Florence + The Machine - South London Forever Lyrics






And I go home alone
I drive past the place where I was born
And the places that I used to drink
Young and drunk and stumbling in the street
Outside the Joiners Arms like foals unsteady on their feet
With the art students and the boys in bands
High on E and holding hands with someone that I just met

I thought it doesn't get better than this
Better than this
There can be nothing better than this
Better than this
And we climbed onto the roof, the museum
And someone made love in the glass
And I'd forgot my name
And the way back to my mother's house
With your black cool eyes and your bitten lips
The world is at your fingertips
It doesn't get better than this
What else could be better than this?

Oh, don't you know I have seen
I have seen the fields aflame
And everything I ever did
Was just another way to scream your name

Over and over and over and over again
Over and over and over and over again

And we're just children wanting children of our own
I want a space to watch things grow
But did I dream too big?
Do I have to let it go?
What if one day there is no such thing as snow?
Oh God, what do I know?

And I don't know anything
Except that green is so green
And there's a special kind of sadness that seems to come with Spring

Oh, don't you know I have seen
I have seen the fields aflame
And everything I ever did
Was just another way to scream your name

Over and over and over and over again
Over and over and over and over again

Oh, don't you know that I have seen
I have seen the fields aflame
But everything I ever did
Was just another way to scream your name





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Florence + The Machine South London Forever Comments
  1. �.... C....

    So sweet

  2. s.... p....

    Is it just me or are the voice breaks in aflame the most powerful sound ever created

  3. J.... E....

    I have family that live where she is from, so every time we drive to see family i look out for all of the things she mentions in this song

  4. n.... n....

    The worst part is 4:23

  5. A.... L....

    Ok nothing can get better than this ...

  6. C.... C....

    It’s this song that inspired/gave me the courage to do what I did.

    I never planned on coming out to my mom. I believed that being gay was a secret that would die with me. I never wanted anyone to know, because I was ashamed, embarrassed, and felt incredibly guilty for what/who I was attracted to. London was supposed to just be a fun trip that mom and I took. I never thought about coming out nor did I have any plans of ever doing so. But London changed me.

    Traveling on a budget, my mom and I stayed at this cheap Airbnb in South London (Camberwell). This was August of last year. It was great — two separate bedrooms, a nice living room, a kitchen and washing machine, a new shower, and only 1/10 mile from the train that went straight to London Bridge station. It was $80 a night (way cheaper than any single-room hotel in any decent part of London). We stayed for two weeks (which was plenty of time lol). We did all of London.

    On August 2nd 2018 we decided to go to the Shard. The Shard was this new skyscraper overlooking all of London from a thousand feet above the ground. You can get a day pass or a night pass or both. We opted for the day pass, but once we went we decided we had to see it at night. They had a special deal where you could add on the night pass before you left. The only condition was you had to return the same night for the viewing. So we added the night pass and went on our way.

    We headed to Pew Gardens. Pew Gardens was really incredible and beautiful, but it was a ways out from central London (and from the Shard). We kind of lost track of time there, we were so immersed in it. We forgot all about our night pass to the Shard. After visiting the gardens we went and ate and drank cider at this joint nearby.

    On our way back to central London in Uber, I remembered our night tickets to the Shard. I checked the hours and realized last entry up was at 9:30. It was well past that, but we had to walk by the Shard anyway waking to London Bridge station for the last leg of the trip home. The Shard was closed. Doors were locked, and gates were down. I knocked incessantly at the door and was told they weren’t letting anymore people up. I said we had tickets and we had to see it but they wouldn’t let us up. My mom and I practically begged, as we had tickets it it was our last opportunity to see London at night.

    They agreed to let us, along with this gay couple, up. It was like a private showing. We rode up in this elevator with these guys for what seemed like 5 minutes before reaching the top. Once there my mom offered to take their picture, and they offered to take ours. They were clearly so in love with one another. I saw how my mom reacted to this and the whole thing. The whole thing was just so private and sweet.

    After the Shard, on our way back from London bridge station to our Airbnb, I realized that the Joiners Arms, this bar that Florence + The Machine (favorite musician) sings about in her new (at the time) song ‘South London Forever’ was 1/2 mile from our Airbnb. It was now of never. I persuaded my mom to go, and we went. The bartenders heard my love for Florence, and ran up to the attic to get me posters/cards from when Florence performed there a week or so before. The bartender even paid for our drinks bc he couldn’t believe a fan actually came to that bar just because Florence wrote about in one of her songs. My mom and I got wasted on Sambuca along with the bartenders. We were both stumbling back to the Uber at like midnight back to our Airbnb.

