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Motherland Lyrics
Where in the hell can you go
Far from the things that you know
Far from the sprawl of concrete that keeps crawling its way
About 1,000 miles a day
Take one last look behind
Commit this to memory and mind
Don't miss this wasteland, this terrible place
When you leave
Keep your heart off your sleeve.
Motherland cradle me
Close my eyes, lullaby me to sleep
Keep me safe, lie with me
Stay beside me don't go
Don't you go
Oh, my five & dime queen
Tell me what have you seen
The lust and the avarice
The bottomless, cavernous greed
Is that what you see?
Oh Motherland cradle me
Close my eyes, lullaby me to sleep
Keep me safe, lie with me, stay beside me don't go.
It's your happiness
I want most of all
And for that I'd do anything at all
Oh mercy me!
If you want the best of it
Or the most of all
If there's anything I can do at all.
Now come on shot gun bride
What makes me envy your life?
Faceless, nameless, innocent, blameless and free
What's that like to be?
Oh Motherland
Cradle me
Close my eyes, lullaby me to sleep
Keep me safe, lie with me
Stay beside me don't go
Don't go, don't go
Motherland
Cradle me
Close my eyes, lullaby me to sleep
Keep me safe, lie with me
Stay beside me don't go
Don't go, don't go
Far from the things that you know
Far from the sprawl of concrete that keeps crawling its way
About 1,000 miles a day
Commit this to memory and mind
Don't miss this wasteland, this terrible place
When you leave
Keep your heart off your sleeve.
Close my eyes, lullaby me to sleep
Keep me safe, lie with me
Stay beside me don't go
Don't you go
Tell me what have you seen
The lust and the avarice
The bottomless, cavernous greed
Is that what you see?
Close my eyes, lullaby me to sleep
Keep me safe, lie with me, stay beside me don't go.
I want most of all
And for that I'd do anything at all
Oh mercy me!
If you want the best of it
Or the most of all
If there's anything I can do at all.
What makes me envy your life?
Faceless, nameless, innocent, blameless and free
What's that like to be?
Cradle me
Close my eyes, lullaby me to sleep
Keep me safe, lie with me
Stay beside me don't go
Don't go, don't go
Cradle me
Close my eyes, lullaby me to sleep
Keep me safe, lie with me
Stay beside me don't go
Don't go, don't go
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"The title song, MOTHERLAND has much deeper resonance since the events of September 11th and its aftermath. I was far more cynical when I wrote, 'Motherland cradle me, close my eyes, lullaby me to sleep, keep me safe, lie with me, stay beside me, don't go.' Now the song is a desperate plea for innocence, to be 'faceless, nameless, innocent, blameless and free,' expresses a craving we all share now for the world we took for granted and lost. Suddenly there seems to be no hiding from our past as a nation or our present, or our future. For me it's the death of nostalgia and dreams." -N. Merchant
I like Nat's stuff.. Motherland is also the title of a great older single by group Single Gun Theory. Nice track too.
This is one of my favourite of Natalie Merchant's songs. It can mean so much to someone who's away from home. Like me. I want to sing this to my children if/when i have any!!!!
Take one last look behind Commit this to memory and mind Don't miss this wasteland, this terrible place When you leave Keep your heart off your sleeve.
Such a sad verse. Leaving one's beloved home and having to tells ones self that itsa 'wasteland ', and 'Terrible place' in order to enable yourself to leave without a backward glance. So many refugees of different kinds have had to do this.
''Now come on shot gun bride What makes me envy your life? Faceless, nameless, innocent, blameless and free What's that like to be?''
So middle America! The one who is pilloried in the community is the truely nieve one.