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Sweet Bird

Joni Mitchell

Out on some borderline

Some mark of inbetween

I lay down golden-in time

And woke up vanishing

Sweet bird you are

Briefer than a falling star

All these vain promises on beauty jars

Somewhere with your wings on time

You must be laughing

Behind our eyes

Calendars of our lives

Circled with compromise

Sweet bird of time and change

You must be laughing

Up on your feathers laughing

Golden in time

Cities under the sand

Power, ideals and beauty

Fading in everyone's hand

Give me some time

I feel like I'm losing mine

Out here on this horizon line

With the earth spinning

And the sky forever rushing

No one knows

They can never get that close

Guesses at most

Guesses based on what each set of time and change is touching

Guesses based on what each set of time and change is touching

Guesses based on what each set of time and change is touching

LanguageEnglish
Translated byAllen Morningstar

About this Song

Sweet Bird by Joni Mitchell is a reflective and poignant song that delves into the themes of time, change, and fleeting nature of life. Through the metaphor of a 'sweet bird,' the song contemplates the passage of time and how quickly moments of beauty and youth can slip away. Mitchell's profound lyrics suggest a longing for simpler times and a struggle to grasp onto memories before they fade. The song is rich in imagery and emotion, capturing a sense of nostalgia and the inevitable progression of life. A particularly poignant moment is when Mitchell sings about the innocence and simplicity of the past, juxtaposed with the complexity and impermanence of the present.

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