Iggy Pop – Passenger

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I am the passenger and I ride and I ride
I ride through the city's backsides
I see the stars come out of the sky
Yeah, the bright and hollow sky
You know it looks so good tonight

I am the passenger, I stay under glass
I look through my window so bright
I see the stars come out tonight
I see the bright and hollow sky
Over the city's ripped backsides
And everything looks good tonight

Singing, la la la

Get into the car
We'll be the passenger
We'll ride through the city tonight
We'll see the city's ripped backsides

We'll see the bright and hollow sky
We'll see the stars that shine so bright
Stars made for us tonight

Oh, the passenger
How, how he rides
Oh, the passenger
He rides and he rides

He looks through his window
What does he see?
He sees the sign and hollow sky
He sees the stars come out tonight
He sees the city's ripped backsides
He sees the winding ocean drive

And everything was made for you and me
All of it was made for you and me
'Cause it just belongs to you and me
So let's take a ride and see what's mine

Singing, la la la

Oh, the passenger
He rides and he rides
He sees things from under glass
He looks through his window side

He sees the things that he knows are his
He sees the bright and hollow sky
He sees the city sleep at night
He sees the stars are out tonight

And all of it is yours and mine
And all of it is yours and mine
So let's ride and ride and ride and ride

Singing, la la la

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Lyrics submitted by magicnudiesuit

Track duration: 04:44

"The Passenger [Live]" as written by Iggy/gardiner Pop

Lyrics © EMI Music Publishing

Lyrics powered by LyricFind


Passenger song meanings
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32 Comments

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  • +1
    Song Meaning:Well, what I have learned about it - it is inspired by some poem by Jim Morrison.
    There is a relation from a concert when he puts a little light for all the people who like to think more about lyrics. Maybe he didn't thought much about it as it occurs that he was really high on drugs when he had written it but it isn't as it was meaningless.

    He said - that it is about being a passenger in life - not really having much influence on it, lack of means, knowledge or whatever, so the only thing what you can do (when you cannot actually steer your life) is to be like passenger who can only watch through the windows, meet everything he experiences etc. So it is as if this song was written for teenagers or people feeling like this - that they don't have much control in their lifes and the only thing they can do is to wait "look through the mirror".

    I think the song is about having fun and seeing wonderful things if we really see that in life you do what you do instead of you wanna do, choose to do, plan to do etc. Noticing beauty of this life, this world..
    Flag wowuon November 09, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Bright and hollow sky == no heaven, but still beautiful
    Flag Scrawleron January 30, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Lou Reed is amazing. Iggy Pop is amazing. Everyone I like musically seems to be inspired by Lou Reed, it's true. But this song is true genius, just as much as Perfect Day (my favourite by Lou Reed) is.
    Flag Strangleron April 06, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I do love this song, and iggy pop. That said, Lou Reed is the inventor of punk rock. Iggy was even inspired by lou reed. I am not cutting iggy short, the stooges were probably the first purely punk band, but I mean, Lou reed really started it all. I mean unless you want to go back, to the first punk-type song, and you could even say the beatles. But that's a stretch. But fuck the sex pistols. Punk started here
    Flag LikeSisterRaySaidon February 27, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:It's a love song. Sharing of realities from ones own perspective " under glass" inside thru ones own eyes "stars" people "hollow skies" the vastness "yours and mine" the availability of it all. The last verse...exploring his mate
    Flag absorbedon October 14, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:i feel really trapped when i listen to this song. also really ignorant. to me this song is about protected and ignorant people can be. this song puts me in a totally zoned place. the la la's are almost sad.
    Flag Hey_thereon August 30, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:"The Passenger", is said to be based on one of Jim Morrison's poems. After Jim Morrison's death, Iggy was considered as a replacement for Morrison; the surviving Doors gave Iggy some of Morrison's belongings, and hired him as a vocalist for a series of shows. Iggy was very inspired by Morrison.
    Flag Nealaon January 12, 2008   Link
  • -1
    General Comment:"he sees the winding ocean drive"
    Is that a reference to Ocean Drive in Miami Beach?

    "he sees the bright and hollow sky"
    In Miami Beach, half of the sky is bright (from the city lights), the other half is dark (no lights on the ocean).
    Flag hybridnuanzon October 28, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I used to have a kiosk at a train station - Stockport near Manchester - and I loved when this song came on, looking at the train pulling in and out, just see the silhouettes of the passengers looking out - me in my bubble and them in theirs. We live such self-limited lives, and yet "all of it was made for me and you", we just got to realise an enjoy.
    Flag jimqukon October 25, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:oh top song.
    i always though it was about life in general.
    and then saying "get into the car we'll be the passenger"
    as in asking everyone to see the world the way he does.
    if that makes sence..
    Flag rawr-im-a-tigeron October 23, 2006   Link

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