Open up your heart, what do you feel
Open up your heart, what do you feel… is real

 

The big bang may be a million years away
But I can’t think of a better time to say

 

World, hold on
Instead of messing with our future, open up inside
World, hold on
One day you will have to answer to the children of the sky

 

 

Children of the sky…
Children of the sky…

 

 

Look inside, you’ll find a deeper love
The kind that only comes from high above

If you ever meet your inner child, don’t cry
Tell them everything is gonna be all right

 

 

World, hold on
Come one, everybody in the universe, come on
World, hold on
One day you will have to answer to the children of the sky

 

 

Children of the sky… alright

Love, don’t take no for an answer, no

 

Right here,spread love, everybody join together now
One , one heart, love and unity, everybody sing
yeah!

 

World, hold on
Come one, everybody in the universe, come on
World, hold on
One day you will have to answer to the children of the sky

 

World, hold on
Come one, everybody in the universe, come on
World, hold on
One day you will have to answer to the children of the sky

Message:

First of all, if you want to get up and dance at any point during this song, I wouldn’t hold it against you. I’m actually dancing a bit while I’m typing, so I won’t judge.

Often times techno songs don’t get credit for having too much meaning but this song is filled with messages about love, and what could be better than that? World hold on, because love is comin’!

Lyrics:

Well I walked over the bridge
Into the city where I live,
And I saw my old landlord.
Well we both said hello,
There was nowhere else to go,
‘cuz his rent I couldn’t afford.

Well relationships change,
Oh I think it’s kinda strange,
How money makes a man grow.
Some people they claim,
If you get enough fame,
You live over the rainbow.
Over the rainbow.

But the people on the street,
Out on buses or on feet,
We all got the same blood flow.
Oh, in society,
Every dollar got a deed,
We all need a place so we can go,
And feel over the rainbow.

But sometimes,
We forget what we got,
Who we are.
Oh who are are not.
I think we gotta chance,
To make it right.
Keep it loose,
Keep it tight.
Keep it tight.

I’m in love with a girl,
Who’s in love with the world,
Though I can’t help but follow.
Though I know some day,
She is bound to go away,
And stay over the rainbow.
Gotta learn how to let her go.
Over the rainbow.

Sometimes we forget who we got,
Who they are.
Oh, who they are not.
There is so much more in love,
Than black and white.
Keep it loose child,
Gotta keep it tight.
Keep it loose child,
Keep it tight.

Message:

There is definitely more than one message in this song, and what draws me to it is how much different it begins than ends.  Amos Lee starts by describing people in general…who we are, what makes us similar. Then in the last verse he’s describing a woman he must let go of.  When the song is broken down though, it’s easier to grasp some of the messages. Here are some lyrics I can relate to.

• “But the people on the street, out on buses or on feet, we all got the same blood flow.”

  • Now that I’m in Guatemala and clearly a foreigner in this country, I’m reminded of how I’m different daily. My hair, my skin, my gringo use of the language. Yet it helps to remind myself that I do have things in common with Guatemalans and that people all over the world are more similar than we think.

• “We all need a place where we can go, and feel over the rainbow.”

  • It’s difficult right now because I don’t have this place. Well, at least not a physical place anyway, so I’ve had to turn to writing to make me feel more comfortable and at ease. Music helps a lot too if I just need to relax. And of course conversations with people I’m close to make me feel more at home.

• “Sometimes we forget what we got. Who we are, and who we are not.”

  • Taking things for granted and losing perspective. These should both be added to the seven deadly sins. It’s easy to forget this sometimes in a completely different culture.

• “I’m in love with a girl who’s in love with the world.”

  • Well…not in love exactly…but I haven’t felt this way for someone in a long time.

• “There is so much more in love than black and white.”

  • Enough said.

