Album: Wild God (2024)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • In "Joy," Nick Cave starts out feeling blue but is visited by a ghost that tells him that the time for sorrow is done, while the time for joy has arrived. It's a personal song, but fans and critics (and Bob Dylan - see below) received it as a call for humanity as a whole, being released in 2024 amid a long stretch of global anxiety and destabilization.
  • A ghost in giant sneakers, laughing stars around his head
    Who sat down on the narrow bed, this flaming boy
    Who sat down on the narrow bed, this flaming boy
    Said, we've all had too much sorrow, now is the time for joy


    While the connection is never explicitly stated in the song, it's hard to hear these lines without thinking of Cave's previous album, Ghosteen. Part of that album deals with Cave's deceased 15-year-old son, who makes an appearance as a ghost.
  • "Joy" is the sixth track on Wild God, the 18th album by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (at 6:13, it's the longest song on the record). The album detours from the Seeds' usual dark and dour personae, being optimistic and overtly full of faith, hope, and spirituality. The album was well received, beloved by fans and cracking into charts all across Europe and the United States.
  • And I jumped up like a rabbit and fell down to my knees

    This line is similar to "Frogs," the second single released off Wild God. Both are about leaping towards the transcendent, falling just short, and coming back to Earth, not in shame or disappointment but in humility, reverence, and gratitude.
  • On November 19, 2024, Bob Dylan posted a comment about "Joy" on X. He wrote: "Saw Nick Cave in Paris recently at the Accor Arena and I was really struck by that song Joy where he sings 'We've all had too much sorrow, now is the time for joy.' I was thinking to myself, yeah that's about right."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Gary Brooker of Procol Harum

Gary Brooker of Procol HarumSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer and pianist for Procol Harum, Gary talks about finding the musical ideas to match the words.

Don Felder

Don FelderSongwriter Interviews

Don breaks down "Hotel California" and other songs he wrote as a member of the Eagles. Now we know where the "warm smell of colitas" came from.

Allen Toussaint - "Southern Nights"

Allen Toussaint - "Southern Nights"They're Playing My Song

A song he wrote and recorded from "sheer spiritual inspiration," Allen's didn't think "Southern Nights" had hit potential until Glen Campbell took it to #1 two years later.

Donnie Iris (Ah! Leah!, The Rapper)

Donnie Iris (Ah! Leah!, The Rapper)Songwriter Interviews

Before "Rap" was a form of music, it was something guys did to pick up girls in nightclubs. Donnie talks about "The Rapper" and reveals the identity of Leah.

Al Kooper

Al KooperSongwriter Interviews

Kooper produced Lynyrd Skynyrd, played with Dylan and the Stones, and formed BS&T.

Emilio Castillo from Tower of Power

Emilio Castillo from Tower of PowerSongwriter Interviews

Emilio talks about what it's like to write and perform with the Tower of Power horns, and why every struggling band should have a friend like Huey Lewis.