Album: True (1983)

Charted: 1 4

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• Huh huh huh hu-uh huh
  Huh huh huh hu-uh huh
  
  So true, funny how it seems
  Always in time, but never in line for dreams
  Head over heels when toe to toe
  This is the sound of my soul
  This is the sound
  I bought a ticket to the world
  But now I've come back again
  Why do I find it hard to write the next line?
  Oh, I want the truth to be said
  
  Huh huh huh hu-uh huh
  I know this much is true
  Huh huh huh hu-uh huh
  I know this much is true
  
  With a thrill in my head and a pill on my tongue
  Dissolve the nerves that have just begun
  Listening to Marvin (all night long)
  This is the sound of my soul
  This is the sound
  Always slipping from my hands
  Sand's a time of its own
  Take your seaside arms and write the next line
  Oh, I want the truth to be known
  
  Huh huh huh hu-uh huh
  I know this much is true
  Huh huh huh hu-uh huh
  I know this much is true
  
  I bought a ticket to the world
  But now I've come back again
  Why do I find it hard to write the next line?
  Oh, I want the truth to be said
  
  Huh huh huh hu-uh huh
  I know this much is true
  Huh huh huh hu-uh huh
  I know this much is true
  
  This much is true
  
  This much is true
  This much is true
  I know, I know, I know this much is true
  This much is true
  This much is true
  This much is true (huh-huh)
  This much is true
  I know this much is true
  This much is true (huh-huh)
  This much is true (I know this much is true)
  This much is true (huh-huh)
  This much is true (I know this much is true)
  I know, I know, I know this much is true Writer/s: Gary James Kemp
  Publisher: REFORMATION MUSIC INC
  Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 39

• Chris from CanadaHello, Siobhan in the UK! With this many comments I don't know if you're received a reply to "what are seaside arms"? Me, being a nautical lover, I think of a narrow inlet attached to a larger body of water, colloquial called "the arm of the sea". Long arms? Possibly describing the person who Gary Kemp wants to "write the next line", metaphorically, their relationship. Or "write the next line" sprinkle more of the white stuff to create a line as I've referenced cocaine in a previous comment.
• Chris from CanadaI like a lot of these comments and surprised by the number of music lovers jumping in on this.
  
  "With a thrill in my head and a pill on my tongue" keep in mind it's 1983 "Dissolve the nerves that have just begun" high-grade cocaine is everywhere; it's not a documentary but go enjoy the film Blow starring Johnny Depp. It really paints a realistic vivid picture of how quickly it came on the scene. You can't "Listening to Marvin (all night long)" high on good cocaine as you'd prefer running like a hamster on a wheel so that pill on Gary Kemp's tongue must be a Quaalude, another popular drug of 1983 being a sedative.
  
  Well, that's my take on it.
• Starchild from San FranciscoI think "Bob from Michigan" and "Russ from Richmond, VA" are on the right track. Elsewhere in these comments, Bob wrote, "It's not documented, but it sure sounds to me that the chorus begins with 'I-I-I-I'm high - I know this much is true'. And the line about a 'pill on my tongue' reinforces this idea. I could certainly be wrong and reading into it... but that's what it sounds like to me." Russ notes, "It's a beautiful song but not once does it reference anything regarding 'love'."
  
  Certainly the line about "a pill on my tongue" is the clearest expression of what I believe the song "True" is really about, but there are several other more subtle clues.
  
  Many, many songs contain hidden meanings or references to drugs or sex; the mantra "sex and drugs and rock 'n roll" reflects the intimate connection between music, sexuality, and getting high. The connections between art and drug use are undeniable and have a very long (if often suppressed) history that I won't go into here. But musicians, though both less censored and less inhibited in the modern era than has often been the case historically, are still sometimes hesitant to write open tributes to the intoxicants that inspire them.
  
  This theory could help explain the couplet, "Why do I find it hard to write the next line, Oh I want the truth to be said". And "Funny how it seems, always in time, but never in line for dreams," may be the singer's cryptic observation of how people have the time of their lives when tripping – "head over heels when toe to toe" (with the drugs) – yet few of us list having ecstatic altered experiences as being among our life aspirations or dreams.
  
  I disagree slightly with Bob about the chorus – I don't hear "I-I-I-I'm high", but what I *do* hear is "Hi-i-i-i-igh". It's not just "huh" and "uh"; there is definitely an "i" sound in there, and I think it is simply the word "high" being drawn out. This may be a kind of onomatopoeia, as a well-known aspect of intoxication (tripping on psychedelic drugs in particular) is how it can distort one's sense of time.
  
  The experience of tripping is also famously difficult to remember afterward when sober, or capture in words, which is another possible explanation for the lyrics, "Why do I find it hard to write the next line", and "always slipping from my hands". I believe that "sand" in the song lyrics serves a stand-in for the drugs that produce this effect ("Sand's a time of its own").
  
