Let There Be More Light by Pink Floyd Lyrics Meaning – Illuminating the Psychedelic Journey

You can view the lyrics, alternate interprations and sheet music for Pink Floyd's Let There Be More Light at Lyrics.org.

Lyrics

Far, far, far away, way
People heard him say, say
I will find a way, way
There will come a day, day
Something will be done

Then at last, the mighty ship
Descending on a point of flame
Made contact with the human race
At Mildenhall

Now, now, now
Is the time, time, time
To be, be, be aware

Carter’s father saw it there
And knew the road revealed to him
The living soul of Hereward the Wake

Oh, my, something in my eye, eye
Something in the sky, sky
Waiting there for me

The outer lock rolled slowly back
The service men were heard to sigh
For there revealed in glowing robes
Was Lucy in the sky

Oh, oh, did you ever know, know
Never ever will they
I can’t say

Summoning his cosmic powers
And glowing slightly from his clothes
His psychic emanations flowed

At the heart of Pink Floyd’s wide-spanning discography lies ‘Let There Be More Light,’ a track that flickers with the mystique and exploratory spirit emblematic of the band’s ethos. Through enigmatic verses and progressive soundscapes, Pink Floyd creates an auditory odyssey that resonates with the quest for enlightenment in an era of cosmic curiosity and interstellar imagination.

Peeling back the musical layers to look deep into the core of ‘Let There Be More Light,’ reveals intricate thematics that overlap with historical and fantastical threads. It’s a piece that captures the ‘swinging sixties’ infatuation with space, inner discovery, and the transcendental, all woven with the finesse expected from the legendary rock architects.

Prophets of the Space Age: Decoding Floyd’s Cosmic Chronicles

The opening lines of ‘Let There Be More Light’ serve as prophetic whispers from a place ‘Far, far, far away.’ This isn’t just a physical distance; it’s symbolic of the era’s psychological leap toward the stars, reflecting humanity’s collective yearning to break terrestrial shackles. It’s as if the lyrics themselves are an anchor thrown into the metaphysical void, grappling with the unknown.

As the pioneers of the progressive rock landscape, Pink Floyd gives voice to the zeitgeist of the late 60s, a period intoxicated with lunar dreams and science fiction potentialities. This track stands as an emblem of such aspirations, where the ‘mighty ship descending on a point of flame’ serves a dual role as both a literal spacecraft and a metaphor for enlightenment – an encounter with the divine or the alien, or perhaps an amalgamation of both.

Into the Heart of English Mythos: Hereward the Wake and National Identity

Delving deeper into the song’s narrative, ‘Carter’s father’ witnessing the ‘road revealed’ touches on layers of British folklore and history. Hereward the Wake, a resistance leader and nobleman from 11th-century England, becomes a symbol for the spirit of rebellion and an archetypal hero – a celestial entity brought into focus bridging the ancient with the contemporary quest for understanding.

This reference is a masterstroke that highlights Pink Floyd’s fascination with the confluence of time. It’s a temporal dance where the past informs the present, all swept into the cosmic continuum that the track so sonorously conjures. The linkage also hints at an underlying patriotism, or at the least, a recognition of the deep roots that shape collective and individual consciousness.

Lucy in the Sky: A Nod to The Beatles or a Deeper Confluence?

The surreal ‘Lucy in the sky’ cannot help but evoke The Beatles’ own Lucy, draped in diamonds. It’s a strategic insertion that on the surface can be seen as a playful homage, yet it’s charged with multiple layers of significance. In ‘Let There Be More Light,’ Lucy’s ‘glowing robes’ could be an alien guide or a spiritual consort, fittingly grandiose and awe-inspiring.

This intersection with popular culture acts as a tether to the real world, a familiar landmark in the vivid dreamscape that Pink Floyd is charting. It showcases the band’s acumen for nodding to their contemporaries while crafting a unique, standalone narrative – propelling listeners into their own psychedelia-tinged reveries.

Unveiling the Hidden Meaning: A Vision of Psychic Liberation

The invocation of ‘cosmic powers’ and a character ‘glowing slightly from his clothes’ touches upon themes of psychological and spiritual emancipation. It mirrors the human potential movement and the counterculture’s gravitation towards an expanded consciousness. Pink Floyd is thus painting a portrait of liberation not through direct conflict but through transcendence and the potential of the mind’s eye.

In an age where technological progress and psychedelic exploration went hand in hand, the song becomes an anthem for the inward revolution. It’s not just light that the lyrics ask for; it’s enlightenment, an internal brightening that can only be achieved through self-realization and psychic evolution.

Memorable Lines: Echoes of Humanity’s Eternal Quest

‘I will find a way, there will come a day, something will be done,’ rings out like a mantra through the song’s early stanzas, suggesting relentless pursuit and an unwavering hope in the face of the unfathomable. These lines stitch together the personal with the collective, drawing a connecting line through every listener’s inner journey towards their own version of the truth.

The earnestness of the refrain embodies the core of Pink Floyd’s philosophy, one of perpetual questing and questioning. The memorable simplicity of the lines belies a profound undercurrent, a universal anthem of ambition and the assurance that amidst the vast and endless mystery, illumination is not just a possibility; it’s a destination.