Spies

Album: Parachutes (2000)
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  • I awake to find no peace of mind
    I said how do you live as a fugitive
    Down here where I cannot see so clear
    I said, what do I know
    Show me the right way to go

    And the spies came out of the water
    But you're feeling so bad 'cause you know
    But the spies hide out in every corner
    But you can't touch them no, 'cause they're all spies
    They're all spies

    I awake to see that no one is free
    We're all fugitives
    Look at the way we live
    Down here, I cannot sleep from fear no
    I said, which way do I turn
    Oh I forget everything I learn

    And the spies came out of the water
    But you're feeling so bad 'cause you know
    The spies hide out in every corner
    But you can't touch them no
    'Cause they're all spies
    They're all spies

    And if we all hide here
    They're going to find us
    And if we don't hide now
    They're going to catch us where we sleep
    And if we don't hide here
    They're going to find us

    And spies came out of the water
    But you're feeling so good 'cause you know
    Though spies hide out in every corner
    They can't touch you no
    'Cause they're just spies
    They're just spies
    They're just spies
    They're just spies
    They're just spies Writer/s: Christopher Anthony John Martin, Guy Rupert Berryman, Jonathan Mark Buckland, William Champion
    Publisher: TuneCore Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group
    Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 19

  • Eight from IrelandWhen I hear this song it reminds me of soldiers in war and maybe hiding from the enemy. Or perhaps maybe get out of your comfort zones... I don't know but this song is absolutely brilliant.
  • Joshua from Antelope, CaGovernment song because spies are everywhere and they can spy but we can't touch them and vice versa.
  • Conrad from Cape Town, South Africathis song is a real great inspiration to my and walk with God and to achieve all my goals and infact anything i wanna do in life, this means that anything that is negative towards you or your life is nothing but a spy and cannot touch you its just there to scare you from doing just what you want to do and make yourself a success and actually taking the risk in life that most people are afraid of taking to fulfill their dreams and aspirations. so to me the spies are media every single negative thought i have and that other people have about me. all cold plays songs have what ever meaning you want it to have to you. that's why i love this band this is true music for the soul and mind it has truely helped me in life, nothing scares me i will do just what i want in terms of building my legacy for my kids and family. Peace
  • Prathap from Chennai, IndiaI think its about societal pressure and self-doubts... and in the last stanza, he gives an optimistic touch to the song by conveying they are nothing but spies that cant actually touch you....
  • Vivel from Killian, LaI love songs about paranoia. They're always great, because paranoia can be written about so many ways--this is one of the musically/lyrically best i've heard. (Don't think schizo though--paranoia in itself is good.)
  • Jonathan from Deer Park, NyIt reminds me of a person going through life and people are doing ALL they can to stop him. Everyone he knows is a "Spy" trying to ruin him.
  • Hanna from Steamboat, Coi think there is so much more meaning beyond some political rant... i mean, it could be related to victims of abuse, people who dont feel safe in their own house (oh, i forget everything I learned) It shows how things like that go so against our absic understandings of nature and people and how it all should work. but wow, what a great melody. oh, and it could also refer to your demons, things you regret, (you cant touch them, no, cos they're just spies) its like your mistakes are always watching over your shoulder or something.
  • Benjamin from Birmingham, Al"i said how do you live, as a fugitive, down here, where I cannot see so clear..." That is why it was banned from China; they are still very "clingy" to government's power over the people. It's really sad, when you think about it...
  • Jimmy from Phoenix, AzI think the song is supposed to allude to the book Nineteen Eighty-Four which attacks totalitarian or even communist countries so it would make sense why it is banned in China.
  • Sam from Provo, Utgreat song, the guitar part is so cool!
  • Mark from Manila, Otheryeah this song got the coolness inside it! lolz
    except when Chris says
    "if we dont hide here the gonna find us"
    that background sound was like yellow's
    just a thought...
  • Alex from Toronto, CanadaI don't get it either. This was their first album, and they haven't released it yet. Yet, it was "banned" in China.
  • Sam from Booya, CaChris is talking about the human way of life. everything. he's saying everywhere we go and in everything we do, there are spies. by spies, he means influences. he's saying they come out of the water because water is the prime neccessity for our survival. so he's saying that EVEN in water, the very thing we need to live, there are spies. So basically, he's saying there's spies EVERYWHERE and we can't hide from them. there's spies even in water, the most basic essential. and i believe by spies, he's referring to influences such as the media or whatever.
  • Schapov from Eburg, OtherI think that's the song about 'demons'. Unseen entities that surround us during our entire lifespan. Perhaps Chris is religious or occult minded guy, who believes that we are influenced by some kind of outside forces. That he calls them 'spies' is just his word choosing.
  • Andrew from Cluj, Romaniato me it makes perfect sense as being about a paranoid schizophrenic person - there's an old story i know about a woman who got sick in the head, she thought that there were people following her, the spies,right? she was commited to a hospital for the rest of her life; this song seems to end in a happier tone though...

  • Ashley from Moncton, CanadaThis song really confuses me. I just don't get it- the words are weird. The spies came out of the water? They can't touch you because they're all spies? It confuses me.
  • Alissar from Sydney , Aki think its about living in fear of something which really isn't there - a fabrication of imagination or even will. Like spies, they can see you and observe upon you, but they 'can't touch you' - they just watch, therefore are not genuine threats. Living your life inhibited and supressed by something - like 'fugitives'. Perhaps reference to the communist countries like China who supposedly control and subodinate their people by using fear and punishment (?)
  • Gabe from Utica, NyThis song is really cool. I think the reason y this album was banned in China bc is insulted them in their assumption that this song was criticizing China on bein spies. (This is just a prediction) But this song is sooo good. It's also my little sister's favorite Coldplay song.
  • Dusan from Berkely, Iawhy did it get banned in china, i dont quite understand the concept of the song and abviously i dont have all the intricacies of it. So could someone please explain it to me?
see more comments

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