This song was written in 1996, and is about looking beyond the surface, similar to "It Shows". At the time I was 19, recovering from mental health problems including a nervous breakdown, time in psychiatric hospital and depression, and then taking a year out.
lyrics
This is the tip of the iceberg
Calm waters run deep.
The signs that surface
Hide the secrets we keep.
It's the show of the actor
On the stage of the soul.
Empty smiles fool no-one,
A vacant heart plays an empty role.
Anyone would think you'd reached your life's ambition,
But no-one needs to know that now.
Anyone can see you're living in a contradiction,
Your sophistications given out.
And I can see you're losing touch,
Ask where you made the mistake.
Complain about how life is bad;
Still you join the line of heartbreak.
A hundred broken hearts in a line holding hands,
Waiting for somebody to show the way.
We don't have what our heartache demands.
Still wonder why the smile never stays.
When the curtains fall,
And the late-show ends,
How do we keep our dignity
When we can't even keep our friends?
credits
from stars from a sidecar,
released October 24, 2019
Ed: vocals, piano, organ, drums, guitars, bass
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