- published: 24 Jun 2012
- views: 1728746
"From a Distance" is a song written in 1985 by American singer-songwriter Julie Gold. Some think this song was inspired by a PF Sloan song of the same name. Gold was working as a secretary at the time for Home Box Office and writing songs in her free time. Gold's friend, Christine Lavin, introduced the song to Nanci Griffith who first recorded it for her 1987 album, Lone Star State of Mind. It quickly became a favorite of Griffith's fans around the world.
The song also became subject of many interpretations with the most famous being the Bette Midler version in the United States and the Cliff Richard version in the UK.
Julie Gold has stated that she believes in an immanent and beneficent God, and also thinks that people have a right to interpret the song any way they want, as with all art. She has stated that the song is about the difference between how things appear to be and how they really are.
Judy Collins sang it live in 1989, being first recorded in her live album Sanity and Grace, and in 1990 in her studio album Fires of Eden. The Byrds recorded the song as one of 4 newly recorded studio tracks for their box set The Byrds released in 1990.
Ohh Ohh Hey
How do I get close when she looks just like an angel?
A moment of her time just seems impossible to me
It's hard to find the words, to get to know this stranger
I'm scared of what she'll say, if what I say sounds incomplete
And it feels like we belong together
Can someone tell me where do I stop because
I can't keep on feeling the way I do
I can't keep on hiding my heart from you
I gotta say something before someone else comes through
I can't keep on loving you from a distance
She's always on my mind
There's no room left for thinking
I'm tired of waiting, slowly fading
Needs to happen now
'Cause I'm running out of time and I feel this ship is sinking
The doors are closing, I am frozen
I need her around
And it feels like we belong together
Can someone tell me where do I stop? (where do I stop?)
Hey 'cause
I can't keep on feeling the way I do (oh no)
I can't keep on hiding my heart from you
I gotta say something before someone else comes through
I can't keep on loving you from a distance
From a distance
From a distance
From a distance
From a distance
'Cause I can't hide
I can't keep on feeling the way I do, no no
I can't keep on hiding my heart from you
I gotta say something before someone else comes through
Baby, I can't keep on loving you, no no
I can't keep on loving you, hey