From A Distance

I always took the meaning to be a little bit of sarcasm. From a distance, we have utopia. And since God is watching us from a distance, He thinks everything is A-OK on our little world. I was surprised to find that most people think of it as a religious and/or uplifting song.

The song was NOT written by Bette Midler. It was written by Julie Gold and the best version is Nanci Griffith's. If you have not heard that version download it right now. Bette's version was too overproduced and very bombastic. Just too much stuff. It also ends with the God is watching us line repeated over and over which really isn't the point of the song.

Nanci's just has the God is watching us part at the bridge. Then it ends with "it's the song of everyman" Which musically makes a lot more sense. She also uses better quiet and loud dynamics and it builds much better to the end.

It is an awesome song but after hearing Nanci Griffith's version I can't listen to Bette's without rolling my eyes. Nanci's version is definitely the definitive one out there.

I always took it as her saying, deep down everyone is the same in their hearts regardless of our religion or even what country we live in. Everyone wants to be happy and although there are some differences, our morals and value systems are extremely similar. After all, "It's the voice of hope, it's the voice of peace, it's the voice of every man." We all want to live in peace and harmony. Yeah, extremely optimistic view of people and sure there are examples of people that actually crave violence and hatred, but the majority really do just want to be happy.

To me the point of the song is simply why can't we focus on the bigger picture and the things all people share in common as opposed to the more trivial things like what name you give your deity or how you view the creation theory. Also why can't we focus on what is really important in the world, humanity, as opposed to our egocentric view where we only think about our own personal bank accounts and that new DVD we want to pick up next and let others starve on the streets.

If people would get past their personal desire for wealth and biases and really start really looking at the whole world and not just what they can take from it for themselves, the world would be a much better place. Yeah, she mentions God in the song, but really the song can fit pretty much any religion cause the core morals and doctrine are the same.

It is kinda like the saying "Ask not what the country can do for you, but what you can do for your country" only on a world wide level where you substitute the word "world" in for "country". To me, this song is a lot like the song "Imagine" by John Lennon. She is merely asking people to imagine a world where people share what they have instead of hoard it so there is no longer anyone starving and no more stupid wars over who has the natural resources or petty violence and fighting over who has more money. Everyone basically being treated equal and as human beings, not just numbers.

All you folks criticizing this song as "anti-American" and "Communist" need to chill. In 1991, Soviet Communism had drawn its last breath and Russia was becoming democratized. America was still viewed positively by most people around the world. We thought we were a decade or two away from solving the problems of famine and disease. At the time it had been nearly two decades since America's last war.

So Operation Desert Storm (the First Gulf War) was kind of a shock to most of us Gen X/Y kids. That's right, we actually thought America going to war was a BAD thing. Back then we weren't so desensitized by violent video games and first person shooters with realistic graphics. Watching the anti-aircraft tracer rounds shooting at our planes, bombs blowing up Iraqi civilians and reading stories about our troops being shot at with Scud missiles actually bothered us. America was supposed to be defined by its prosperity and its moral example, not by the wars she fought or her enemies.

This was THE anti-war song of the 1990s. And it still stands now. If you grew up under Bush II, you might have some trouble understanding the mentality, but trust me, we were all peace-loving "hippies" and "traitors"(by the neocon definition) back then. It was simply called believing in a better future. Gotta wonder where we went so wrong!

Robsun is correct - on both counts. Written by Julie Gold, best performance by Nanci Griffith, on her live album "One Fair Summer Evening." She performs it very heartfelt and with incredible musicianship and emotion. Highly recommended.

Now for some meaning and interpretation. I have a somewhat dark and cynical theory about this song. It's probably not what Julie Gold was thinking when she wrote it, as the song itself is purely heartfelt and uplifting.

There's an implication in this whole "from a distance" metaphor. From far away, the world looks perfect–she describes all of the great things that humanity is capable of when given all the right conditions and all the right goals. "There is harmony, and it echoes through the land." Such an uplifting thought, that the "voice of hope, the voice of peace" can be heard if you look for it. "We all have enough," and "no one is in need," and there are "no hungry mouths to feed." Everything is perfect.

Except–it's not always that way.

And then, the final thread, "God is watching us from a distance." So what is He seeing? He's seeing a perfect world, a people in harmony, the mountains and rivers and oceans, exactly like she described. The implication is that he's not there to help us out with the details, he's there to make sure the big picture looks right and we all have the capability to lead it in the right direction–to sing our song, "the song of every man." Now, I'm not a religious person, but it seems to me she's either saying that God isn't seeing all the horrible things in the world and we're sort of on our own, or that he's not concerned with them, because overall it's looking pretty darn good.

I like to think it's the latter. She's saying that it's important to look at the big picture, to see humanity as a whole and not just as individuals, to even look at war as a necessary evil to protect the peace of the free world–and what's more, she's saying that God is looking at it in the same way, and if you do too, look at all the amazing beautiful things in this world, that you might understand humanity and our place on the world a little better and have the power to push forward, to keep going toward a better world, one in which all of the things in this song are more true, and more accessible to all people, not just a few. Maybe the song is just to say that it's possible at all, and we should continue seeking it out. It's a heartwarming sentiment and a beautiful song, and if you think about the metaphor and what she's really implying, it's quite deep and enlightening as well.

I would like to expand on Swanie's comment

Even though the song lifts the spirit because of its beauty, it is actually sarcastic. Let me explain.

Everything looks better from a distance, but the reality of the world is much worse than that. We wish that the world was a better place. For example, consider the stanza

From a distance There is harmony And it echoes through the land And its the hope of hopes Its the love of loves Its the heart of every man

It shows that the music heard from a distance is the dream of every person on earth.

The sarcastic part is the phrase “God is watching us from a distance”. That implies that God is happy with what he sees, and that God thinks we are doing a good job on Earth. But the real idea is that the people of earth should not feel too good about themselves, because God knows the real story.

Written another way the phrase might go: “God is watching us from a distance. That's not true. He sees everything and you people on Earth need to improve.”

this song is soooo beutiful!!!!

I agree, Sunny. I know the war's nearly over, but this song really relates to recent events. From a distance, Earth looks like a blue and green lump of rock, but when you get to know it, it's something quite different.

I remember growing up to this song, but I don't know the original artist. My mom taped the music video, and I only remember the singer standing by a tree while she sang, and a scene with two little kids playing together. It was a really encouraging song, but sometimes hard to accept, I guess. I love this song, even now. "From a distance, there is harmony..." I love it.

This song by Bette Midler, was a huge hit for her. As a humanities major, and a deep emotional person I had to know more about this song. Yes its about the world and getting to know it. Yet I don't think many people know its true intent or what the writer intended it to be. It is about humanity in general, and also a world of what could be, if we only gave little things to change. The song sets up a desperate dream for "there are no guns, no bombs, and no disease. No hungry mouths to feed." it is a dream everyone wants for the better of ourselves and for the world. "its the heart of every man." We all need this hope even though it cannot come to pass, "From a distance, You look like my friend, even though we are at war." This song is making us aware, and crying out to have us try harder, and try to make the dream happen. This song has carried with me through the years, and still shows the message it intends, no matter what date. Time has been powerless against this song. And it will remain one of the best songs for us all.