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Out in the shiny night the rain
Was softly falling
The tracks that ran down the boulevard had
All been washed away
Out of the silver light the past came softly calling
And I remember the times we spent
Inside the Sad Cafe
Oh it seemed like a holy place
Protected by amazing grace
And we would sing right out loud the
Things we could not say
We thought we could change this world
With words like "love" and "freedom"
We were part of the lonely crowd
Inside the Sad Cafe
Oh, expecting to fly,
We would meet on that shore in the
Sweet by and by
Some of their dreams came true,
Some just passed away
And some of the stayed behind
Inside the Sad Cafe.
The clouds rolled in and hid that shore
Now that Glory Train, it don't stop here no more
Now I look at the years gone by,
And wonder at the powers that be.
I don't know why fortune smiles on some
And let's the rest go free
Maybe the time has drawn the faces I recall
But things in this life change very slowly,
If they ever change at all
There's no use in asking why,
It just turned out that way
So meet me at midnight baby
Inside the Sad Cafe.
Why don't you meet me at midnight baby,
Inside the Sad Cafe.
Was softly falling
The tracks that ran down the boulevard had
All been washed away
Out of the silver light the past came softly calling
And I remember the times we spent
Inside the Sad Cafe
Oh it seemed like a holy place
Protected by amazing grace
And we would sing right out loud the
Things we could not say
We thought we could change this world
With words like "love" and "freedom"
We were part of the lonely crowd
Inside the Sad Cafe
Oh, expecting to fly,
We would meet on that shore in the
Sweet by and by
Some of their dreams came true,
Some just passed away
And some of the stayed behind
Inside the Sad Cafe.
The clouds rolled in and hid that shore
Now that Glory Train, it don't stop here no more
Now I look at the years gone by,
And wonder at the powers that be.
I don't know why fortune smiles on some
And let's the rest go free
Maybe the time has drawn the faces I recall
But things in this life change very slowly,
If they ever change at all
There's no use in asking why,
It just turned out that way
So meet me at midnight baby
Inside the Sad Cafe.
Why don't you meet me at midnight baby,
Inside the Sad Cafe.
Lyrics submitted by Demau Senae
Track duration: 05:30
"The Sad Cafe" as written by Don Henley, Glenn Lewis Frey, Joe Walsh, John David Souther
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., EMI Music Publishing
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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The last bit about the narrator deciding to revisit the past. He returned to "sad cafe" hoping to find the life he so fondly remembered, but once arrives he realizes how little it all has changed, and how as the years pasted he had idealized the memories he was clinging to. All at once it makes sense to him. He no longer needs answers because he has found peace with the way his life has played out, and wants only to bask in the memory of what it was like to share a dream.
To me, the "sad cafe" is a metaphor for a special place and/or time in a persons life where they shared dreams, ambitions, outlook and friendship. It could be high-school, college, a home town, or even an era (eg. the 70s).
"we could sing right out loud, the things we could not say" - this line reminds me of reckless freedom and haphazard ways. kind of like the saying "gotta learn to run before you can walk".
"oh expecting to fly..." people believed that their dreams, no matter how outlandish, would come true. The kind of boundless optimism that can never last.
In many ways "the sad cafe" is a metaphor for growing and changing and the sincere happiness one gets from sharing a vision or a dream.
The song is about the nostalgia one feels when looking back at the time that was the "sad cafe" and the people who were there with him, with the sober clarity gained by experience and the passing of time.
The line, "the clouds rolled in and hid that shore," signifies the end of that time. Some people go off to pursue their dreams, others give up, and some are paralyzed by inaction yet cling to what they wish they could achieve.
The narrator, looking at his own life and where it has taken him, wonders why he has been so lucky, wonders why he has come so far while some of the people he remembers never made it. He has fond memories of this long gone time and place, yet he feels that maybe the memories ("maybe the time has drawn the faces I recall") are just an idealized version of the way things actually were.
Finally, he decides to revisit the past, the place where his journey began. Perhaps he is looking for closure, perhaps answers to old questions, or maybe he just wants to remember what it felt like to share a dream.
This song is also about the musicians who made it opposed to the ones that didn't but were just as equally talented, they just didn't get the the breaks. So they still hang out at the Troubador..or the "two-bit-whore" as us locals call it. The Trube is the "Sad Cafe"...
"Life's been good to me so far baby,
inside the Sad Cafe."
Which does kinda make the song being about the bands breakup more realistic
this is one of my all time favorite songs that is soooo underrated and that not too many people know about. this song is absolutely beautiful w ith the sax and all and don henley's voice is beautiful. i think im gonna name my kid don now... or maybe not
i love this song it has so much meaning and is very soothing. the eagles are awsome and are often over looked for bands like AC/DC which are definatly not even competition to the eagles. I LOVE THE EAGLES.