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.
Winding your way down on Baker Street
Light in your head and dead on your feet
Well, another crazy day
You'll drink the night away
And forget about everything
This city desert makes you feel so cold
It's got so many people, but it's got no soul
And it's taken you so long
To find out you were wrong
When you thought it held everything
You used to think that it was so easy
You used to say that it was so easy
But you're trying, you're trying now
Another year and then you'd be happy
Just one more year and then you'd be happy
But you're crying, you're crying now
Way down the street there's a light in his place
He opens the door, he's got that look on his face
And he asks you where you've been
You tell him who you've seen
And you talk about anything
He's got this dream about buying some land
He's gonna give up the booze and the one-night stands
And then he'll settle down
In some quiet little town
And forget about everything
But you know he'll always keep moving
You know he's never gonna stop moving
'Cause he's rolling, he's the rolling stone
And when you wake up, it's a new morning
The sun is shining, it's a new morning
And you're going, you're going home
Light in your head and dead on your feet
Well, another crazy day
You'll drink the night away
And forget about everything
This city desert makes you feel so cold
It's got so many people, but it's got no soul
And it's taken you so long
To find out you were wrong
When you thought it held everything
You used to think that it was so easy
You used to say that it was so easy
But you're trying, you're trying now
Another year and then you'd be happy
Just one more year and then you'd be happy
But you're crying, you're crying now
Way down the street there's a light in his place
He opens the door, he's got that look on his face
And he asks you where you've been
You tell him who you've seen
And you talk about anything
He's got this dream about buying some land
He's gonna give up the booze and the one-night stands
And then he'll settle down
In some quiet little town
And forget about everything
But you know he'll always keep moving
You know he's never gonna stop moving
'Cause he's rolling, he's the rolling stone
And when you wake up, it's a new morning
The sun is shining, it's a new morning
And you're going, you're going home
Lyrics submitted by Nelly, edited by authun, lola101962
Baker Street Lyrics as written by Gerald Rafferty
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
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To answer that question from heylister - How can this be a sad song when it's so uplifting?:
First of all, it doesn't lift me up. But I know what you mean. The music is powerful and impressive, it "rocks". The reason behind it is that the person this song is about, is depressed, he feels his life is like plastic. Emptiness. Yet he tries helplessly to find what he's missing, and he does that by going out, having fun. Hence the uplifting part. What he doesn't see, is that having fun only makes him more depressed. It enlarges the contrast. It's like having fun when you're not happy. Instant happiness, but it's fake. He's lonely. He tries to drink his problems away, or to find some distraction in any way by going out and partying. He - and the other person in the song - try to escape from their problems. They try to just walk away from it, even by moving to a quiet little town. Forget about everything. What they don't see is that the problem won't be solved by that. The problem is in themselves. You know he'll always keep movin', you know he's never gonna stop movin'.
Everything in this song, all lines are sad. This song is depressing (to me that's a very positive thing, I need these songs sometimes..they help). I think lots and lots of people live this way, and they aren't even aware of it..
@Falcon wise boy..
People get trapped by their past, and trapped by desires for the future.
This song is perfect for describing that feeling of dissatisfaction. Drinking, one-night stands, another year, giving up these things we know don't bring us happiness, all these distractions and bargains we make with ourselves. But in this very moment, happiness is always hard to come by.
Gerry Rafferty also wrote "Stuck In The Middle With You" by Stealer's Wheel. Another song about limbo, emotional purgatory, indecision. I have heard these songs for decades, yet only recently understood the words and thought about their meanings. Nice.
@JayCeezy Thank you for your insights. Right on.
My dad used to know Gerry quite well, he still has family where I live (Paisley, Scotland).. The song is about his friend and former bandmate Billy Connolly - the comedian - when he first left their band and moved to London.
@div76 great songs fit the one person it is about AND INSPIRES MANY OTHERS TO ANSWER OR ADD AA IF THEY WERE WRITTEN & Sung About
@div76 Now we know exactly what its about !
