A dreaded sunny day
So I meet you at the cemetry gates
Keats and Yeats are on your side
A dreaded sunny day
So I meet you at the cemetry gates
Keats and Yeats are on your side
While Wilde is on mine

So we go inside and we gravely read the stones
All those people, all those lives, where are they now?
With-a loves, and hates and passions just like mine
They were born, and then they lived, and then they died
Seems so unfair, I want to cry
You say: "'Ere thrice the sun done salutation to the dawn"
And you claim these words as your own
But I've read well and I've heard them said
A hundred times, maybe less, maybe more

If you must write prose and poems the words you use should be your own
Don't plagiarise or take "on loan"
'Cause there's always someone, somewhere with a big nose, who knows
And who trips you up and laughs when you fall
Who'll trip you up and laugh when you fall
You say: "'Ere long done do does did"
Words which could only be your own
And then produce the text from whence was ripped
Some dizzy whore, 1804

A dreaded sunny day, so let's go where we're happy
And I meet you at the cemetry gates
Oh, Keats and Yeats are on your side
A dreaded sunny day, so let's go where we're wanted
And I meet you at the cemetry gates
Keats and Yeats are on your side, but you lose
'Cause whale blubber Wilde is on mine
Sugar


Lyrics submitted by weezerific:cutlery, edited by davida

Cemetry Gates Lyrics as written by Johnny Marr Steven Morrissey

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

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Cemetry Gates song meanings
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  • +2
    My Interpretation

    Originality, authenticity, and the weight of the past are among the themes the song explores. The references to Keats, Yeats, and Wilde imply that the vocalist is talking about the importance and influence of literary figures, with Keats and Yeats standing in for one viewpoint and Wilde for the vocalist's own perspective. The vocalist also expresses their dismay at the idea of plagiarism, taking words and thoughts that are not your own, and the idea that there's always someone who knows the truth and will trip you up if you fall.

    "A dreaded sunny day, so let's go where we're wanted" suggests seeking out a place where one is accepted and appreciated for who they are; the line "A dreaded sunny day, so let's go where we're happy" implies seeking out a place where a person can be themselves.

    Zenarcheron January 17, 2023   Link

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