In the aftermath of the tragic death of Nick Cave’s son Arthur at just 15 years old in 2015, Nick Cave dedicated the 2019 record Ghosteen to processing his grief. Three other songs from that remarkable album have appeared here before, including the stand-out track Bright Horses, which remains one of my highest-viewed music posts. I’m thankful for that and feel privileged because that song is one of the most powerful and beautiful meditations on mortality I’ve ever heard.
Today’s track Waiting for You is almost a sister song to Bright Horses because it is another moment where Nick simply lets his heart do the writing as he grieves for his son. Sadness has a voice. As a listener, you feel the depth of his pain as he clings to faith and hope during a time of extraordinary suffering. So many tears can be felt in this song. It’s beautiful, yet haunting. You can almost feel these songs summoning the ghost of his son.
Your soul is my anchor, I never asked to be freed
Well, sleep now, sleep now, take as long as you need
Nick Cave is renowned for exploring dark themes through music that can feel gloomy, pulsating and deeply penetrating. He has always had a productive and pragmatic way of confronting bleaker moments and difficult realities. His music does not shy away from loss, grief and acceptance, but there is also an overriding sense of beauty, togetherness and renewal throughout Ghosteen because the album feels so personal.
You get the feeling Cave wants the listener to believe there is still salvation and hope out there. One can come away from Ghosteen feeling lifted and strengthened.
Upon its release, Ghosteen was met with widespread critical acclaim. It received several perfect review scores and became one of the highest-rated albums of 2019 on Metacritic. The album also arrived during the 40th anniversary period of Nick Cave’s recording career.
[Verse 1]
All through the night we drove, and the wind caught her hair
And we parked on the beach in the cool evening air
Well, sometimes it’s better not to say anything at all
Your body is an anchor, never asked to be free
Just want to stay in the business of making you happy
Well, I’m just waiting for you
[Chorus]
Waiting for you, waiting for you
Waiting for you, waiting for you
Waiting for you
[Verse 2]
A priest runs through the chapel, all the calendars are turning
A Jesus freak on the street says, “He is returning”
Well, sometimes a little bit of faith can go a long, long way
Your soul is my anchor, I never asked to be freed
Well, sleep now, sleep now, take as long as you need
‘Cause I’m just waiting for you
[Chorus]
Waiting for you, waiting for you
Waiting for you, waiting for you
Waiting for you to return
To return, to return
References:
1. Ghosteen – Wikipedia
“The more I live, the more I learn. The more I learn, the more I realize, the less I know.”- Michel Legrand
Observation Blogger 
I guess it’s a while since I listened to the whole album, as I didn’t immediately recall this track. Lovely, haunting. ‘Ghosteen’ is a masterpiece and “Bright Horses” is such a stunningly beautiful ode to grief. Cave carries this sentiment well, over on his blog ‘The Red Hand Files,’ in which he conveys such compassion to those who write in sharing about their losses.
It’s impressive to say the least. Nick’s disclosure about his music and connection with fans is nearly unparalleled as seen in his blog as you astutely made mention. Also his musical documentary ‘20000 days on Earth’ is a gold mine for fans to learn more about him.
I think ‘Bright Horses’ is in my top 5 Cave songs. As you say, it’s stunning, as is the record…. a real masterpiece.
Thanks Steve.
Cheers, Matt. I haven’t seen that film but have a copy of ‘One More Time with Feeling,’ bought at my brother’s urging. If you don’t know that one, it chronicles the recording of ‘Skeleton Tree’ not long after Arthur’s death. Pretty cool stuff by an incredible artist.
Oh, I hope to see that ‘One More Time With Feeling’. Thanks for the heads-up Steve. I don’t think I’ve heard the Skeleton Tree album. I’m going to listen to it today. Cheers.
I hope you enjoy both, Matt.
I really like the title track -‘Skelton Tree’, ‘I Need You’ and the atmospheric ‘Rings of Saturn’.
Yeah, it’s pretty solid work, and I’m glad you checked it out. Hard to go wrong with Nick – though I can’t say I lean into his murder ballads quite as much!
I agree about murder ballads, but I did love ‘Stagger Lee’ from that album despite it’s polemical content.
Ha, that’s actually one I quite like… I had forgotten about it. It’s a bit of a barn burner.
I came to it only fairly recently and thought it was fantastic. ‘Barn Burner’ lol That’s right – it sure is.