Metallica the unforgiven trilogy lyrical discussion thread

[StealSniper]

Okay i am a enormous fan of metallica, and i truly believe that most if not all of their music is pure poetry, but i truly think this is the case with the three unforgiven songs i think they are beautiful and paint a wonderful and tragic story of someones life, and i've always wanted to discuss it, and i think this would be the perfect place for it. So if people just kind of put their input on it that would be cool, i'll slide in eventually but i have to go now. I hope this actually gets going.

The Unforgiven

YouTube - Metallica - The Unforgiven

Lyrics


New blood joins this earth
And quickly he's subdued
Through constant pained disgrace
The young boy learns their rules

With time the child draws in
This whipping boy done wrong
Deprived of all his thoughts
The young man strugggles on and on he's known
A vow unto his own
That never from this day
His will they'll take away-eay

Chorus:

What I've felt
What I've known
Never shined through in what I've shown
Never be
Never see
Won't see what might have been
What I've felt
What I've known
Never shined through in what I've shown
Never free
Never me
So I dub thee UNFORGIVEN

They dedicate their lives
To RUNING all of his
He tries to please THEM all
This bitter man he is
Throughout his life the same
He's battled constantly
This fight he cannot win
A tired man they see no longer cares
The old man then prepares
To die regretfully
That old man here is me

What I've felt
What I've known
Never shined through in what I've shown
Never be
Never see
Won't see what might have been
What I've felt
What I've known
Never shined through in what I've shown
Never free
Never me
So I dub thee UNFORGIVEN

whoa, whoa

Never Free
Never Me
So I dub thee UNFORGIVEN
You labeled me
I'll label you
So I dub thee UNFORGIVEN
Never Free
Never Me
So I dub thee UNFORGIVEN
You labeled me
I'll label you
So I dub thee UNFORGIVEN
Never Free
Never Me
So I dub thee UNFORGIVEN


Unforgiven II

YouTube - Metallica - Unforgiven II

lyrics
Lay beside me, tell me what they've done
Speak the words I wanna hear, to make my demons run
The door is locked now, but it's opened if you're true
If you can understand the me, then I can understand the you

Lay beside me, under wicked sky
Black of day, dark of night, we share this pair of lives
The door cracks open, but there's no sun shining through
Black heart scarring darker still, but there's no sun shining through
No, there's no sun shining through
No, there's no sun shining

[Chorus]
What I've felt, what I've known
Turn the pages, turn to stone
Behind the door, should I open it for you?

Yeah
What I've felt, what I've known
Sick and tired, I stand alone
Could you be there, 'cause I'm the one who waits for you
Or are you unforgiven too?

Come lay beside me, this won't hurt I swear
She loves me not, she loves me still, but she'll never love again
She lay beside me, but she'll be there when I'm gone
Black heart scarring darker still, yes she'll be there when I'm gone
Yes she'll be there when I'm gone
Dead sure she'll be there

[Chorus]
What I've felt, what I've known
Turn the pages, turn to stone
Behind the door, should I open it for you?

What I've felt, what I've known
Sick and tired, I stand alone
Could you be there, cause I'm the one who waits for you
Or are you unforgiven too?

[Solo]

Lay beside me, tell me what I've done
The door is closed, so are your eyes
But now I see the sun, now I see the sun
Yes, now I see it

[Chorus]
What I've felt, what I've known
Turn the pages, turn to stone
Behind the door, should I open it for you

What I've felt, what I've known
So sick and tired, I stand alone
Could you be there, cause I'm the one who waits
The one who waits for you


Oh, what I've felt, what I've known
Turn the pages, turn to stone
Behind the door, should I open it for you

Oh, what I've felt
Oh, what I've known

I take this key (never free)
And I bury it (never me) in you
Because you're unforgiven too!

Never free
Never me
Because you're unforgiven too..
Oo-Oh-Oo

and last and my personal favorite the unforgiven III, the thing about this one is i suggest listening to it at least three times in different sittings of coarse but the song grows on you and the lyrics are amazing.

The Unforgiven III

YouTube - Metallica - The Unforgiven III

Lyrics

How could he know
This new dawn's light
Would change his life forever?

Set sail to sea
But pulled off course
By the light of golden treasure

Was he the one causing pain
With his careless dreaming?
Been afraid
Always afraid
Of the things he's feeling

He could just be gone
He would just sail on
He'll just sail on

How can I be lost,
If I've got nowhere to go?
Search for seas of gold
How come it's got so cold?

How can I be lost?
In remembrance I relive
And how can I blame you
When it's me I can't forgive?

These days drift on
Inside a fog
It's thick and suffocating

His sinking life
Outside it's hell
Inside, intoxication

He's run aground
Like his life
Water much too shallow

Slipping fast
Down with his ship
Fading in the shadows

Now a castaway
They've all gone away
They've gone away

How can I be lost
If I've got nowhere to go?
Search for seas of gold
How come it's got so cold?

How can I be lost?
In remembrance I relive
And how can I blame you
When it's me I can't forgive?

Forgive me
Forgive me not
Forgive me
Forgive me not
Forgive me
Forgive me not
Forgive me
Forgive me
Why can't I forgive me?

(Solo)

Set sail to sea
But pulled off course
By the light of golden treasure

How could he know
This new dawn's light
Would change his life forever?