    We were wasted. She fell of the damn bed (literally) and I was already crawling on the floor. Shit was not going well. At that point, I just decided it’s now or never. I told her I would answer anything she asked me and pushed the question until she asked me if I found guys or girls attractive. I sighed, and said “guys.” She was just like “ok” lol.

    I told her I like dudes. That I’m attracted to guys. That it really sucks because she deserves grandchildren and a normal son. I balled my eyes out. She’s literally the best mom in the world and I felt so bad I couldn’t be the son she deserved, one that gave her grandchildren.

    I was a damn mess. She told me to stop apologizing, that it was ok. That everything was ok. She told me “I don’t care who you have sex with as long as you protect yourself, they love you, they’re beautiful, and they’re not a slut.” Those were her exact words lol. She told me I could be more myself than I’ve been in a long time. Her only condition being that if I ever met a guy I would introduce him to her. She told me the rest of the family wouldn’t get it, but they were stupid. To be happy and celebrate.

    The next morning was awful. We both woke up with ungodly hangovers. I remember sitting in my bedroom with the door locked thinking “holy shit, what have I done?” I finally made my way to the kitchen for some bottled water and my mom woke up. She just came out and sat on the couch with me and told me if I needed therapy to accept who I was and the way I felt to get it.

    We left London a couple days later. Walking through London Bridge station the last time we both started crying. I asked her why she was crying and she told me because she knew I felt freer there and because she knew it was the last fine she’d ever see London. She’s 62 and this was her second trip to London after being in corporate America 30-something years ago On business.

    We agreed London needed to happen and refer to the times as before London and after London. I’ll never forget that trip to London with my mom. It was incredible. South London Forever by Florence and the Machine captures it all perfectly.

    C.... C....

    wow... i'll just say thank you for sharing, this is so beautiful ✨

    C.... C....

    That's such a beautiful & special story, thanks for sharing, and all the best to you! I love London too, dearly, and it too changed my life forever (in a different way, but it did). I hope you'll see this wonderful city again, and also that you'll meet your special someone!

    C.... C....

    Magnificent. Well, as the song goes, "you deserve to be loved and you deserve what you are given" 🥰

  7. A.... R....

    Cada vez que la escuchas descubres algo nuevo.

  8. M.... C....

    I feel like this song is one of her best yet most underrated songs.

  9. C.... ....

    My God, this song. I can’t even fully explain exactly what it means to me, but it makes me cry while simultaneously making me happy. It’s so beautiful and profound to me. I heard it at a point in my life where I felt like so much of the song could’ve been something that I wrote because of what I was feeling, aside from the beginning where she’s specific about her hometown. I’m not a musician or songwriter, but somehow I find myself wishing I had written this song, and I have never felt that about any other song I’ve ever heard. South London Forever is an empire in my heart. 💘

    C.... ....

    Cindy beautiful ❤️ couldn’t have said it better myself

  10. R.... C....

    SOUTHHHH LAANDON FOREVER FLO

  11. F.... D....

    I have listened to this song 20 times today (well from August 1st to early august 2nd) ‘spose it’s a South London Forever kind of day

  12. S.... S....

    Flo is AWESOME YO!! She’s so good she made me say “YO!”FLO RULES!

  13. J.... G....

    great track honest and heart felt and open just like the lady herself florence we love you

  14. y.... m....

    if u think about it making love in the glass sounds pretty nasty

    y.... m....

    yo mama It’s grass not glass

  15. S.... L....

    This song is a strange one for me because I grew up in south London until I was eleven years old, if we hadn’t moved then the kind of teenage memories Florence describes here could’ve been my memories too, it’s like listening to an alternative past for myself, both nostalgic and alien at the same time.

    S.... L....

    disastergirl888 i feel the exact same way

  16. A.... R....

    What do you call the thing she does with her voice when she sings "love in the grass"?

  17. E.... L....

    I am the grim reaper scientist?'

  18. S.... P....

    Why does this song have to end?

  19. A.... W....

    She I N V E N T E D music, only to reinvent it yet again

  20. E.... L....

    I lived in Peckham myself for a bit a few times over a few years, not quite my cuppa! Though there's an amazing ruined mausoleum somewhere think it's south of the river?

  21. K.... K....

    Still the very best of the upbeat side of HAH! This is definitely the best song for me on that album!

  22. C.... M....

    "everything I ever did was just another way to scream your name”

  23. s.... _....

    Heard this song yesterday live. It was thrilling❤

  24. N.... D....

    I so fucking wanna go see South London, just to roam around aimlessly listening to this song over and over and over again!

    N.... D....