  In this vein, "Take your seaside arms and write the next line" could be interpreted as meaning, "Write the next line while tripping, or from the perspective of one who is familiar with sand (psychedelics)".
  
  I think it's even possible, though more of a stretch, that the use of the word "sand" may also be an allusion to Nicholas Sand.
  
  Born Nicholas Francis Hiskey (May 10, 1941 – April 24, 2017), Wikipedia describes him as "a cult figure known in the psychedelic community for his work as a clandestine chemist from 1966 to 1996 for the Brotherhood of Eternal Love. Sand was part of the League for Spiritual Discovery at the Millbrook estate in New York, has been credited as the 'first underground chemist on record to have synthesized DMT' and is known for manufacturing large amounts of LSD."
  
  Spandau Ballet lead singer (and "True" lyricist) Gary Kemp is a known fan of psychedelic rock legends Pink Floyd, and in 2018 participated in a retrospective project "revisiting the band’s acid-drenched years – with Gary Kemp standing in for Syd Barrett"
  
  Finally, "I bought a ticket to the world, but now I've come back again" is an obvious reference to taking a trip of some kind, and I think he means a psychedelic one.
  
  But in the end, Kemp mostly satisfies himself with the repeated admonition that "this much is true" – by which I think he means that the drug experience IS a hi-i-i-i-gh, i.e. that it is a peak experience, a good thing, even if he finds the nature of its value too difficult to articulate, or too socially risque to explicitly advocate in a hit song.
• Hjon from Chi-townIn any encounter there are three elements: the content of the text as it stands alone; authorial intent - what did the author means/intends when (s)he wrote the text; and reader/listener interpretation when (s)he hears/reads the text.
  
  Now add in time. Authors may be totally serious when they write a sing, but upon later reflection may hold it in entirely different value, I as listener may value one point today, but may value an entirely different point tomorrow.
  
  Is there an absolute and static meaning to any text? Or is the more important than how we interact with a text over time?
• Annabelle from MelbourneIt was also featured in the TV show "Spaced" in S1E2 (1999)
• George from Vancouver, CanadaI'll give him credit; he wasn't in love with Clare Grogan on looks, that's for sure! Looking at her now, I figured maybe she just didnt age gracefully, but I checked her pics in '81 & '82. . .nah. . . Unrequited love sucks, but we got a heck of a beautiful song from his!
• 786 from Manchester, EnglandA good song doesn’t cry out for commentary - this is one such gem!
• Seventh Mist from 7th HeavenSome songs just lay it on a bit too thick and this is one of them.
• Ruth from Dorset Kills my soul every time....and just read it ws about unrequited love and not wanting to declare yours for fear of being rejected. Could have been written for me. Timeless, beautiful classic.
• Siahara Shyne Carter from United StatesThe first line ;-)
  and
  
  Chorus: I know this much is Truuuueeeeee This much is true This much truueee
  
  I still heated this on radio
• Max from California This song rules!
• Bob from MichiganIt's not documented, but it sure sounds to me that the chorus begins with "I-I-I-I'm high - I know this much is true". And the line about a "pill on my tongue" reinforces this idea. I could certainly be wrong and reading into it... but that's what it sounds like to me.
• Don from Sevierville, TnI cannot stand this song!
• George from Vancouver, CanadaDid Tears for Fears do this song, too?
• John from Canon City, CoOne thing many people are missing out on is the cut in the end of the song. It's original length is 6:30. This is where some of the richest sounds are found. Throughout the song TRUE, Spandau Ballet used a PROPHET-5 synthesizer to flow along with many parts of the bass track, complimenting in a piano sound. The 5 polyphonic monochrome style synthesizer enabled waveless strings-straight as an arrow, the initial atmosphere synth melody and the unique piano/bass sounds.
• Mark from Providence, Riand tell me who, who doesn't love a little power ballad, mixed with a little techno, mixed with a little rock and roll & TO top off the cherry on the cake of it all a freaking sax. Uuuuh! What a phenominal tune! The epitome of the 1980's! Bravo! ps: song is memorialized in the film 16 candles at the HS dance.
• Shane from Los Angeles, CaOne of my all-time favorite songs with great depth. After thinking about this song for a long time, I believe the overall point of the song is this: The author/singer wants to tell the truth but he never does. He says "I know this much is true" but never finishes his sentence, and he never gets to the truth. It's irony at its best.
• Jennifer from Brisbane, Australiaive heard this song play at many weddings, its a true love song and the words "seaside arms" come from the most magnificent novel
• Camille from Toronto, OhWhat is it that makes this song a classic? The perfect blend of singer's voice, lyrics, melody, and that catch phrase "I know this much is true" sung various ways throughout the song. Fabulous saxophone, too, that seems to express, perhaps, in sound, those words the writer is searching for in vain. And, by the way, this is another one of those songs that women hear and think, yeah, I'd like the man of my dreams to be singing this to me.
• Melissa from Windsor, CanadaTo me, the lyrics, "I bought a ticket to the world ... write the next line" mean "I was going to start over and I left so that you wouldn't destract me, but I couldn't leave because I realized I don't want this to be over: now the ball is in your court - I'm leaving the next move up to you."
  To me, this song as a whole is about actually WRITING a song (or story or novel) that is essentially a CONFESSION by the author about his love for someone. The song or story can be written FOR the loved one as a revelation of his feelings OR it could be written ABOUT the couple's relationship as a sort of tell-all. I think this because of the references to Nabakov's Lolita - this novel was a tell-all that the character writes while he is in prison about the unrequited love of an under-aged girl. Because of the references to Lolita, I think the song could be interpreted as being about unrequited love, and possibly also about loving someone it would be inappropriate to be with. I also think a kind of fall from grace could be implied, as the author of Lolita writes his story after being arrested. It could be about so many things or situations, and I think that's one of the reasons this song is so great!
• Tony Cook from London, United Kingdomspendau was a prison, and r hess was there till hes death, nuff said, just a brill song and have to agree with paul of london, sends chills down my spine and reminds me of my saled days (if you will excuse the pun) back in the 80s when everything seemed so right.
• Siobhan from Harrogate, United KingdomWhat are sea side arms??? wrap your seaside arms around me and write the next line!!!!???
• Travis from Grandisland, FlAlso to add is that when Steve sing "True" in Wedding Singer(which is at the end of the movie) he improvises the line "Robbie and Jullli a aa a"
  
