The Penguin: Lyric Interpretations: These Strange Times

These Strange Times

Written by Mick Fleetwood and Ray Kennedy.

Contributors to this interpretation included: Villavic, BN, chili D and Jamie.

These strange times I think of a friend
They said was a man of the world
When all the time he was in a fight
Between the dark and the light
Yes I too, my friend, find the devil
Trying to make me do things I don't want to do
Now I find myself crying out
God is nowhere, God is nowhere
It is well known that Mick Fleetwood has been the heart of the group. There may be any new member but if there's no Mick, there's no Fleetwood Mac. I think this song is just a message of his feelings, of what he has lived and what he is afraid of. He looks back and thinks about all those dark and shiny days. He recalls Peter Green (man of the world) and talks about drugs. Drugs have been present in almost the whole history of the group (remember the 'druggingest fightingest group' title of RS magazine), and have played a big role. Mick says in these first phrases there's no hope. Maybe it's the depression because of the last members desertion: Stevie, Rick (and Chris in tours). Besides he feels there is no God. It can be God in his life, or a God in the group, like the 'Green God' or even Lindsey, a very important member that works as an indispensable engine for more than ten years.

These strange times I look in my heart
And see the dark not the light
And how I'm sad and wished I was in love
And look to the sky and cry out
God is nowhere, God is nowhere
And this is hell
Being caught between the dark and the light
Daddy, daddy, hold on
God is now here, God is now here
More references to a hopeless life. He stills misses his old friends (especially Peter), his loves (Jenny, Sara). But then somebody calls him 'Daddy' (could be Christine, since she called him that way, or his daughters) to hold on, and then he realizes God is there. Since Fleetwood Mac is crossing a difficult moment, probably it's his family what he finds to look to for love & support. However, since he has considered the Mac as his family, probably this new lineup is what it's giving that support to him.

These strange times I too have dreams
Things that make me wonder
If to walk a thin line is like dying alone
And I'm trying to find my way home
To where God is now here and the dark is now light
Yes I'm crying out, God is now here
God is now here and that was hell
Being caught between the dark and the light
Between the dark and the light
Now Lindsey and Stevie are quoted here. Among dreams and thin lines, he wants to find his way home. And he does. Dark became light, hell became heaven and he's not hopeless anymore. It's obvious Mick has been living very hard days, but this is changing.

These strange times I look in my heart
And how I'm sad and wished I was in love
And I look to the sky and cry out
God is now here, God is now here
God is now here, God is now here
My friend I do wish that I was in love
I wished I was in love
I love you, I love you
It seems he's not in love yet. This song was written before she married Lynn, since the marriage was during 1995 tour. We know right now he's very happy with his new marriage. The Time album is a new hope for the Mac saga, too.
Mick Fleetwood has always been desperate to keep Fleetwood Mac alive and active. I think this song is about his inner struggles, but most of all it's about his anguish of seeing the group barely alive. So the Time album is the rebirth (look at the cover). It was, perhaps, a weak rebirth for some, but still a new hope for an aging Englishman who has given us the best gift we may have received in the world of music: An Unbreakable Chain!

Transcribed to HTML by Marty Adelson.