Meaning of Once in a Lifetime by Talking Heads & Song Story

The album Remain in Light was recorded by the American group Talking Heads under the guidance of producer Brian Eno. He also became a co-author of all the songs included in the disc.

Brian was directly involved in the work on the words and music of the song Once in a Lifetime. The composition surprised music lovers with its mysterious text, original style of performance and a funny video.

The story of creation and the meaning of Once in a Lifetime

The song was born during long jam sessions where the musicians experimented with the afrobeat, imitating Fela Kuti. They did not work out with this genre, but in the end they found a new direction that determined their future style.

Once in a Lifetime lyrics by David Byrne:

It wasn’t one of Brian Eno’s favorite tracks that we worked on. And there was an offer to throw it away. But I thought, “There is something to it. I’m sure I can write the words that it will work with.”

Byrne recalled where he got his inspiration:

Most of the words of Once in a Lifetime are borrowed from preachers recorded from the radio while I took notes and chose phrases that I found interesting.
Maybe I’m fascinated by the middle class because it seems so different from my life, so far from what I do. I can’t imagine living like this.

time out

Much of it is borrowed from the style of radio preachers. I improvised with the lines in such a rhythm as if I were preaching a sermon. In this style with rapid breathing.

NPR

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The chorus of Once in a Life was written by Brian Eno.

Many thought that the authors were criticizing the consumer attitude to life, but Byrne refuted this opinion. Here is how he explained the meaning of Once in a Lifetime:

We are largely unconscious. We function half asleep or on autopilot. As a result, we have a house, a family, a job and something else. We really didn’t think to ask ourselves the question: “How did this happen to me?”

NPR

Release and achievements

On February 2, 1981, Once in a Lifetime was released as the first single from Remain in Light.

In the British chart, the song stopped at the fourteenth line, and the composition did not hit the Billboard Hot 100 at all, limiting itself to 103rd place.

In 1986, the live version of Once in a Lifetime from the film Stop Making Sense reached number 91 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The composition is included in the list of five hundred songs that shaped rock and roll, according to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. NPR named it one of the 100 Greatest American Music of the 20th Century.

Once in a Lifetime video

A funny video was shot for the song, which made the audience laugh with David Byrne’s ridiculous dance. The role of the choreographer on the set was made by the singer Tony Basil (Tony Basil), the performer of the hit Mickey.

She recalled working on the video.

He [Бирн] wanted to study body movement, but he wanted to study it more like an actor, like David Bowie did, like Mick Jagger did. They relate to body movement differently than a trained dancer. Or they are simply not interested in dance steps.
He wanted to study people in trance: special trances in church and special trances with snakes. So we went to the University of California at Los Angeles and the University of Southern California, where we reviewed a lot of documentary records on this topic. From documentaries, he gathered ideas that he later expressed in physical form.

MTV Ruled the World – The Early Years of Music Video

Let’s watch the video clip of Once in a Lifetime by Talking Heads.

Cover versions

An interesting version of Once in a Lifetime was presented by The Exies.

The song was also performed by the Smashing Pumpkins.

Interesting Facts

Bassist Tina Weymouth claimed she wrote the bass part in imitation of the yell that her husband, drummer Chris Frantz, uttered during a jam session.
Brian Eno didn’t like the bass line and recorded his own version. When he went home, the sound engineer asked Tina to perform the original version, which was included in the song.
The video for Once in a Lifetime aired on MTV on August 1, 1981, when the channel opened.
The music video for Once in a Lifetime was shown at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Once in a Lifetime Lyrics

And you may find yourself
Living in a shotgun shack
And you may find yourself
In another part of the world
And you may find yourself
Behind the wheel of a large automobile
And you may find yourself in a beautiful house
With a beautiful wife
And you may ask yourself, well
How did I get here?

Chorus 1:
Letting the days go by, let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by, water flowing underground
Into the blue again after the money’s gone
Once in a lifetime, water flowing underground

And you may ask yourself
How do I work this?
And you may ask yourself
Where is that large car?
And you may tell yourself
This is not my beautiful house!
And you may tell yourself
This is not my beautiful wife!

Chorus 1

Same as it ever was x8

Water dissolving and water removing
There is water at the bottom of the ocean
Under the water, carry the water
Remove the water at the bottom of the ocean!

Chorus 2:
Letting the days go by, let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by, water flowing underground
Into the blue again in the silent water
Under the rocks, and stones there is water underground

Chorus 1

And you may ask yourself
What is that beautiful house?
And you may ask yourself
Where does that highway go to?
And you may ask yourself
Am I right? Am I wrong?
And you may say yourself, “My God! What have I done?”

Chorus 2

Chorus 1

Same as it ever was
Same as it ever was
Same as it ever was
Look where my hand was
Time isn’t holding up
Time isn’t after us

Same as it ever was x9

Letting the days go by

(same as it ever was)
Letting the days go by

(same as it ever was)
Once in a lifetime
Letting the days go by
Letting the days go by

Once in a Lifetime Lyrics Alternative

And you can suddenly understand
That you live in a tiny shack.
And you can suddenly understand
That you are on the other side of the world.
And you can suddenly understand
That you’re driving a big car.
And you can suddenly realize that you are in a beautiful house,
With a wonderful wife.
And you can ask yourself a question like:
How did it happen?

Chorus 1:
Let the days pass, let the water hold me.
Let the days pass, and the water flows underground.
Sad again when the money runs out.
Only once in a lifetime does water flow underground.

And you can ask yourself:
What should I do about it?
And you can ask yourself:
Where is that big car?
And you can say to yourself
This is not my beautiful home!
And you can say to yourself
This is not my beautiful wife!

Chorus 1

Everything is exactly the same as it was always – 8 times

Water dissolves and water carries away.
There is water at the bottom of the ocean.
Carry water under water
Clean up the water at the bottom of the ocean!

Chorus 2
Let the days pass, let the water hold me.
Let the days pass, and the water flows underground.
Again in sadness in calm water.
Under the rocks and stones underground water.

Chorus 1

And you can ask yourself:
What is this beautiful house?
And you can ask yourself:
Where does this highway lead?
And you can ask yourself:
I’m right? Am I wrong?
And you can say to yourself
My God! What have I done!

Chorus 2

Chorus 1

Everything is exactly the same as it always was.
Everything is exactly the same as it always was.
Everything is exactly the same as it always was.
Look where my hand was.
Time doesn’t wait
Time does not follow us.

Everything is exactly the same as it was always – 9 times

Let the days pass
(It’s just the same as it’s always been)
Let the days pass
(It’s just the same as it’s always been)
Only once in a lifetime
Let the days pass
Let the days pass