Like a lot of the other comments are saying, I think this mainly about voyeurism. If the song was about his girlfriend, then why would he use the word spy. If you are a spy it means you shouldn't be caught, that is kind of the whole point, and if you are a voyeur, the whole point of the pleasure you get from it, is the fact that the other people don't know you are watching them. See a bit of a connection there?
(Woo)
I dig my toes into the sand
The ocean looks like a thousand diamonds
Strewn across a blue blanket
I lean against the wind
Pretend that I am weightless
And in this moment I am happy, happy
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
I lay my head onto the sand
The sky resembles a backlit canopy
With holes punched in it
I'm counting UFOs
I'll signal them with my lighter
And in this moment I am happy, happy
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
Wish you were here
Oh yeah, oh
The world's a roller coaster
And I am not strapped in
Maybe I should hold with care
But my hands are busy in the air saying
I wish you were here
I wish you were
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
Wish you were here
I dig my toes into the sand
The ocean looks like a thousand diamonds
Strewn across a blue blanket
I lean against the wind
Pretend that I am weightless
And in this moment I am happy, happy
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
I lay my head onto the sand
The sky resembles a backlit canopy
With holes punched in it
I'm counting UFOs
I'll signal them with my lighter
And in this moment I am happy, happy
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
Wish you were here
Oh yeah, oh
The world's a roller coaster
And I am not strapped in
Maybe I should hold with care
But my hands are busy in the air saying
I wish you were here
I wish you were
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
I wish you were here
Wish you were here
Lyrics submitted by zara013, edited by letmecheck
Wish You Were Here Lyrics as written by Alex Katunich Jose Pasillas Ii
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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
The Spy
Doors, The
Doors, The
Techno Ted
Audioslave
Audioslave
Techno Ted may be a person who caused Chris incredible emotional pain & trepidation as well as moments of peace & happiness but now is removed and awaiting his fate. Darling may be a different person who is also free of him and can live her life free of Ted's tyranny. "In between all the laughing, and daydreams ... lies: a desert of truth" Lies are like a desert or the omission of Truth: Where there were Lies then Truth was absent. The song, "Techno Ted", may be a cathartic celebration of the downfall of this person.
Light Up The Sky
Van Halen
Van Halen
The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
I actually heard brandon talking about the meaning in an interview, and it's actually A LOT deeper than it may seem. It has two meanings, the first meaning (the obvious) is I wish you (friend/girlfriend) were here with me right now. The more metaphorical meaning, (and you know brandon, he's always hiding a metaphor in most of their songs) is I wish you were here- but not literally/physically (because you could be sitting next to to him and still not see the same thing he's seeing. He said "I wish you were here" in this same state of mind I'm in, because at this moment he's looking around and he's seeing how beautiful the world is from his point of view. It's kind of like when it snows you can look at the snow and say "damn it, it's snowing, now I have to shovel the drive way and it's gunna be a bitch to drive to work." or you could just look at it and think "wow, look how beautiful the world looks while it's covered in snow". So yeah, that's what he meant- coming from brandon's mouth... and I like that, so you don't have to be at the beach to be in the same state of mind he's in.
That's wrong because I saw an interview with him. It's plain and simple. He even laughed it off saying girls think it's for them. He says it's for his friends, his band members. He was at the beach one day, trying to brainstorm some lyrics and the whole scenery just took him by. He wished Incubus was right there with him.