Released: February 10, 1992
Songwriter: Robert “3D” del Naja Grantley “Daddy G” Marshall Andrew “Mushroom” Vowles Horace Andy Neneh Cherry
Producer: Andrew “Mushroom” Vowles Grantley “Daddy G” Marshall Jonny Dollar Robert “3D” del Naja
[Chorus]
The big wheel keeps on turning
On a simple line, day by day
The Earth spins on its axis
One man struggle while another relaxes
[Verse 1]
There's a hole in my soul like a cavity
Seems like the world is out to gather just by gravity
The wheel keeps turning, the sky's rearranging
Look, my son, the weather is changing
I'd like to feel that you could be free
Look up at the blue skies beneath a new tree
Sometime again you'll turn green and the sea turns red
My son, I said, the power of axis over my head
[Chorus]
The big wheel keeps on turning
On a simple line, day by day
The Earth spins on its axis
One man struggles while another relaxes
[Verse 2]
We sang about the Sun and danced among the trees
And we listened to the whisper of the city on the breeze
Will you cry in the most, in a lead-free zone
Down within the shadows where the factories drone?
On the surface of the wheel they build another town
And so the green come tumbling down
Yes, close your eyes and hold me tight
And I'll show you sunset sometime again
[Chorus]
The big wheel keeps on turning
On a simple line, day by day
The Earth spins on its axis
One man struggle while another relaxes
[Verse 3]
As a child's silent prayer, my hope hides in disguise
While satellites and cameras watch from the skies
An acid drop of rain recycled from the sea
It washed away my shadow, burnt a hole in me
And all the King's men cannot put it back again
But the ghetto Sun will nurture life
And mend my soul sometime again
[Chorus]
The big wheel keeps on turning
On a simple line, day by day
The Earth spins on its axis
One man struggle while another relaxes
[Chorus]
The big wheel keeps on turning
On a simple line, day by day
The Earth spins on its axis
One man struggle while another relaxes
[Chorus]
The big wheel keeps on turning
On a simple line, day by day
The Earth spins on its axis
One man struggle while another relaxes
The big wheel keeps on turning
On a simple line, day by day
The Earth spins on its axis
One man struggle while another relaxes
[Verse 1]
There's a hole in my soul like a cavity
Seems like the world is out to gather just by gravity
The wheel keeps turning, the sky's rearranging
Look, my son, the weather is changing
I'd like to feel that you could be free
Look up at the blue skies beneath a new tree
Sometime again you'll turn green and the sea turns red
My son, I said, the power of axis over my head
[Chorus]
The big wheel keeps on turning
On a simple line, day by day
The Earth spins on its axis
One man struggles while another relaxes
[Verse 2]
We sang about the Sun and danced among the trees
And we listened to the whisper of the city on the breeze
Will you cry in the most, in a lead-free zone
Down within the shadows where the factories drone?
On the surface of the wheel they build another town
And so the green come tumbling down
Yes, close your eyes and hold me tight
And I'll show you sunset sometime again
[Chorus]
The big wheel keeps on turning
On a simple line, day by day
The Earth spins on its axis
One man struggle while another relaxes
[Verse 3]
As a child's silent prayer, my hope hides in disguise
While satellites and cameras watch from the skies
An acid drop of rain recycled from the sea
It washed away my shadow, burnt a hole in me
And all the King's men cannot put it back again
But the ghetto Sun will nurture life
And mend my soul sometime again
[Chorus]
The big wheel keeps on turning
On a simple line, day by day
The Earth spins on its axis
One man struggle while another relaxes
[Chorus]
The big wheel keeps on turning
On a simple line, day by day
The Earth spins on its axis
One man struggle while another relaxes
[Chorus]
The big wheel keeps on turning
On a simple line, day by day
The Earth spins on its axis
One man struggle while another relaxes
From the albums
- Blue Lines (1991)
- The Fan: Music From the Motion Picture (1996)
- Singles Collection (90/98) (1998)
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