Gabriel, Peter - Lead A Normal Life Lyrics






It's nice here with a view of the trees
Eating with a spoon?
They don't give you knives?
'Spect you watch those trees
Blowing in the breeze
We want to see you lead a normal life





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Gabriel, Peter Lead A Normal Life Comments
  1. B.... S....

    I have been in rehab and at a crisis center a few times since before I first heard this song. It strikes a bit too close to home...

  2. D.... S....

    Institutionalised. Powerful without being powerful.

  3. D.... K....

    When I came back home after the terror bombings of Sri Lanka the 21 April 2019, I coincidentally fell over this song once again... and began to cry. So yes, I believe the core is in the twilight between calmness and madness. It's a wonderful song.

  4. r.... b....

    i never lead a nonal life

  5. K.... C....

    His best song????? I've been there, I know what he feels here.....

  6. D.... E....

    This was the B-Side to Games Without Frontiers. Perfect B-Side but slightly dissapointing when it appeared on LP. Cool song tho ...

  7. N.... M....

    This is art

  8. r.... b....

    It's nice here, with a view of the trees

  9. w.... ....

    the last line of this sng always hurts like a bitch

  10. D.... K....

    I was born in 1987....this track has been a part of me since I can remember. Thanks dad

  11. R.... F....

    I like it so much!!!

  12. C.... V....

    Qué maravilla de canción.

  13. D.... K....

    My dad played this for me so many times when I was little. Now it is cathartic as hell. Thank you

  14. A.... F....

    I haven't heard this album for 35 years and had completely forgotten about this. So simple.

  15. E.... R....

    samadhi.

  16. e.... b....

    So much of his stuff is Otherworldly mixed with Primitive...unsettling...

  17. B.... t....

    Seriously moving.

  18. C.... B....

    Why is this not on Spotify?

    C.... B....

    It is on Spotify now. Listened to it just yesterday.

  19. k.... j....

    Little bit scary song , a nightmare paranoia. Like (For your Pleasure) the last song on on the same album , Roxy , Eno Gabriel pure art

  20. R.... R....

    sounds like peter gabriel had Adrien Belew play lead guitar (or was it R Fripp??)...on this song...

    R.... R....

    I believe it was Fripp.

  21. E.... B....

    Syd Barrett ?!?!?!?

  22. N.... ....

    We are all screaming. The beautiful home that I envy as I drive by on my way home from work is filled with unquiet souls screaming quietly. Many of us deny the Envy and pain yet most of us reach for the spoon because "they" won't gives us knives. Thanks peter. You speak for many.

    N.... ....

    wait, what?

  23. M.... N....

    I heard car alarms at the end.

  24. C.... M....

    Peter Genius Gabriel

  25. T.... M....

    thankgoodness and all that is holy, that peter gabriel decided to become an artist, and a musician.

  26. B.... F....

    Typical Peter Gabriel - excellent, and it doesn't disappoint.

  27. P.... M....

    I've been in a mental hospital seven times, so this holds a lot of emotion for me.

    P.... M....

    wanna be

    P.... M....

    Me too friend blessed be went to get life experience abd wrote a book based on all of my journeys to the feed farm medication time💊💊 cheers

  28. O.... L....

    Am I the only one who cry with this song?

  29. J.... B....

    Not one ordinary song in this album.

    J.... B....

    Love it

    J.... B....

    and I'm quite OK with that....

    J.... B....

    this was a good era to be a music fan, thank the good Lord Baby Jesus.

  30. A.... D....

    I wouldn't call this song so much relaxing as a very, very quiet scream.

    A.... D....

    or heart beating

    A.... D....

    yes! a quiet scream....that really fits a variation on Munch's "Scream" in some aspects perhaps.....

    A.... D....

    iwould say relaxing

  31. l.... ....

    Brilliant track in this great album!

  32. P.... ....

    by far his best album. who really knows what's going on in Peters head? awe inspiring music, sometimes incoherent lyrics, otherworldly vocals. music that is felt in the soul rather than heard with the ears. play this album on a real system with your eyes closed. then play PG4 or security per Geffen. the native rhythms and drums will draw you to a world very different from this.

    P.... ....

    Well said. Music is, and in my opinion always should be, a means of transportation.

  33. 1.... ....

    Brilliant track. Gabriel's solo albums were all brilliant.

  34. F.... 3....

    Maybe to the normal it's chilling , the trees are mocking me

    F.... 3....

    +Frank Giruzzi Perfect for a show like Hannibal.

  35. G.... D....

    A song to be studied by future musicologists as a breakthrough in dark music.

    G.... D....

    Not dark...Inspiring.

  36. F.... ....

    The piano melody sounds like Gymnopedie by Erik Satie. Satie is said to have had problems with his mental health.

  37. p.... ....

    Lyrics - just one verse - from the vinyl insert:

    It's nice here with a view of the trees
    Eating with a spoon?
    They don't give you knives?
    'Spect you watch those trees
    blowing in the breeze
    We want you to live a normal life

    p.... ....

    "we want to see you lead a normal life"

  38. s.... ....