Lyrics:

Oh my love for the first time in my life,
My eyes are wide open,
Oh my lover for the first time in my life,
My eyes can see,

 

I see the wind,
Oh I see the trees,
Everything is clear in my heart,
I see the clouds,
Oh I see the sky,
Everything is clear in our world,

 

Oh my love for the first time in my life,
My mind is wide open,
oh my lover for the first time in my life,
My mind can feel,

 

I feel the sorrow,
Oh I feel dreams,
Everything is clear in my heart,
Everything is clear in our world,
I feel the life,
Oh I feel love.

Message:

Love brings clarity and opens us up. It makes us vulnerable and forces us to look at things differently. Not just romantic love, but love for people in general, love for a profession, love for a hobby. Love forces us to FEEL life and to experience it more fully rather than sitting around like a zombie, unaffected by emotion.

Lyrics:

Hey there Delilah
What’s it like in New York City?
I’m a thousand miles away
But girl tonight you look so pretty
Yes you do
Times Square can’t shine as bright as you
I swear it’s true

Hey there Delilah
Don’t you worry about the distance
I’m right there if you get lonely
Give this song another listen
Close your eyes
Listen to my voice it’s my disguise
I’m by your side

Oh it’s what you do to me
Oh it’s what you do to me
Oh it’s what you do to me
Oh it’s what you do to me
What you do to me

Hey there Delilah
I know times are getting hard
But just believe me girl
Someday I’ll pay the bills with this guitar
We’ll have it good
We’ll have the life we knew we would
My word is good

Hey there Delilah
I’ve got so much left to say
If every simple song I wrote to you
Would take your breath away
I’d write it all
Even more in love with me you’d fall
We’d have it all

Oh it’s what you do to me
Oh it’s what you do to me
Oh it’s what you do to me
Oh it’s what you do to me

A thousand miles seems pretty far
But they’ve got planes and trains and cars
I’d walk to you if I had no other way
Our friends would all make fun of us
and we’ll just laugh along because we know
That none of them have felt this way
Delilah I can promise you
That by the time we get through
The world will never ever be the same
And you’re to blame

Hey there Delilah
You be good and don’t you miss me
Two more years and you’ll be done with school
And I’ll be making history like I do
You’ll know it’s all because of you
We can do whatever we want to
Hey there Delilah here’s to you
This ones for you

Oh it’s what you do to me
Oh it’s what you do to me
Oh it’s what you do to me
Oh it’s what you do to me
What you do to me.

Thoughts:

I’ve always loved songs that tell a story like the Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby” or Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight.” When a simple yet beautiful tale is combined with an acoustic guitar and a powerful melody, you can’t help but listen to it over and over. This is one of those songs. Ever since I’ve heard it I’ve been trying to memorize every lyric, and I can’t help but sing along whenever I play it.

It might also help that at this very moment in my life I’m falling for someone and she’s about to be 1,000 miles away from me.  Too bad her name isn’t Delilah.

Me encanta musica de español porque puedo aprender nuevas palabras y puedo tratar de entender las canciones.

Esta cancion es de Julieta Venegas y es acerca de despedirse. En una semana, necesito despedirse a California. Voy a Denver, Iowa, New York, Boston, Washington D.C. y despues…GUATEMALA. Viernes es LA ÚLTIMA VEZ.

Lyrics

Alguna vez te dije que me quedaba para siempre
y lo pensé, aunque ahora quizás no te lo parezca
pero no hablaba por hablar
era el momento y el lugar
y esta pena que siento ahora,
lo sé, que no me dejará igual

CORO
Porque, hoy es la última vez que hablo contigo
hoy es la última vez y no puedo explicar éste final

Notas lo que te digo ahora hablas si porque me duele
creen mis ojos que alguna vez cuando nos mirabamos
pero lo dejamos pasar
perdimos la oportunidad

CORO
porque hoy es la última vez que hablo contigo
hoy es la última vez y no puedo explicar éste final..

hoy es la última vez que hablo contigo
hoy es la última vez y no puedo explicar éste final..

hoy es la última vez que hablo contigo
porque hay tantos por pensar que todo lo podíamos arreglar..

