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Pictures of You Lyrics

I've been looking so long at these pictures of you
That I almost believe that they're real
I've been living so long with my pictures of you
That I almost believe that the pictures
Are all I can feel

Remembering you standing quiet in the rain
As I ran to your heart to be near
And we kissed as the sky fell in
Holding you close
How I always held close in your fear
Remembering you running soft through the night
You were bigger and brighter and wider than snow
And screamed at the make-believe
Screamed at the sky
And you finally found all your courage
To let it all go

Remembering you fallen into my arms
Crying for the death of your heart
You were stone white
So delicate
Lost in the cold
You were always so lost in the dark
Remembering you how you used to be
Slow drowned
You were angels
So much more than everything
Hold for the last time then slip away quietly
Open my eyes
But I never see anything

If only I'd thought of the right words
I could have held on to your heart
If only I'd thought of the right words
I wouldn't be breaking apart
All my pictures of you

Looking so long at these pictures of you
But I never hold on to your heart
Looking so long for the words to be true
But always just breaking apart
My pictures of you

There was nothing in the world
That I ever wanted more
Than to feel you deep in my heart
There was nothing in the world
That I ever wanted more
Than to never feel the breaking apart
All my pictures of you
Song Info
Submitted by
oofus On May 21, 2001
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127 Meanings

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Cover art for Pictures of You lyrics by Cure, The

do you remember the first person you feel in love with? really, fell in love with? trusted with everything? do you remember the rush of hormones? the intensity? do you remember how it felt when it ended? the raw pain, the raw ache. you never hurt the same about anyone again. you'll never feel exactly the same about anyone else, again. there are new loves, different loves, but none that compare to your first love. the first cut is always the worst because you haven't learned how to cope and defend yourself from the pain yet.

that is what this song makes me think of- but in a poetic, elegantly painful kind of way.

@keighleycakes All that you say is true. For a man, its tougher (IMHO). Women tend to have this survival mechanism in which they get over a relationship much faster and get closure by focusing on their current priorities. I fell madly in love (we both did) with a girl when I was 23....Im 34 now and I still cry sometimes....we are still in love but have parted ways...she married...I went through a relationship then split...Im single and believe I will remain single till I die. In my deathbed, I will be thinking of her....and after so many years, will see her again......

@mochi_kei It's all I can think of when I think of the time I used to live.

@rubifen109 It's irresistible to stroke the feeling of longing; it makes one fantasize about what could have been and what could be - it's comforting in a way.

But take it from me, sir, it will destroy you. If you find yourself new memories and experiences, you will find a girl who can be just as great, if not greater than the one that got away. Don't let the past eat you. Just trying to give words of encouragement.

Cover art for Pictures of You lyrics by Cure, The

This song is of great personal importance to me. I was with someone back in the 80's for over 6 years. Because I was young and foolish, I let him go. After many years of regret and one failed marriage, I decided to take action. I put this song (and a few others) on an iPod shuffle and Fedexed it to him at work, praying that his Admin wouldn't intercept the pacakge.

There was no note, just a PostIt with a big question mark on it. I figured if he was still as hung up on me as I was on him, he would know who it was from. We reconnected shortly afterwards and have been together ever since. We initially wanted to have this song as the first song at our Wedding, but decided against it as it was just too personal and also because it is a sad song. Instead we had True by Spandeau Ballet.

@AprylM Wow....that is an amazing story, such a blessing!

@AprylM wish you the best of luck c:

Cover art for Pictures of You lyrics by Cure, The

This song reminds me so much of a girlfriend I had in high school 9 years ago that I cant get out of my mind. She loved The Cure and I hated them, now I love them because their songs remind me of her and how I should have never treated her like crap. So if you're out there Alissa, I'm sorry, I was young and dumb and I still have these pictures of you.

I feel you, but like, REALLY FEEL YOU haha, i met his girl as while ago, we realized we shared love for great music acts such as The Cure, David Bowie, Joy Division, The Smiths, etc., soon enough I had a crush on her, she went out of her way to be friends with me but I was too stupid and shy and we went on different paths, then I missed her but I couldn't do anything about it. What you're gonna do, right? Ha! that's life...

@eternally_down it may seem rather irrelevant, my current girlfriend is named Alyssa lul, I think about her as I listen to this song , I'm currently in high school c: Sorry, I know it has nothing to do with what your comment said, I just had the urge to share with you lul c:

@eternally_down, May I ask Alissa's last name. I had an ex-wife Alisa who loved "The Cure". She is from Louisiana.

