These Dreams by Heart Lyrics Meaning – Unlocking the Mystique of Nighttime Musings
Lyrics
Save some light for me
Figures up ahead
Moving in the trees
White skin in linen
Perfume on my wrist
And the full moon that hangs over
These dreams in the mist
Darkness on the edge
Shadows where I stand
I search for the time
On a watch with no hands
I want to see you clearly
Come closer than this
But all I remember
Are the dreams in the mist
These dreams go on when I close my eyes
Every second of the night I live another life
These dreams that sleep when it’s cold outside
Every moment I’m awake the further I’m away
Is it cloak ‘n’ dagger
Could it be spring or fall
I walk without a cut
Through a stained glass wall
Weaker in my eyesight
The candle in my grip
And words that have no form
Are falling from my lips
These dreams go on when I close my eyes
Every second of the night I live another life
These dreams that sleep when it’s cold outside
Every moment I’m awake the further I’m away
There’s something out there
I can’t resist
I need to hide away from the pain
There’s something out there
I can’t resist
The sweetest song is silence
That I’ve ever heard
Funny how your feet
In dreams never touch the earth
In a wood full of princes
Freedom is a kiss
But the prince hides his face
From dreams in the mist
These dreams go on when I close my eyes
Every second of the night I live another life
These dreams that sleep when it’s cold outside
Every moment I’m awake the further I’m away
These dreams go on when I close my eyes
Every second of the night I live another life
These dreams that sleep when it’s cold outside
Every moment I’m awake the further I’m away
In the pantheon of classic rock anthems, Heart’s ‘These Dreams’ stands as a towering testament to the band’s musical artistry and lyrical depth. Released in 1985, the song captures a varied spectrum of emotion, etching a poignant picture of escapism and the hidden corridors of the subconscious. Drenched in the haunting vocals of Nancy Wilson, its atmospheric textures have beckoned listeners into its fold for decades, leading many to ponder the layered significance imbued within its verses.
To dissect ‘These Dreams’ is to walk through a dreamscape of symbols and metaphors, each line a brushstroke in a larger portrait of introspection and yearning. A sense of ethereal wanderlust oozes from the lyrics, as Nancy Wilson’s voice serves as a siren call to those who seek meaning beyond the waking life. What follows is an exploration of one of Heart’s most enigmatic offerings, as we delve into the dream-laden depths of a song that continues to resonate with listeners everywhere.
Spectral Serenity: The Candlelight Vigil of the Mind
The opening lines of ‘These Dreams’ establish an atmosphere brimming with tranquility and suspense. By invoking the image of a ‘spare little candle,’ the song immediately ignites the notion of a solitary, contemplative journey; it is the quintessential beacon in the dark, a faint but resolute glow against the encompassing shadows. This imagery touches upon the inherent human instinct to hold on to hope, to preserve a fragment of light within oneself amidst life’s pervasive uncertainties.
In depicting ‘figures up ahead / moving in the trees,’ Heart transports us to the threshold of the unknown, plucking at the threads of our curiosity. It’s a clever allusion to the unconscious dance of thoughts and fears that parade silently in our minds. The intertwining of tactile elements, the ‘white skin in linen’ and ‘perfume on my wrist,’ ground us with sensuality, while also reminding us of the temporal barrier that separates the dreamer from the dreamed.
Timeless Wanderings: A Quest Without Quarters
‘I search for the time / On a watch with no hands,’ these lines eloquently express the futility and abstractness of time within the dream realm—a place where the traditional structure of hours and minutes collapses into a relativistic expanse of experience. Here, the song touches on a deeper philosophical musing about the nature of reality, the notion that in our most private thoughts and fantasies, we reckon not with the march of time, but with the immediate intensity of being.
The anonymity of the speaker, ‘Shadows where I stand,’ parallels the universal search for clarity amidst the fog of our own uncertainties. Thus, ‘These Dreams’ becomes an anthem for the seekers, a melody for those who yearn to see their own lives with a vision unclouded by the enigmas that riddle the conscious mind.
The Duality of Existence: When Dreams Eclipse Reality
The compelling chorus, ‘These dreams go on when I close my eyes,’ presents the duality of the dreamer’s existence: by day, tethered to the corporeal world; by night, set adrift in a boundless voyage of the unconscious. It evokes a state of semi-permanence, where fantasies outlive our temporary escape into sleep. This idea that we ‘live another life’ in that alternate realm challenges our perceptions about the authenticity of the experiences we collect, whether in dream or reality.
Furthermore, the insight that ‘Every moment I’m awake the further I’m away’ casts a mournful shadow, hinting at a disconnect or disaffection with reality. Through these lyrics, ‘These Dreams’ transcends the rock ballad genre and becomes a soliloquy of dissatisfaction, an articulate expression of our inward retreat from the coldness of the world outside.
Through the Stained Glass: The Labyrinth of Self
Venturing further into the song’s textural labyrinth, ‘I walk without a cut / Through a stained glass wall’ encapsulates the experience of navigating life’s complex emotional and psychological barriers while attempting to preserve one’s core self unscathed. The metaphorical stained glass suggests both the beauty and fragility of such an endeavor, the colorful panes a kaleidoscope of memories, wishes, and regrets.
The ‘candle in my grip’ and ‘words that have no form’ are evocative of a struggle to maintain one’s grasp on purpose and identity in a reality that is oftentimes elusive, ever-shifting beneath our feet. These lines sing to the heart of human vulnerability, to the efforts expended in squaring the ineffable narratives we compose in the seclusion of our minds.
Elysium’s Echo: The Haunting Refrain of ‘These Dreams’
As Heart lays bare the landscape of dreams, one cannot help but return to the haunting, melancholic beauty of ‘The sweetest song is silence / That I’ve ever heard.’ Herein lies the song’s enigmatic call: in silence, we confront the void, the pure potential of our hopes and fears. It’s a philosophical nod to the notion that our greatest revelations are often born in the absence of noise, in the whispering solitude.
And yet, in this silence, in the soft soles of a dream where ‘feet…never touch the earth,’ there is an inexpressible freedom, an escapist solace found nowhere else. ‘These Dreams’ encapsulates the paradox of our yearning for liberation and the inevitable veil of reality, a twilight dance that continues to enthral listeners with its lyrical ballet.