How can I be lost,
If I've got nowhere to go?
Search for seas of gold
How come it's got so cold?

How can I be lost?
In remembrance I relive
So how can I blame you
When it's me I can't forgive?

[Sam W]

Three of my favourite Metallica songs. Wasn't too keen on Unforgiven III when I first heard it. The piano intro was weirdly not Metallica, but it grew on me. I think Unforgiven I has to be one of the best Heavy Metal songs ever written. I and III are poignant, sad, and even poetic, yes. I think II goes a little heavy to be put in that category, but it's still an awesome tune.

The first line of I always gets me: New blood joins this earth and quickly he's subdued. Class! James and Lars did brilliantly with the lyrics. And, yes, I think it's poetic, though I never though about it that way before.

[Battlemage]

I am talk with Metallica on Myspace.

"Hush little baby and don't say a word..."

[StealSniper]

Personally waht i get out of the first one is that he is blaming himself. He never showed his true love to the one he loved. Then in the second one he said that he wasn't the only one to blame. She could have done more, she could have said more.

Then in the third one he is apologizing for blaming her, he thinks himself as a small child, lost and if he can't forgive himself then how could he ever forgive her.

My favorite lines are

Unforgiven 1- What I've felt, What i've known never shined through in what i've shown.

I think this is a beautiful line, because it can relate to anyone. People that believe something and don't stand up for it are just weaklings basically.

Unforgiven 2- The door is locked now, but it's opened if you're true

I love this line because he is basically saying that she doesn't have all the power, he can control himself ie he wants to.

Unforgiven 3-

Set sail to sea
But pulled off course
By the light of golden treasure

How could he know
This new dawn's light
Would change his life forever?

I think this is a awesome verse, the words are so true. However I think they are misplaced, i don't think they should be in the unforgiven III cause it's talking about trying to forgive himself, yet he lost this 'light' and sure it changed his life forever but it was a tragic change.

Anyways i'd love to hear some more feedback.

[Amber Leaf]

My theory on the three songs is that they are three tales of fictional (or potentialy real) people caught up in addiction.

Many Metallica tunes are about this theme (Master of Puppets, Until it Sleeps, etc...)

In The Unforgiven the man has lost his freedom at an early age through his addiction being subdued (possibly in jail?). He dies an old man, dubbing those who stopped him having chances the unforgiven.

In The Unforgiven II the man has found the door out of addiction. He has left a girl behind in doing so. He wonders should he show her the door as he waits for her on the other side or is it just that she is unforgiven too (I.E. for choosing to remain there without him)?

Unforgiven III is the tale of a man who has alienated all those who love him by going off in search of golden treasures (addiction - golden brown springs to mind). The reason this man is unforgiven is because of his own guilt.

The three are beautiful, sad songs. They truely show the force behind what stops someone forgiving themselves.

Anyone think different?

I think this is a awesome verse, the words are so true. However I think they are misplaced, i don't think they should be in the unforgiven III cause it's talking about trying to forgive himself, yet he lost this 'light' and sure it changed his life forever but it was a tragic change.

I think you misunderstand. The dawns light (fresh and pure) is the light he lost to choose to search for golden treasure (money, gambling, drugs etc...)

The following two bits reflect this:

How can I be lost,
If I've got nowhere to go?
Search for seas of gold
How come it's got so cold?

How can I be lost?
In remembrance I relive
So how can I blame you
When it's me I can't forgive?

He can't forgive himself because it is the rememberance of the seas of gold, the careless dreaming and a knowledge the new dawns light was the light he really should have searched under. He lost each fresh new daylight by being blinded by the gold. He has nowhere to go.

His addiction has made him persue these initially inspiring ideas that have turned out to be so cold and alone. He doesn't blame anyone but can't forgive himself either for not seeing dawns light in the first place.

[StealSniper]

I kind of have a new outlook on this cause that was like 9 months ago, I now believe the explanations are really quite simple.



Unforgiven: A child becomes a lost soul after being beaten down by the conformist society

Unforgiven II: That lost soul is found by another.

Unforgiven III: That lost soul is accepting responsibility for his/her part in his bitter life:

[JosephB]

Without the music, these lyrics are banal at best. Some are just hokey and groan-worthy. You could say that about 95% of rock and roll lyrics though, so I'm not picking on Metallica.

[GraysonMoran]

I agree completely about these lyrics. Very pedestrian and deriviative. No great idea, just a sort of pastiche of adolescent whine.

From an album with the name of a Clint Eastwood movie??????

Disagree with most rock lyrics being crap, though. Much of it is very fine poetry.

[StealSniper]

Be careful, Metallica is like my god...

First off the album is not called Unforgiven... but anyways the lyrics aren't nessacarily god like, but the music makes them epic. However rock lyrics are the most poetic of all music in my opinion.

[GraysonMoran]

Oh, I like Metallica, too. In a way. They are nothing like my taste in listening or performing, but I have always liked their musicianship and their attitude.

But those aren't any great shakes, lyrics-wise. I make up better stuff than that just fooling around on the porch.

[Leyline]

The only one of the three I really like is III, which may be because it's from Death Magnetic, the album where Metallica started sounding like the band that rocked my teenaged ass again.

And this line:

How can I be lost,
If I've got nowhere to go?

Sums up my nomadic lifestyle. Said with a smile, though. Said with a smile.