  Also I love this song a great 80's pop classic.
• Travis from Grandisland, Fl"True" was also sung by Steve Buscemi in the movie Wedding Singer(1998) starring Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler.
  
  And was done again in the film 50 First Dates(2004) which then was performed by Will I Am and Fergie, but the lyrics are changed for rapping in the Will I Am parts
• Greg from Batavia, NyThis song was popular when my daughter was less than a year old. I used to dance her to sleep to it. She's getting married in a few weeks and she dosn't know it yet but this will be our father-daughter dance.
• Fulu Thompho from Limpopo, South Africawhat is it that is true? somebody should provide an explanation. i wanna know what is "true" in this song. But anyway i love it.
• Dale from Santa Fe, NmThe song seems to be Kemp drawing an analogy between his life and Marvin Gaye's.
• Russ from Richmond, VaThis song was about taking acid and expanding your horizions. It's a beautiful song but not once does it reference anything regarding "love". Thrill in my head, pill on my tounge... Sound of my soul... Seaside arms... Bought my ticket to the world (LSD)... Hard to write the next line.. This much is true! This guy is writing based on a very deep LSD inspired evening.
• Sui from Cebu City, OtherSeems like Drew Barrymore love the song True...it's in 50 First Dates and Charlie's Angels.
• Neal from North, NjI know this much is... TrUUUuee! hahaha
• Stu from Fife, ScotlandYou need to be careful which sources you trust on the net! Spandau prison was in the capital, Berlin. It was built in 1876 and so existed long before WWII. It was not an Auschwitz-like death camp with gas chambers. The prisoners who were hung at Spandau were the senior Nazis found guilty at the Nuremberg trials. They were sentenced to death on 1 October 1946 and hanged on 6 October 1946. Other senior Nazis, like Rudolf Hess, were imprisoned there, too.
• Billy Rhythm from Rockland, MeLuke, what I find on the net is that the prisoners of Spandau were gassed, not hung. Google "spandau ballet nazi," and it's easy to find.
  
• Luke from Manchester, EnglandWhere my last post IS true (pardon the pun), the band changed their name after seeing some Grafiti in Berlin after being called 'the Makers'
• Luke from Manchester, EnglandyduR, Knoxville - Stop talking out of your arse son... When inmates of the Spandau prison were hung, the corpses moved on the rope, seeming to dance as the last breath escaped, this was known as the "Spandau Ballet"
• Adam from Poplar Bluff, MoWill.i.am and Fergie from the Black Eyed Peas did a reinterpretation of this song for the 50 First Dates Soundtrack that was decent.
• Ydur from Knoxville, TnSpandau was a special prison built for Nazi war criminals at the end of the Nuremburg trials. A "Spandau Ballet" was a homosexual courtship/seduction between the inmates. In the end, it was solely occupied by Rudolph Hess.
• Paul from London, EnglandThis is my Ultimate Chill-Out Summer Song of all-time and one of the few songs ever to send chills down my spine. I love this song and Tony Hadley's vocals really shine here.
• Jammon from Jammon, EnglandHas Something to do with Marvin Gaye ('Listening to Marvin, all night long)
• K from Leicester Uk, EnglandNelly, also used this song to sample in his song N Dey Say, which is his fifth single (in the UK off his double album SweatSuit.

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