This song relates almost too well to what I said about wanting a new computer. This is easily one of the simplest yet most powerful songs I’ve ever heard. In such a short song there is a ton of meaning and truth.

look at all those fancy clothes
but these could keep us warm just like those
and what about your soul, is it cold
is it straight from the mold and ready to be sold
and cars and phones and diamond rings, bling bling
those are only removeable things
and what about your mind, does it shine oh
are there things that concern you more than your time

gone going gone everything gone give a damn
gone be the birds when they dont want to sing
gone people, all awkward with their things
gone

look at you out to make a deal
you try to be appealing but you loose your appeal
and what about those shoes you’re in today
they’ll do no good on the bridges you burnt along the way oh
you’re willing to sell anything gone with your hurt
leave your footprints we’ll shame them with our words
gone people, all careless and consumed
gone

gone going gone everything gone give a damn
gone be the birds when they dont want to sing
gone people, all akward with their things
gone

The first time I heard this song I almost didn’t play it all the way through because it was so weird at the beginning. But after listening to the whole thing, I couldn’t stop playing it. Who knows how many times I’ve heard it now, and I still can’t get enough of this song. Life truly is wonderful, meaningful, and beautiful!

Lyrics:

It takes a crane to build a crane
It takes two floors to make a story
It takes an egg to make a hen
It takes a hen to make an egg
There is no end to what I’m saying

It takes a thought to make a word
And it takes some words to make an action
And it takes some work to make it work
It takes some good to make it hurt
It takes some bad for satisfaction

Ah la la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la la life goes full circle
Ah la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la

It takes a night to make it dawn
And it takes a day to make you yawn brother
And it takes some old to make you young
It takes some cold to know the sun
It takes the one to have the other

And it takes no time to fall in love
But it takes you years to know what love is
And it takes some fears to make you trust
It takes some tears to make it rust
It takes that dust to have it polished

Ah la la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la la life goes full circle
Ah la la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la

It is so…

It takes some silence to make sound
And it takes a loss before you found it
And it takes a road to go nowhere
It takes a toll to make you care
It takes a hole to make a mountain

Ah la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la life goes full circle
Ah la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la life is meaningful
Ah la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la

It is so…wonderful…
It is so meaningful…
(Fading repetitions)

“There’s beauty in the breakdown.” One of my students (Lurvin) exposed me to this band towards the beginning of this year. I love the flow of their music and the feeling it produces.

Lyrics:

drink up, baby down
mmm, are you in or are you out
leave your things behind
’cause it’s all going off without you
excuse me, too busy you’re writing your tragedy
these mishaps
you bubble wrap
when you’ve no idea what you’re like

so let go, jump in
oh well, whatcha waiting for
it’s alright
’cause there’s beauty in the breakdown
so let go, just get in
oh, it’s so amazing here
it’s alright
’cause there’s beauty in the breakdown

it gains the more it gives
and then it rises with the fall
so hand me that remote
can’t you see that all that stuff’s a sideshow

such boundless pleasure
we’ve no time for later now
you can’t await your own arrival
you’ve 20 seconds to comply

so let go, jump in
oh well, whatcha waiting for
it’s alright
’cause there’s beauty in the breakdown
so let go, just get in
oh, it’s so amazing here
it’s alright
’cause there’s beauty in the breakdown

Imagine if this was the type of music we heard on the radio each day. How often do we hear truly positive, inspirational music? This is a song that inspires me, and I try to listen to it at least once a month.

Lyrics:

I can change the world
With my own two hands
Make a better place
With my own two hands
Make a kinder place
With my own two hands
With my own
With my own two hands
I can make peace on earth
With my own two hands
I can clean up the earth
With my own two hands
I can reach out to you
With my own two hands
With my own
With my own two hands

Im gonna make it a brighter place
Im gonna make it a safer place
Im gonna help the human race
With my own
With my own two hands

I can hold you
With my own two hands
I can comfort you
With my own two hands
But you got to use
Use your own two hands
Use your own
Use your own two hands

With our own
With our own two hands
With my own
With my own two hands