    It's a song I think about being committed to a mental hospital.

    s.... ....

    Sounds like that.  I think this was some sort of precursor to Wallflower on his next album, where you have superiors controlling you and running every aspect of your life.

    s.... ....

    +psychill22 - Wallflower, as told by Peter in a 2011 interview and in concerts, is about political prisoners being tortured and was inspired by Amnesty International and torture of prisoners in Argentina.

    s.... ....

    It is about being in a mental hospital. Not only the lyrics -- "they" don't let you use forks and knives to eat, spoons only -- but the music itself gives the clue. Most of it with the piano and marimbas is the effect of a sedative/tranquilizer.

    When Robert Fripp's guitar -- "Frippertronics", the atonal squeals and warbles -- fades in toward the end, that's the drugs wearing off and the illness and its horror burning back through in full force again.

    s.... ....

    It’s about the conformity that society places on individuals...

  39. M.... R....

    How can anyone call this "calming" it's absolutely chilling.  Pink Floyd at their scariest rarely ventured this deep into the darkness . . .

    M.... R....

    @Movingthrutime thats the thing with inspiring Artist , you find its a common thing for them to have dabbled in substances thats not your average cup of Tea to some , pete was lucky to be able to walk in or out of his Facility >:-)

    M.... R....

    +Michael Rinella It's "calming" or "nice" the way the them of Poltergeist is "happy" and "cheerful."
    I like how it like, is the music of how he is supposed to feel.. and then a sting of what he IS feeling.. then back to "normal" again.. Least that's what it says to me.

    M.... R....

    i was in the hospital once, and didn't talk for weeks, i thought of this song a lot, it actually was soothing :-)

    M.... R....

    This is an especialy disturbing song.

  40. T.... H....

    atrophonix: it also connects to "Wallflower" from IV (Security)

    T.... H....

    Mercy Street from So seems oddly similar too.

  41. c.... ....

    lead a normal life?and that"s coming from peter gabriel?gotta love the man.

  42. l.... ....

    one of Peter's most beautiful songs, Love it!

  43. J.... ....

    How did it go?

  44. J.... S....

    If you haven't heard the whole viva la vida or death and all his friends album you should defenetly check it out. It has just that.

  45. T.... ....

    "And Through the Wire" is one of my fav songs of all time! I love that whole LP.

  46. T.... ....

    What a wonderful tune! A real landscape made by music.

  47. T.... P....

    This was posted on Facebook in honor of the Sandy Hook, CT students and families.

  48. O.... ....

    Calming? Really? I find it really disturbing. I love it.

  49. M.... A....

    I'm declaring my love to this song and hopefully she will say YES !

  50. m.... ....

    Simplicity is touching

  51. W.... C....

    interesting interpretations of his songs you have.
    great that we all interprate things differently.

  52. a.... ....

    This song sounds calming, but it hides a nightmare, people getting someone sectioned into a mental hospital as they want them to be 'normal' hence they have a view of trees but aren't allowed knives. The theme links to another PG song, 'We Do What We're Told' about Stanley Milgram's infamous psychological experiments to test individuals for conformity to authority in harming others.

  53. O.... ....

    I used to listen to this song back when I lived in the eastern washington desert

  54. b.... ....

    What a beautifully soothing, atmospheric sound. Leave it to the natural genius & talent of Peter Gabriel to engage both your senses and your mind with both the real and the surreal, enriching, and even educating any listener willing to really listen.

  55. a.... w....

    Gonna put this in a movie one day...

  56. K.... M....

    Thanks for posting this!! Do you think you could perhaps post "And Through the Wire" as well? I can't find a good version of it anywhere...

  57. p.... ....

    Great, thanks for uploading!

  58. c.... ....

    This is epic!

  59. a.... k....

    @OroborusFMA its weird because peter gabriel seems like such a normal down to earth slightly innocent and kind generous sort of guy, but this album seems to completely contradict that, anyway its still an amazing groundbreaking album, I think its better than SO actually, no self control and family snapshot are the ones I like the best, although its hard to pick a favourite song from this album, peace!!

  60. O.... ....

    The songs form a cycle of sorts, they are all about people "outside" the boundaries of normality (Intruder, Familiy Snapshot), people who feel alienated from the rest of the world (Through the Wire, Lead a Normal Life, I Don't Remember), people who can't tolerate other views (Games Without Frontiers, Not One of Us), and people who stand against the world (Biko). I always wished the end of Biko had been a return to the drums that start Intruder. That would have made the album perfect.

  61. s.... ....

    @parksy010101 I think this about being in an assylum!

  62. N.... ....

    Yes, this is also one of my no 5 songs ever.. Thanks Lottie

  63. N.... ....

    Thanks for posting-----I remember being 17 or 18 years old and listening to this song on my "Walkman" in the dark while I went to sleep. I think that this song is featured in the film "Birdy" a lot. Lovely.

  64. m.... ....

    Great song.

  65. S.... T....

    I really really like this.

  66. G.... B....

    Well I'm glad you put it up. Very relaxing indeed - I did most of my revision to this song. I still have Peter playing in the background when I'm doing uni essays :)