Remember when you were young
You shone like the sun
Shine on, you crazy diamond
Now there's a look in your eyes
Like black holes in the sky
Shine on, you crazy diamond
You were caught on the crossfire of childhood and stardom
Blown on the steel breeze
Come on, you target for faraway laughter
Come on, you stranger, you legend, you martyr, and shine
You reached for the secret too soon
You cried for the moon
Shine on, you crazy diamond
Threatened by shadows at night
And exposed in the light
Shine on, you crazy diamond
Well, you wore out your welcome with random precision
Rode on the steel breeze
Come on, you raver, you seer of visions
Come on, you painter, you piper, you prisoner, and shine
You shone like the sun
Shine on, you crazy diamond
Now there's a look in your eyes
Like black holes in the sky
Shine on, you crazy diamond
You were caught on the crossfire of childhood and stardom
Blown on the steel breeze
Come on, you target for faraway laughter
Come on, you stranger, you legend, you martyr, and shine
You reached for the secret too soon
You cried for the moon
Shine on, you crazy diamond
Threatened by shadows at night
And exposed in the light
Shine on, you crazy diamond
Well, you wore out your welcome with random precision
Rode on the steel breeze
Come on, you raver, you seer of visions
Come on, you painter, you piper, you prisoner, and shine
Lyrics submitted by Demau Senae, edited by nasses321
Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Pts. 1-5 Lyrics as written by George Roger Waters David Jon Gilmour
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
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this song is dedicated to syd barrett. this was said by the group members in more than one interview. somebody like to say (and perhaps is ture) that barret came in the studios during the recording of this song.
two months ago i've seen a concert of Waters: while the band played this song, behind them the megascreen over the stage was showing pictures of barrett and the first pink floyd.
i've interpreted this as a sort of celebration of the utter genius (in this i agree with FelixCloud) and the days gone by... it's true that Water had to kick him out of the band, but in my point of view "kick out" is a bit negative.
One think as a not-english-speaker i'd like to know: how do explain the title? i mean: is it imperative, conjunctive or what? "you" and "crazy diamond" are both subjects or objects or what?
thanx to whom answer. bye
And the whole 12 years thing, that is far away from being a problem! :D
S-hine on
Y-ou crazy
D-iamond
SYD
Imagine a comma (,) in the title, like this, "Shine On, You Crazy Diamond." You'll see that the You Crazy Diamond is one construction, the subject of the phrase, as in: "You (Crazy Diamond) Shine On," Or "(You Crazy Diamond) Shine On." Consider the title a command sentence, where the "you" is implied.
"You Crazy Diamond" is a similar construction grammatically to "We Three Kings" or "We the People" or "Bob the Builder". These are all one "subject" or noun-phrase.
Hoping this helps,
vozzy
One means to keep shining, and one means that someone, or something, is shining on "You:" the Crazy Diamond.
Remember when you were young - Waters, Gilmour and Syd were close childhood friends
you shone like the sun - Syd was a very bright and smart child
Now there's a look in your eyes, like black holes in the sky - he turned into a psycho because of drug abuse
You reached for the secret too soon - Barrett started doing drugs at quite a young age
you cried for the moon - i got insane (crying for the moon like a wolf)
Threatened by shadows at night - he also had signs of schitzophrenia, which was well fed by all of the drugs
and exposed in the light - everyone saw him being high all the time
come on you painter - i used to go to an artist collage because he was a well painter
you piper - there was a Pink Floyd's album called "the piper at the gates of dawn" while syd was still in the band
You prisoner - poor Barrett was a slave to his drug habbit.
In youth we chase approval, then fear the laughter of others rather than delight in it (we learn shame and guilt).
"You reached for the secret too soon, you cried for the moon."
Let maya unravel at its own pace, don't rush it or you'll get paranoid and fearful. Ego is dissolved by the light. If you get too precise, carried by
Blown on the steel breeze.
becomes
Rode on the steel breeze.
We're blown and tossed by life when we try to explain precisely, be clever, or avoid madness, or try to see and interpret visions, express yourself, put your self in prison of conditional love, approval, satisfaction, or peace
ego exposed by the light, when we let ego die, we shine.