me
You're gonna be the one that saves me
Also, what does the line "Today is gonna be the day that they're gonna throw it back to you" mean? It doesn't seem to make sense in the context of "you're my friend and i secretly love you" deal.