Jackson Browne - Don't You Want To Be There Lyrics

Great Pictures,well suited to this fine Song

One i haven't heard before. I love it !

I have loved him 40 plus yrs, I can listen to him anytime, great song.

Me too. Since 75. I adore him too😊

Beautiful song. Haven’t heard this song in ten years. Thank you Jackson ❤️🙏😇

To forgive is to set a prisoner free, and realize the prisoner was me!


Apparently, Jackson knows all about it.
Thank you so much for this. Lovelovelove this man since day one. Profundity beyond the comprehension of many.

This has become one of my favorite JB songs. It shows, as he is aging, that he is thinking perhaps more maturely, about the future. There some hard-to-miss christian themes here.

1. The need for reconciliation that is repeated with " And those you have wronged, you know You need to let them know some way And those who have wronged you, know You'll have to let them go someday"

2. The rapture of the church/believers seems to be represented with "Don't you want to be there, don't you want to fly?
With your arms out, let a shout take you across the sky Don't you want to be there when the time's gone by..." The Apostle Paul articulated this as: "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words."
1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 (NASB) JB carries that out accurately with "when time's gone by" -at the end; "don't you want to fly" -caught up is Greek harpazô (Latin rapturos/rapture) meaning caught or snatched away and since "in the air" fly is implied; and "let a shout take you across the sky" is pretty clearly the shout of 2 Thess. 4:16.

3. The only theological (from a biblical perspective) mistake that JB presents in these lyrics is a VERY IMPORTANT one to understand/correct. He says: "Don't you want to cry when you see how far You've got to go to be where forgiveness rules Instead of where you are" -This is a mistake religious minded people often make... that there is a long road to get from the brokenness of this world to the place of forgiveness (a metaphor for reconciliation with God). For an example, again from a christian/biblical perspective, of how near salvation actually is, all one needs to do is consider the thief on the cross. Two men were sentenced with Jesus, they were both estranged from God, even mocking Jesus (Matthew 27:44) but at one point, one of the criminals was convicted and changed his mind about Jesus. He went on to ask Jesus to be "remembered". This is a beautiful story recorded by Luke in his gospel, (See Luke 23:40-43)
The only requirement to "be there" is a willingness to turn from sin and to the Lord in faith. John writes: "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." -1 John 1:9 (NASB)

I believe JB wants to "be there" as I believe a lot of people want to "be there". But you have to ask yourself what is "there" and where is it? Jesus talked about that a lot...

"Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way where I am going."
Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?" Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me." -John 14:1-6 (NASB)

Don't YOU want to be there?

alvysinger

i met him a few years ago at the motor vehicle dept in los angeles. i was waiting in front of the building and i saw him walking across the lot toward the entrance. i greeted him and he was very nice and friendly and stopped to chat. he had lost his wallet and needed to replace his license. he sat alone in the crowd and nobody else knew it was him. the best day of my life. i felt uplifted all day long.

i was a frequent flyer for many years and have met and sat next to a few people in the entertainment industry. They were all kind and just like any good soul out there.

yes please.  i do want to be there.

wait for the trumbhone its fuckin awsome

Jackson Browne has been mine & my best friend's favorite singer since 1980. My first album was The Pretender and then she & I started buying everything after that. My favorite albums are The Pretender, Late For The Sky and For Everyman. The first time I saw him in concert was 1983. I saw him twice in the last 15 years, with the last time being front row center, that my best friend surprised me with the tickets! He is better than ever, in performance and singing. When we were 15 years old we would talk about how "deep" he was. He is so poetic and just so many things I've always loved about him.

If you haven't listened to his first album (sometimes called Saturate before Using) you really ought to.

My mother tragically passed away 9 days ago, and I can't seem to stop listening to this song on repeat. Thank you, Jackson for always bringing me some peace in the midst of great sadness.

Jackson, the kind of person you would like to sit down on a bench and talk to. He ages so well. Maybe all good people do.

some where out there there is love

want this played at my funeral

A stunning song of clarity, yes I want to be there..

I want to be there...

just came back to this wonderfull track awesome

Good musician. I've been hearding his song since 1976.

Utterly fantastic!!! Well done Jackson.........I love this song. Beautiful lyrics! Oh.So.True.

when was this song written? Beautiful!!

Maria Bachinsky
It is on the album called Naked ride home in 2002

If it sounds like this, I want to be there. Beautiful

This is really beautiful and the most sensual sound ever. Wow.

sorrry ?ank

dont you have anything else crank ............

Bite my crank

I adore all Jackson's tunes. It blows me away how prolific he is with his songwriting. A deep well.

Hi Willow. Your post on FB brought me here.Thanks for posting, one of my favorites... Be well

Thank you and you as well James!

I dig your analogy and sentence construct using “a deep well” as a creative and novel way of reinforcing the word “prolific” in the previous sentence

trumpet phhhhhhh

Beautiful job! Well befitting Jackson! Thank you!

Beautiful song

i want this played at my funeral

Hidden gem

Think this song was written for Mimi Farina, he sang it at her funeral.

JB's "Magical Mystery Tour" guided by a beautiful array of fall colors! What a combination. And YES I can't wait to be there when the sky opens up and Jesus comes with open arms

Beautiful video made for a beautiful song.  Thanks.

Those horns are so beautiful at the end !!! Angels blowing them , Jackson is a spiritual musician and his music his cloaked to a certain degree in true Christianity....

Bite my crank

+tim brown forgive ur self

Times there was love all around you, Times you were strong and alone, Times you believed love had found you, And you fell through time like a stone

This is the song I want played at my funeral ... morbid, I know 

Not at all. It's tough to summarize a life, and the meaning you hope it had. I've only recently discovered this song, but have been playing it frequently. I was wondering why, but I think you've given me a clue. Thanks, and thanks to my musical hero as well.

You've combined all my favourite things in this video!

What a deep reply!! it"s no doubt u R a J.B.fan!LLike they say,"great ears hear alike!!!chacka69

WowI am jealous!And I am not a (Pretender!) chacka69

Makes U want 2 B there.....chacka69!

*Boner popped*

I want to be there

An absolutely gorgeous song. It just floats over you.