Know something about this song or lyrics?
Add it to our wiki.
One summer evening drunk to hell
I stood there nearly lifeless
An old man in the corner sang
Where the water lilies grow
And on the jukebox johnny sang
About a thing called love
And its how are you kid and whats your name
And how would you bloody know?
In blood and death neath a screaming sky
I lay down on the ground
And the arms and legs of other men
Were scattered all around
Some cursed, some prayed, some prayed then cursed
Then prayed and bled some more
And the only thing that I could see
Was a pair of brown eyes that was looking at me
But when we got back, labeled parts one to three
There was no pair of brown eyes waiting for me
And a rovin a rovin a rovin Ill go
For a pair of brown eyes
I looked at him he looked at me
All I could do was hate him
While ray and philomena sang
Of my elusive dream
I saw the streams, the rolling hills
Where his brown eyes were waiting
And I thought about a pair of brown eyes
That waited once for me
So drunk to hell I left the place
Sometimes crawling sometimes walking
A hungry sound came across the breeze
So I gave the walls a talking
And I heard the sounds of long ago
From the old canal
And the birds were whistling in the trees
Where the wind was gently laughing
And a rovin a rovin a rovin Ill go
For a pair of brown eyes
I stood there nearly lifeless
An old man in the corner sang
Where the water lilies grow
And on the jukebox johnny sang
About a thing called love
And its how are you kid and whats your name
And how would you bloody know?
In blood and death neath a screaming sky
I lay down on the ground
And the arms and legs of other men
Were scattered all around
Some cursed, some prayed, some prayed then cursed
Then prayed and bled some more
And the only thing that I could see
Was a pair of brown eyes that was looking at me
But when we got back, labeled parts one to three
There was no pair of brown eyes waiting for me
And a rovin a rovin a rovin Ill go
For a pair of brown eyes
I looked at him he looked at me
All I could do was hate him
While ray and philomena sang
Of my elusive dream
I saw the streams, the rolling hills
Where his brown eyes were waiting
And I thought about a pair of brown eyes
That waited once for me
So drunk to hell I left the place
Sometimes crawling sometimes walking
A hungry sound came across the breeze
So I gave the walls a talking
And I heard the sounds of long ago
From the old canal
And the birds were whistling in the trees
Where the wind was gently laughing
And a rovin a rovin a rovin Ill go
For a pair of brown eyes
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
The phrase 'I was that soldier' just means 'I've been there' and does not necessarily refer to war or the army. The phrase 'you've been in the wars' is often used about anyone who's had a rough time, whether at work, in romance, thorough illness, bereavement etc.
The phrase 'in the horrors' is drink related: in Waterford it seems to mean 'drunk' but elsewhere I think it means 'hungover'.
Also, the narrator may not literally be talking to the person he 'hates': he may be just thinking of what he might say to him in his drunken emotional state.
As for giving the walls a talking: I was that soldier!
A Thing Called Love: youtube.com/…
My Elusive Dream: youtube.com/…
thus, the first half of the first verse is the youngster, and the old man's story interjects in the second half and lasts until halfway through the second verse. the young man's story continues with him leaving the bar. in this reading the first chorus is part of the old man's story, and the second chorus is part of the young man's story. they were or are both in search of a pair of brown eyes but for different reasons. perhaps it's an older version of the same person trying to tell the kid to stop being emo and grow up.
If you want a great version of this song, check out Shane singing it with Christy Moore...awesome