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.
Holding back the years
Thinking of the fear I've had so long
When somebody hears
Listen to the fear that's gone
Strangled by the wishes of pater
Hoping for the arms of mater
Get to me the sooner or later, oh
Holding back the years
Chance for me to escape from all I know
Holding back the tears
'Cause nothing here has grown
I've wasted all my tears
Wasted all those years
Nothing had the chance to be good
Nothing ever could, yeah, oh
I'll keep holding on
I'll keep holding on
I'll keep holding on
I'll keep holding on, so tight
Alright, oh now
Well, I've wasted all my tears
Wasted all of those years
And nothing had the chance to be good
'Cause nothing ever could, oh yeah
Oh
I'll keep holding on
I'll keep holding on
I'll keep holding on
I'll keep holding on
Holding
Holding
Holding
Holding, la-la-la, la, la-la
I said, ooh, yeah
That's all I have today
It's all I have to say
Thinking of the fear I've had so long
When somebody hears
Listen to the fear that's gone
Strangled by the wishes of pater
Hoping for the arms of mater
Get to me the sooner or later, oh
Holding back the years
Chance for me to escape from all I know
Holding back the tears
'Cause nothing here has grown
I've wasted all my tears
Wasted all those years
Nothing had the chance to be good
Nothing ever could, yeah, oh
I'll keep holding on
I'll keep holding on
I'll keep holding on
I'll keep holding on, so tight
Alright, oh now
Well, I've wasted all my tears
Wasted all of those years
And nothing had the chance to be good
'Cause nothing ever could, oh yeah
Oh
I'll keep holding on
I'll keep holding on
I'll keep holding on
I'll keep holding on
Holding
Holding
Holding
Holding, la-la-la, la, la-la
I said, ooh, yeah
That's all I have today
It's all I have to say
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if you look at the words "pater" and "mater" they mean mother and father in latin these are often used facetiously, so Mick is indirectly refering to his mother and father in the lines:
"Strangled by the wishes of pater, Hoping for the arm of mater"
you can think of a number of reasons for these lines but to me it suggests there is conflict. why he say pater and not dad or mater and not mother seems to me he wants to keep this not so obvious but then again it could be that his family used pater and mater like some people call their parents "mama and papa" in general it is a sad song but with hope, as the final line says:
"I'll keep holding on. So tight."
with the "fear" lines i feel he has kept something quiet to himself but it goes when he tells some one maybe in a song or through conversation. like they say a problem (or fear) shared is a problem halved hence the lines:
"When somebody hears, Listen to the fear that's gone."
Masonsd.. right on! Mick wrote this in an article two years ago. <br /> <br /> But for Mick, 52, who was raised by his father Reg after his mother Maureen left when he was three, family life with Romy and his wife Gabriella Wesberry is all the sweeter.<br /> <br /> “I never had a family. There was me and my dad, if you can count that as family, Two men in his house. So a wife and a daughter is simply completely and utterly new to me and it’s been a life changing experience. It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me, I am devoted to them.<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/simply-reds-mick-hucknall-on-how-1405172 <br /> Follow us: @DailyMirror on Twitter | DailyMirror on Facebook
Good comment! I thought he chose to use "mater" and "pater" because these are formal names. It's a way of keeping emotional distance from his parents, with whom he doesn't feel close enough to use affectionate names like "Mama" and "Papa".
@readinggal Spot on! I felt the same about those words signifying emotional distance. And coupled with the history given by @abutteflyloves, then "strangled by the wishes of pater" seems to imply he couldn't live up to his father's expectations of him, and he wishes he had a mother there to help comfort him from manifestations of his father's disappointment, whether that was physical or emotional abuse of some kind.