    I did this (check my comment here from 7 months ago) and it was literally the best experience of my entire life. I even got to visit the Joiners Arms. But just listening to, hearing this, as I walked by the English brick buildings in South London and smelled the air and lived the moment, it was magical. Just as amazing as the song. If you can go, by any means, do. East Dulwich/Camberwell where I stayed and Florence grew up/lives is the most beautiful place I’ve ever been. There’s just a vibe there that meets the energy and excitement of the song, it’s a perfect match, fuck it’s great 😭

  25. L.... R....

    I always hear "oberyn oberyn" instead of "over and over and" lmao #gameofthrones

  26. u.... t....

    Let's face it south london gives you the greatest music ever

  27. M.... ....

    I haven't felt the way I feel about this song in probably two years. I see a montage of my life playing in my head. Yes, I'm dramatic.

  28. J.... F....

    Obg Florence por essa bíblia

  29. Y.... E....

    THIS REMINDS ME OF 2010 .... WHEN I LIVED.... HARD CORE THIS WILL ALWAYS TAKE ME BACK TO THAT SPACE IN TIME AND MAKE ME FEEL GRATEFUL FOR ALL OF MY EXPERIENCES WITH ALL OF THE PEOPLE IVE MET ALONG THIS CRAZY SHIT WE CALL LIFE... THANKS FLORENCE FOR UNDERSTANDING.

  30. T.... R....

    When i first heard this my window was open and i was staring out at the tree and the wind was blowing and the leaves sounded so nice with this song. I felt so much nostalgia and peace.

  31. I.... ....

    Beautiful, just beautiful.

  32. L.... W....

    My mom died in 2012 and one of the last things we did was see Florence and the machine. It was in Denver right after the aurora theater shooting so the security was crazy. But she knew what a hard time we were having. She ran across the entire stadium and the security guards were like “nooo!” But she was so amazing. For those who haven’t seen her in concert, it is one of the best things ever

    L.... W....

    I'm sorry about your mum, I'm just a stranger on the Internet but I hope you're doing better now. One of the hardest people to lose xx

  33. J.... A....

    Everytime she sings it's like listening the mother Earth speaking, like feeling the wind, ground, flowers and water trembling with joy and power, I'm pretty sure that this is pure magic; she is indeed a nymph 🍃

    J.... A....

    Check out Ayla Nereo

  34. T.... H....

    Camberwell is South-East London not just South London or does the east part not really matter ?

    T.... H....

    It doesn't matter

  35. 1.... J....

    This sounds ancient
    So poetic

  36. g.... a....

    I saw her in London O2 last night. I think I cried in this song. She sings with so much emotion. It was amazing for her to sing this in London!

  37. t.... ....

    oh god, what do i know?

  38. T.... L....

    This IS the anthem to my final - and very difficult - year at uni. Thank you Florence and the machine all of you

  39. T.... L....

    Love this song. It’s a bit strange that she has been drinking places. Sounds a bit painful. I’d rather drink beer.

  40. E.... b....

    @florencemachine this song makes me feel like I'm floating. This album is truly beautiful

  41. J.... L....

    Floods you with charming memories of when you were younger-- just what a song is supposed to do! FABULOOUS!

  42. J.... W....

    Helping wisdom progress

  43. D.... ....

    OBERMEN OBERMEN OBERMEN

  44. M.... D....

    💕💕💕💕

  45. L.... ....

    This song makes me miss London. So much.

  46. A.... W....

    I showed this to my friend when he was in England.

  47. S.... ....

    I cry to her songs because it’s like she captures a moment of life that could or has happened to someone else. She captures the moment and puts a spell on everyone that listens. I get tingles whenever I listen to her music, and I wouldn’t change a moment.

  48. L.... m....

    makes me excited to make memories in south London when I go there for uni in a couple weeks..! <3

    L.... m....

    just realised my accom is in Camberwell - where Florence grew up!

  49. j.... a....

    the first time i heard this song, i was in a car with the first two people who ever really understood me. It was about 11pm and pitch black outside, except for the biggest, orangest moon i've ever seen. I remember thinking that Florence was right, it doesn't get better than that.

    j.... a....

    these moments are worth gold

    j.... a....

    truly. one of those friends has since moved away and i think about that night all the time :')

  50. T.... ....

    Check out the cover of this I did on my channel!

  51. h.... p....

