The rock band Pink Floyd latest studio album was The Division Bell. Polly Samson, a friend and future wife of David Gilmour, was directly involved in the work on the disc.
It is difficult to say how significant her contribution was, but she is listed as a co-author of several tracks at once. One of them is the song High Hopes, which closes the album.
The story of creation and the meaning of the song High Hopes
Having read the lyrics of the song, we can assume that it is dedicated to the already planned disintegration of Pink Floyd. However, David explained that he told about his youthful experiences, leaving his father’s house, the collapse of illusions and a collision with life’s realities.
According to him, the song came from a phrase by Polly Samson about time that cannot be defeated. It made David reminisce about his years in Cambridge and reflect on the sacrifices we make on the altar of our own ambitions.
Recording and release
Gilmour wrote the song quickly and demoed it within one day, but it took a very long time to finalize the song.
High Hopes was released as a single in October 1994. It rose to number 26 on the UK Singles Chart.
Video of High Hopes by Pink Floyd
The psychedelic video for the song High Hopes is shot in the best traditions of the band and expresses the main ideas of the song’s words in an original form.
Interesting Facts
- The Division Bell album was named after a line from the song High Hopes. This name was chosen for him by the writer Douglas Adams. This was asked by the members of the group, who could not come to an agreement on this issue.
- In the last minute of the full album version of the song, Charlie, David Gilmour’s son, has a brief conversation with Stephen O’Rourke, the band’s manager. So Steve’s dream came true to participate in the recording of the album.
Lyrics of High Hopes by Pink Floyd
Beyond the horizon of the place
We lived when we were young
In a world of magnets and miracles
Our thoughts strayed constantly and without boundary
The ringing of the division bell had begun
Along the long road and on down the causeway
Do they still meet there by the cut
There was a ragged band that followed in our footsteps
Running before time took our dreams away
Leaving the myriad small
creatures trying to tie us to the ground
To a live consumed by slow decay
The grass was greener
The light was brighter
With friends surrounded
The nights of wonder
Looking beyond the embers of bridges glowing behind us
To a glimpse of how green it was on the other side
Steps taken forwards but sleepwalking back again
Dragged by the force of some inner tide
At a higher altitude with flags unfurled
We reached the dizzy heights of that dreamed of world
Encumbered forever by desire and ambition
There’s a hunger still unsatisfied
Our weary eyes still stray to the horizon
Thought down this road we’ve been so many times
The grass was greener
The light was brighter
The taste was sweeter
The nights of wonder
With friends surrounded
The dawn mist glowing
The water flow
The endless river
For ever and ever
High Hopes Lyrics by Pink Floyd Alternate
Beyond the horizon,
Where we lived when we were young
In a world of interesting things and miracles,
Where our thoughts constantly wandered, knowing no boundaries,
The bell of alienation has already begun to sound
Along the highway and on the paved road
Do they still overlap?
There, a gang of ragamuffins followed us on our heels.
Trying to get ahead of time took away our dreams
Leaving a myriad of small creatures trying to keep us on the ground,
In a life swallowed up by slow decay
The grass was greener
The light was brighter
During amazing nights
With friends
Watching the burning bridges smoldering behind us
For a glimpse of how green everything was on the other side
We take steps forward, but like lunatics we go back,
Driven by the force of some inner tide
Rising higher with flags unfurled
We have reached dizzying heights that the whole world dreams of
Forever burdened with desires and ambitions
We never satisfied our hunger
Our tired eyes are still looking beyond the horizon
Even though we’ve been there so many times
The grass was greener
The light was brighter
The taste was sweeter
During amazing nights
With friends
The haze shines at dawn
water flows
Endless river
Till the end of time
Song quote
I think it’s more about my youth and how I left my hometown.
David Gilmour
