Waiting For You

Album: Ghosteen (2019)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Well, sleep now, sleep now, take as long as you need
    'Cause I'm just waiting for you


    Nick Cave's son, Arthur, was 15 years old when he fell from a cliff to his death in Brighton, England, on July 14, 2015. Ghosteen is largely influenced by the loss of Arthur. Cave wrote the album during a period of grieving, and many of the songs reflect his emotions and experiences as he coped with the loss of his child. While the album is not explicitly about his son's death, the themes of loss, love, and grief are present throughout, and many of the lyrics are thought to be inspired by Cave's personal experiences.

    "Waiting For You" is a beautiful expression of love and loss. The lyrics capture the pain of losing someone you love, but also the hope that one day you will be reunited.
  • Nick Cave co-wrote and co-produced "Waiting For You" with his longtime collaborator, Warren Ellis. After they played the track to Coldplay's Chris Martin, he gave Cave some advice that radically changed it.

    '"Waiting For You' is a ballad, but originally we had a very loud, super aggressive, industrial loop that played completely out of time throughout the song," Cave wrote in his 2022 book Faith, Hope and Carnage. "Originally, that loop played from start to finish and it absolutely dominated the song. In our minds, we thought it set up a weird, disciplined tension within the song that sounded unnerving and strange. We had never really questioned it, but when we played it to Chris, he said, 'I love you guys very much, but is there any chance I could hear the song again without the f---ing canning factory?' At which point, our friend, the film director, Andrew Dominik sprang out of his chair and shouted, thank God someone suggested that."

    "At that time, we weren't so pleased, because we liked the brutality of the whole thing but we compiled," Cave added. "We took away the industrial loop, and what was left was a very beautiful, vulnerable song shimmering there on its own - a classic old school ballad, raw and fragile and unimpeded. So thank God for that."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

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.

Richard Marx

Richard MarxSongwriter Interviews

Richard explains how Joe Walsh kickstarted his career, and why he chose Hazard, Nebraska for a hit.

Commercials

CommercialsFact or Fiction

Was "Ring Of Fire" really used to sell hemorrhoid cream?

John Doe of X

John Doe of XSongwriter Interviews

With his X-wife Exene, John fronts the band X and writes their songs.

Yoko Ono

Yoko OnoSongwriter Interviews

At 80 years old, Yoko has 10 #1 Dance hits. She discusses some of her songs and explains what inspired John Lennon's return to music in 1980.

Loreena McKennitt

Loreena McKennittSongwriter Interviews

The Celtic music maker Loreena McKennitt on finding musical inspiration, the "New Age" label, and working on the movie Tinker Bell.