In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Timothy Leary's dead.
No, no, no, no,
He's outside looking in
Timothy Leary's dead.
No, no, no, no,
He's outside looking in.
He'll fly his astral plane,
Takes you trips around the bay,
Brings you back the same day,
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary's dead.
No, no, no, no,
He's outside looking in.
Timothy Leary's dead.
No, no, no, no,
He's outside looking in.
He'll fly his astral plane,
Takes you trips around the bay,
Brings you back the same day,
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
Along the coast you'll hear them boast
About a light they say that shines so clear.
So raise your glass, we'll drink a toast
To the little man who sells you thrills along the pier.
He'll take you up, he'll bring you down,
He'll plant your feet back firmly on the ground.
He flies so high, he swoops so low,
He knows exactly which way he's gonna go.
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
He'll take you up, he'll bring you down,
He'll plant your feet back on the ground.
He'll fly so high, he'll swoop so low.
Timothy Leary.
He'll fly his astral plane.
He'll take you trips around the bay.
He'll bring you back the same day.
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
No, no, no, no,
He's outside looking in
Timothy Leary's dead.
No, no, no, no,
He's outside looking in.
He'll fly his astral plane,
Takes you trips around the bay,
Brings you back the same day,
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary's dead.
No, no, no, no,
He's outside looking in.
Timothy Leary's dead.
No, no, no, no,
He's outside looking in.
He'll fly his astral plane,
Takes you trips around the bay,
Brings you back the same day,
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
Along the coast you'll hear them boast
About a light they say that shines so clear.
So raise your glass, we'll drink a toast
To the little man who sells you thrills along the pier.
He'll take you up, he'll bring you down,
He'll plant your feet back firmly on the ground.
He flies so high, he swoops so low,
He knows exactly which way he's gonna go.
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
He'll take you up, he'll bring you down,
He'll plant your feet back on the ground.
He'll fly so high, he'll swoop so low.
Timothy Leary.
He'll fly his astral plane.
He'll take you trips around the bay.
He'll bring you back the same day.
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
Timothy Leary.
Lyrics submitted by weezerific:cutlery
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Standing On The Edge Of Summer
Thursday
Thursday
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
Possibly, this could be the Moodys theme song. People who dont "get" the Moody Blues music dont realize that they were mostly making background music for LSD trips. At least they were in the late 60s to early 70s. I love the whole Search of the Lost Chord album, its got that "lost innocence of the 60s" feel,although the sound quality of the original LP wasnt too good. I havnt seen a remastered version, but I will look out for it.
I belive this song is the Moody Blues way of saying that Timothy Leary had the right idea. "He's not dead, he's outside looking in" could mean, he's not a lost cause (dead) he understands the world (outside looking in). Not Known Fact: Mr. Leary experemented on collage students with LSD in small doses, and nobody had a negative reaction. Further more, some of them had their lives changed for the better! THINK ABOUT IT!
You are all correct. I was a teenager when the Moodies were a hip, psychedelic (even undergound) band. In the late 60s, if you were smoking good hash or dropping acid you listened to some mix of Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead, Pink Floyd (pre-Dark Side of the Moon) AND THE MOODY BLUES!! The Moodies, and Mike Pinder in particular, were "inner-nauts" who experimented with Eastern religion, meditation and (IMO) LSD. BTW, not that many people know this but the Moodies (Mike Pinder, actually) wrote another song about Tim Leary: "When You're a Free Man" on Seventh Sojourn.
@imagodoc Ah! A great Pinder fan! I absolutely agree with you on this magnificent musician. The Mellotron was a game changer. It mimicked the slide into a "trip" and I know that from personal experience. I was a more than moderate user of the "best way to travel" and it did change my life. I felt like I knew secrets of the universe. You and I might be about the same age so you know what I'm talking about. I stayed a big fan until Pinder left, then it just struck me a so so.. The messages seemed to not carry the power they did before. Their sound completely changed. But I have all the vinyl from the early days and CD backups. They aren't a band. They are a secret religion. :)
Timothy Leary, Ram Dass, and Ralph Metzner wrote a book called "The Psychedelic Experiance" based on the "Tibetan Book Of The Dead". It's bascially an instruction manual for use during a psychedelic experience. John Lennon even used its text in the song "Tomorrow Never Knows". The Moody Blues, especially Michael Pinder & John Lodge knew what was going on. On their album "Caught Live Plus Five" Ray Thomas introduces the song by saying "This song is about a friend of ours who has been terribly victimized in America". LSD was legal at first but became illeagle after the powers that be made that decision. That turned Leary into an outlaw and he wound up in prison. He escaped prision with the help of the Weather Underground but that's another story.
I can't believe nobody got this! The Astral Plane was NOT a sightseeing biplane in San Francisco, but I like that interpretation. Points given for creativity!
No, G.R.S. Meade, a English author said this in 1919 about Gnostic religions: "The astral plane, also called the astral world, is a plane of existence postulated by classical (particularly neo-Platonic), medieval, oriental and esoteric philosophies and mystery religions."
Yes, it breaks into the use and effects of LSD and other psychedelic drugs. And (imo) "the bay" is almost certainly about San Francisco, as the song was released only months after the Summer of Love.
Think for yourself. Question authority.
Question authority and just say KNOW.
One of their better ones...aboout drugs. More specifically psychedelic drugs aka LSD. Timothy Leary was actually psychologist, and he campaigned for the legal use of LSD drugs. Thats a lesson for you kids, read, I remembered this from reading a book long ago. Anyways thye are kind of using his name as a metophor for the drug.
Leary had the right idea: RESPONSIBLE recreational use of drugs like LSD. A bit much to hope for, especially at that time, but good on him for questioning the motives of people who would ban drugs just for the sake of banning them, as if that ever stopped anyone.
The 'astral plane' part of this song fits in well with the references to Timothy Leary and the whole LSD thing. The Astral Plane was actually a plane that you could ride in. A man advertised for it in San Fransisco bay. For $10, he would 'take you up' for a trip around the bay, descibing various places of interest - sort of like a bus tour guide, but in a small plane. He would, then, of course, 'bring you down' and 'plant your feet back firmly on the ground'. (Part of the $10 fee was bringing you back to your point of origin). The Moody Blues mix this story with the Timothy Leary idea beautifully, making Leary the pilot. Brilliant.