Private Universe
Neil Finn
No time, no place to talk about the weather
The promise of love is hard to ignore
You said the chance wasn't getting any better
The labour of love is ours to endure
The highest branch on the apple tree
Was my favourite place to be
I could hear them breaking free
But they could not see me
I will run for shelter
Endless summer lift the curse
It feels like nothing matters
In our private universe
I have all I want, is that simple enough?
A whole lot more I'm thinking of
Every night about six o'clock
The birds come back to the palm to talk
They talk to me, birds talk to me
If I go down on my knees
I will run for shelter
Endless summer lift the curse
It feels like nothing matters
In our private universe
Feels like nothing matters
In our private universe
And it's a pleasure that I have known
And it's a treasure that I have gained
And it's a pleasure that I have known
It's a tight squeeze but I won't let go
Time is on the table and the dinner's cold
I will run for shelter
Endless summer lift the curse
It feels like nothing matters
In our private universe
Song appears on:
Crowded House - Together Alone (1993 album)
Live: Fangradio broadcasts 2020-2021
“The first verse is connected to my childhood, being up this apple tree I used to climb and spy on the neighbours. It’s also connected to the house we had in Melbourne so there’s a mid-life thing too.
But it’s also about your whole life and how you create your private domain. I don’t know that it has a clear narrative but it has a deep sense of atmosphere. Songs are an alternative reality, or they should be.”
Video: Neil Finn takes us up the steps to his demo room in the turret, where the birds come down to the palm to talk. It was around this time in 1991 that Neil wrote Private Universe.