Cover art for Pictures of You lyrics by Cure, The

its probably another song in referal to his drowned love?? ( i place question marks simply as this is a new revelation to me about robert smith .. i dont study him i just happen to have listened to his music for years)

why this song means so much to me??? my husband died a few years back now and its kinda scarey in a way to have a song so close to how it feels when i drag out the old album.. i couldn;t ever hold onto his heart as he died the night after we dicussed seperation.. "remembering you fallen into my arms.. and screamed at the make believe".. he was a big drinker "you were stone white so delicate lost in the cold"...and one night just before he died i found him outside in the dark naked and cold and shivering and bruised.. the night he died i told him not to go .. not to get on his bike.. he didn;t wish to leave either but said he had to but "if only i thought of the right words" even though he was an alcoholic he was still an amazing person .. just lost..
slow drowned you were angels so much more than everything hold for the last time then slip away quietly he finally found all his courage to let it all go.

@Ratzody I am terribly sorry for your loss....I am lost for words. I wish you the best and may God bless you and fill you with His Peace.

@Ratzody Your story just ripped at ny heart. I hope and pray you can find comfort from a loss that large.

Cover art for Pictures of You lyrics by Cure, The

"I've been looking so long at these pictures of you, That I almost believe that they're real." I love having pictures, but it is hard not to have anything to go with them.

This is a song about regret, not being able to find the right words, missing opportunities, asking too much. All he has left are his pictures of her.

Cover art for Pictures of You lyrics by Cure, The

bigger and brighter and WHITER than snow. thanx.

@get up kid FWIW the original liner notes (and the official Cure website) does say "wider than snow." I remember thinking it must be a typo, but still every time I listen to the song I hear "wider than snow." It is somehow more poetic than "whiter than snow" which is about as juvenile a metaphor you can come up with.

@get up kid what does wider than snow mean me then?

@get up kid 'Wider than snow' is a much better lyric. When there's been a proper snow fall it seems to stretch as far as the eye can see. It covers trees and buildings. Wideness works as an image.

Cover art for Pictures of You lyrics by Cure, The

One thing all Cure fans must do, as hard as it may be, is to disregard everything Robert Smiths says about The Cure. He makes stories up. I'm a huge Cure fan, and i'm not trying to step on anyone's toes... but it's true. Let's all find the meaning together... but most importantly, find the meaning that means something to YOU!

Cover art for Pictures of You lyrics by Cure, The

maybe it's about having to watch someone change, and still being in love with whoever they used to be? if someone you're really attached changes a lot, you do go through an experience of loss, even if the person is still physically near you.

it would work with the "pictures of you" image (he's only in love with the memories of her, but still needs her -- "the pictures are all i can feel"), or the "remembering you, how you used to be" or "crying for the dearth of your heart".

@waffles! This is such an amazing opinion. It makes sense and puts the song into a whole different perspective! Thanks for that.

Cover art for Pictures of You lyrics by Cure, The

In general, I think it\'s a song about someone you love leaving to never return and all you have left are pictures to remember them by. for example. a loved one dying, or someone you love leaving over seas to fight a war or someone leaving to college to pursue their dream. or it could be about pictures of good memories of someone or something you loved but went away. example a lost dog, or lost cat. or even a lost soul to addiction etc... It\'s about wishing you can go back in time to when you felt the greatest love.

Cover art for Pictures of You lyrics by Cure, The

ITs has nothing to do with a "drowning", but about his wife, and what he went through during some troubled times between them...a break-up to be exact. The album in which this song appeared in was "Disintegration", and the overall feel of that album was certainly dark, and depressed due to this fact. However, this break up was not what Robert wanted, and at the time of the breakup he reflects on the relationship, and the feeling they both had through it "Remembering You fallen into my arms/Crying for the death of your heart"..this is her losing love for him, and him trying to grasp at how he could have avoided the breakup..my guess is that him being part of a band, and being on the road alot lead to some sort of negligence on his part..."If only I'd thought of the right words/I could have held on to your heart/If only I'd thought of the right words/I wouldn't be breaking apart/All my pictures of you"..this is also reflected in "Love Song" which is on the same album. "There was nothing in the world/That I ever wanted more/Than to feel you deep in my heart/There was nothing in the world/That I ever wanted more/Than to never feel the breaking apart/All my pictures of you"..obviously more "post breakup" feelings of wanting the old flame back.