@div76 Now we know exactly what its about ! The lyrics are mysterious and that Sax is so smooth.. The lead guitar comes in and its so simple , but so bad ass ! This should be in top 20 rock/pop songs of all time.. Classic!
Like nearly all of GRs lyrics - it's autobiographical. A talanted wealthy SCOT living in LONDON and hating it.BUT ..'The sun is shining, it's a new morning......going home' And boy does that sax and guirar solo make 'going home' feel GOOD
Yes, autobiographical but there is much more in the "sun is shining" verse. <br /> <br /> He did what a lot of struggling performers do, he signed the first contract shoved in his face without understanding what it said. <br /> <br /> He spent years getting out of that contract. <br /> <br /> The new morning was the day he officially was free of his old contract. So, finally, he was able to get more of the money generated by the music he had written and could sign to a new label and record this song which made him uncomfortably famous. <br /> <br /> All most performers really want is a reasonable amount of success and a long career. To give it a grade it would be like a C+ to a B. <br /> <br /> But the music industry isn't like that. It's either Ds, D -s or Fs or A to A+++++<br /> <br /> I know a guy who went through it and finally getting out of his RCA Wooden Nickle contract (yes, it was actually called Wooden Nickle) it gave the right to his own songs back to him to re-record if he wanted and reopened his options with other labels and publishers. <br /> <br /> It was like Christmas, New Years, and Mardi Gras rolled up into one.
You are right, most of his album is autobiographical. He was doing a lot of travelling between Scotland and London (hence the album title, City to City) and he had a lot of time for reflection and contrast. And what a powerful statement musically and lyrically.<br /> <br /> Falcon makes some great comments about the song below. All I would add is that in the song he sees a parallel between his life and that of his friend with the 'dreams about buying some land'. In a fatalistic way, he sees the 'die as cast'; that the very things that bind us are the things that define us. Like his friend, he is stuck in his own rut and despite his best intentions of things changing they never will. We are left with the feeling that he will be forever stuck in that endless cycle of work/ stress, getting drunk to numb the pain and living in hope. The only release is when he finally escapes and heads back to Scotland. Musically he transports us there with him via the fantastic outro part.<br />
@ceadmileuk , baker street in London? sure about that? last I checked London isn't a Desert City? however Phoenix is? and so is Dungeness... ? ? ? like most songs, tit really isn't about anything fictitious really, just some lines and rhymes..
@ceadmileuk I'm not certain the last lines describe such a happy ending. "Going home " is sometimes meant as going home to meet God or to be at peace. And he could be using "morning" as a homonym with "mourning." The song always leaves me with the ominous feeling that he take his own life in the end.
i am originaly from canada and am now living in london england. when i am on the sub way i always go by bakerstreet and all of a sudden i have the sax intro stuck in my head.
The song is what goes thru your head as you go to the London office to renegotiate the royalties for your songs; a very unpleasant chore when all you want to do is make good music.
As someone who works in the movie industry (not music, but similar bs to it), I applaud this interpretation, and it depresses me even more. Thank you. :)
Incredibly powerful song. Very depressing, actually brings tears to my eyes sometimes. My favorite lyrics from this song are:
"Another year and then you'll be happy Just one more year and then you'll be happy But you're cryin' You're cryin' now"
This really speaks to me -- you always think things will get better, but sometimes the time passes and things are still bad. It reminds me of college in the mid-90s when I was in freezing cold upstate NY and I would hear this song, and I just wanted to get out of there in the worst way, but I felt so trapped. This song really spoke to me and the lyrics mirrored exactly what I was feeling.
Is college in upstate NY really that bad? I always regretted not finding a way to go to Cornell until I read of all the suicides...
Beautiful song! Saxophone is DEEP! I mean DEEP!!!! Real powerful song, Im only 19 and heard it on the radio, and falled in love with the song.
i love this song best drunken song to go nuts to pus it reminds me of the simpsons when lisa plays it
Probably the most beautiful song I've ever heard, I love it