    What if one day there is no such thing as snow!
    My heart broke

    h.... p....

    heather parker She’s referring to global warming I think. 😔

    h.... p....

    lol. at the equator its exactly as if it never existed you know...but thanks to movies and all that we kinda are forced to imagine what having it would be like

  52. C.... C....

    I love this song and woman so much. I just returned from South London and I stayed at this cheap AirBnB in East Dulwich, South London. Unknowingly, I found out I was right where Florence grew up (Camberwell) and less than 0.75 miles from The Joiners Arms. So OF COURSE I had to go, and I was suprised when I arrived. The place is so small and practically empty, really quite a dive with a little area for gigs/where Florence performed not too long ago. It's so "Florence". She lives up the street from the place. The bartenders were so friendly. I'll always connect this song to my London trip. It was my first time traveling internationally, and I feel like this song captured exactly how it felt. I don't know how to word it but the beat in the background the anthemic beat sounds like excitement and anxiety at the same time. It's the sound of new beginnings. It's something listening to this song looking at the departures board inside the bustling and chatoic London Bridge station. You walk out of the station and see this towering building (the Shard) and all the people and traffic and chaos. Standing in the middle of it, you realize it doesn't get much better than this. Bliss if I've ever felt it.

  53. V.... H....

    Instantly fell in love with this song.
    So pretty.

  54. A.... A....

    I remember the first time I read the name of the song my first thought was, "Reminds me of Strawberry Fields Forever"

  55. _.... ....

    this is my favorite song off the album, and it makes me both smile and cry every time i listen to it. like any other song of florence's, it is hauntingly ethereal. i’m seeing her in concert in september and i am so hyped, i love her so much and her music is a privilege just to listen to

  56. V.... F....

    Oberyn, Oberyn, Oberyn, Oberyn... <3

  57. K.... T....

    Thank you Florence.

  58. R.... T....

    This song makes me so happy, it reminds me of my trip to London in March 2018

  59. A.... ....

    I will forever imagine, that it says 'I have seen the fields of flowers" Fits so much better into the summer theme.

  60. W.... B....

    this song is so bittersweet yet nostalgic and hopeful both sonically and lyrically. so stunning.

  61. D.... ....

    why is this song labeled explicit?

    D.... ....

    'high on E'

  62. H.... J....

    Honestly this SONG MAN

  63. Y.... T....

    SHE IS JUST A WONDERFUL POET AND SONGTRESS

  64. D.... D....

    no such thing as snow...wtf does that mean except pushing a fake global warming meme?? fuck i wish floflo was awake lol

  65. J.... B....

    You ever been camberwell fam?? Haha

  66. T.... A....

    38 deaf people?

  67. 2.... ....

    Paloma Faith & Florence + The Machine! One day I know one day it will be! 💞 ^_^ 💞

  68. O.... B....

    Another album release by Florence and another triumph in the world of music.

  69. D.... ....

    Excited to listen to this album over and over and over and over agaaain

  70. L.... M....

    This song makes me miss my hometown.

    L.... M....

    Same ...

    L.... M....

    Is it London?

    L.... M....

    @Anson Hartzler no, but I do live in london now and I can see why she had such love for it, south london is an experience aha

    L.... M....

    me too! except my hometown is so fucking hot there will never be such thing as snow there

  71. C.... A....

    Gosh i love this

  72. b.... i....

    {But everything I ever did was just another way to scream your name}

  73. m.... ....

    Anyone else get a commercial for this album while listening to it?

    m.... ....

    molly sandweiss I hear a movie scene. A breakthrough scene

  74. J.... G....

    Her music is all I need in this world. It gives me every emotion I’ll ever need while being complex and simple at the same time. It’s just nothing like it in this world

  75. P.... F....

    Love this song so much as Florence is singing about Camberwell which is also where I grew up and still live. Such beauty x

    P.... F....

    Paige Francis that’s so dope

  76. T.... J....

    I don't feel like I deserve this

    T.... J....

    Do any of us, really?

    T.... J....

    "You deserve to be loved and you deserve what you are given!!!!!"

    T.... J....

    We Don’t Deserve Love.....





    .....is a truly magnificent song by Arcade Fire.

  77. M.... S....

    Florence+machine, te has ganado un nuevo fan :)

  78. l.... ....

    my mother used to listen to some of her songs. i used to be so annoyed when she played the same three songs of hers on repeat over and over again for hours. she recently passed away, though. now i have a strange, sentimental feeling towards her songs- and she's now one of my favorite artists.

    l.... ....

    Which three?

    l.... ....

    what three songs were they? if you don’t mind sharing

    l.... ....

    My condolences 💜

    l.... ....

    So sorry to hear My condolences Your mam would be very proud of you Its mad how Florence Connects to you through something so painful or cheerful I hope your finding peace and in healing

    l.... ....

    I’m sorry.

  79. �.... ....

    Beautiful voice....

  80. m.... m....

    why so little views? this gem deserves millions.

    m.... m....

    I think the view counter isn't working properly tbh

    m.... m....

