Album: Viva la Vida (2008)

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• At night they would go walkin' 'till the breakin' of the day
  The morning is for sleepin'
  Through the dark streets, they go searchin' to see God in their own way
  Save the night time for your weepin'
  Your weepin'
  
  Singin' la-la-la-la-la-la-lay
  And the night over London lay
  
  So we rode down to the river, where Victorian ghosts pray
  For their curses to be broken
  We go wandering 'neath the arches, where the witches are and they say
  There are ghost towns in the ocean
  The ocean
  
  Singin' la-la-la-la-la-la-lay
  And the night over London lay
  
  God is in the houses and God is in my head
  And all the cemeteries in London
  I see God come in my garden, but I don't know what he said
  For my heart it wasn't open
  Not open
  
  Singin' la-la-la-la-la-la-lay
  And the night over London lay
  Singin' la-la-la-la-la-la-lay
  There's no light over London today Writer/s: Christopher Anthony John Martin, Guy Rupert Berryman, Jonathan Mark Buckland, William Champion
  Publisher: Universal Music Publishing Group, Wahana Musik Indonesia (WAMI)
  Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 6

• Emma from Kingston, EnglandThis song always makes me want to play Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess because the whole song is very much like the music in the abandoned "wild west" village!
  love this song, one of my absolute favorites.
• Dara from Dublin, IrelandThe first time I heard it, it reminded me of my regular trips to London. I normally fly into city airport and get a cab to tower hill and walk through the city, all those ghostly little lanes and churches all the way down to fleet street.
  
  Anyway I play a lot at trad sessions in Ireland and a while ago I put a version of it together and played it.
  
  Most of the people their didn't know the tune but it went down very well. I did get asked the question "Was it an old English trad song?" funny really but you know a good song when you can play it anywhere and it fits right in..........
• Liberty from Somewhere, InThis song is amazing. I love it because it's so haunting. And Justin, your description is exactly what I think of when i listen to it. Wow.
• Liz from Sydney, AustraliaAnd by the way, Justin from CA, i totally dig your imagery. The whole song brings you to that place, and its like your just walking through it. Its great...
• Liz from Sydney, Australia" I see God come in my garden, but i don't know what he said, for my heart it wasn't open, not open..."
  
  Those lyrics right there are, i think, much more deep that anyone can realise. Whether or not Chris knew it when he was writing those lyrics, i know that they have spoken to alot of people. I also think that they are probably an awesome insight into what was going through his mind at the time. I cant say for sure, but thats what i think.
  
  The whole song is so melancholic, and it just completely touches every part of the inside. The harmonies, the simplicity, the echo, the whole 'spiritual' side of things. There is such a big element of mystery to it. "There are ghost towns in the ocean" ?!?!?. i'm sorry, but for me, i was like... 'hold up. What were you feeling when you were writing this?' How could anyone have written this song with the simple intention of just making money out of it...
  
  For me, music is such a huge part of my whole life, spiritual, worldly, and emotionaly. (just to clear this, i'm not at all emo, i'm just completely fanatical about the spiritual side of music). And whether Chris is writing from his heart or his pocket, it completely speaks to me. Not so much the lyrics, but the music itself. Makes you feel a certain way, can completely turn your whole day up side down. This song it totally one of those songs.
• Justin from Roseville, CaDefinitely haunting. Filled with fog of a seaside town. It carries you down from a hilltop through stone buildings, past hand-lit street lamps, with the darkened sea resting eerily in the distance. I think it's one of those songs that really catches the ear of someone who originally wasn't paying attention.

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