    It's been working all along. It's just that it's a new album, and this isn't an official video. It's an autogenerated one made by YouTube

  81. D.... ....

    Favorite song off the album

  82. J.... K....

    Lyrics (from 0:17)

    And I go home alone
    I drive past the place that I was born
    And the places that I used to drink
    Young and drunk and stumbling in the street
    Outside the Joiners Arms like foals unsteady on their feet
    With the art students and the boys in bands
    High on and holding hands with someone that I just met

    I thought it doesn't get better than this
    Better than this
    There can be nothing better than this
    Better than this
    And we climbed onto the roof, the museum
    And someone made love in the glass
    And I'd forgot my name
    And the way back to my mother's house
    With your black cool eyes and your bitten lips
    The world is at your fingertips
    It doesn't get better than this
    What else could be better than this?

    Oh, don't you know I have seen
    I have seen the fields aflame
    And everything I ever did
    Was just another way to scream your name

    Over and over and over and over again
    Over and over and over and over again

    And we're just children wanting children of our own
    I want a space to watch things grow
    But did I dream too big?
    Do I have to let it go?
    What if one day there is no such thing as snow?
    Oh God, what do I know?

    And I don't know anything
    Except that green is so green
    And there's a special kind of sadness that seems to come with Spring

    Oh, don't you know I have seen
    I have seen the fields aflame
    And everything I ever did
    Was just another way to scream your name

    Over and over and over and over again
    Over and over and over and over again

    Oh, don't you know that I have seen
    I have seen the fields aflame
    But everything I ever did
    Was just another way to scream your name

    J.... K....

    John Kiltcher thank you 😎

  83. B.... M....

    Es la mejor 🖤

  84. H.... ....

    Beautiful.

  85. A.... 3....

    Such amazing song...

  86. S.... C....

    Hello 👋🏾

  87. T.... ....

    I mean, how can someone be so incredibly amazing as Florence is??!! Yet another beautiful song thus proving that High as Hope will be another masterpiece she has blessed us with.

  88. K.... S....

    Florence and the machine forever.xXxX.

  89. e.... a....

    this song is pure poetry. it’s raw. it’s beautiful. thank you florence 🕊

  90. M.... R....

    I dont think it gets better than this, just another way to scream your name ♡

  91. G.... B....

    And I go home alone
    I drive past the place that I was born
    And the places that I used to drink
    Young and drunk and stumbling in the street
    Outside the Joiners Arms like foals unsteady on their feet
    With the art students and the boys in bands
    High on and holding hands with someone that I just met

    I thought it doesn't get better than this
    Better than this
    There can be nothing better than this
    Better than this
    And we climbed onto the roof, the museum
    And someone made love in the glass
    And I'd forgot my name
    And the way back to my mother's house
    With your black cool eyes and your bitten lips
    The world is at your fingertips
    It doesn't get better than this
    What else could be better than this?

    Oh, don't you know I have seen
    I have seen the fields aflame
    And everything I ever did
    Was just another way to scream your name

    Over and over and over and over again
    Over and over and over and over again

    And we're just children wanting children of our own
    I want a space to watch things grow
    But did I dream too big?
    Do I have to let it go?
    What if one day there is no such thing as snow?
    Oh God, what do I know?

    And I don't know anything
    Except that green is so green
    And there's a special kind of sadness that seems to come with Spring

    Oh, don't you know I have seen
    I have seen the fields aflame
    And everything I ever did
    Was just another way to scream your name

    Over and over and over and over again
    Over and over and over and over again

    Oh, don't you know that I have seen
    I have seen the fields aflame
    But everything I ever did
    Was just another way to scream your name

    G.... B....

    Just saw your comment on June too tysm for helping us all out :) lots of love to you for bein' awesome!

    G.... B....

    high on "e" and holding hands...very important detail, and very well associated with those times...

    G.... B....

    Paul Chronicles when she says high on E does she mean ecstasy?

    G.... B....

    Was the "E" the only thing that made it explicit in the iTunes Store?

  92. A.... A....

    Someone please tell me who the person who disliked this already? This is so beautiful.

    A.... A....

    E. Trimble yeah I do get tired of the "who disliked this?!?" Comments but I had commented that about an hour after the video was posted and it already had a few dislikes so that's why I commented it.

    A.... A....

    Honestly, what can be better than thiiiiisssss??

    A.... A....

    Bieber fans

    A.... A....

    There are A LOT of stupid people out there. Have you seen who the president of the united states is?

    A.... A....

    If they dare I'll be ready 😤😤🤬🤬

  93. L.... ....

    Gorgeous progression of sound, Jesus fucking Christ!