Black Rain – English Lyrics

• By: Soundgarden

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the unique story of Soundgarden's 'Black Rain,' a song that travels through time. By listening, you can hear the evolution of Chris Cornell's voice, comparing his raw 1991 verses with the mature 2010 chorus. Its complex rhythms and dark, poetic lyrics offer a fantastic challenge for language learners wanting to explore nuanced emotional expression in English through the lens of one of grunge's most iconic bands.

[English]

(soft rock music)

(slow rock music)

(upbeat rock music)

♪ If I could hock my love ♪

♪ Could I trade ♪

♪ For your wings to cover me ♪

♪ Unless I fall ♪

♪ Half aligned ♪

♪ I heard the most brilliant lie ♪

♪ To sleep, these eyes closed the light ♪

♪ And lets the mind wide open ♪

(upbeat rock music)

♪ You can't stutter when you're talking with your eyes ♪

♪ By cutting out your tongue, you save face ♪

♪ Or feeding on the blood that's running from a black day ♪

♪ Cry on black rain ♪

♪ Cry on black rain ♪

♪ Cry on black rain ♪

♪ If I could hock my love ♪

♪ Could I trade ♪

♪ For your wings to cover me ♪

♪ Unless I fall ♪

♪ To sleep, these eyes closed the light ♪

♪ And gets the mind wide open ♪

♪ You can't stutter when you're talking with your eyes ♪

♪ By cutting out your tongue to save face ♪

♪ Or feeding on the blood that's running from a black day ♪

♪ Cry on black rain ♪

♪ Cry on black rain ♪

♪ Cry on, cry on ♪

♪ Black rain ♪

♪ Black rain ♪

♪ Cry on ♪

♪ Black rain ♪

♪ Cry on ♪

♪ Cry on ♪

♪ You can't stutter when you're talking with your eyes ♪

♪ By cutting out your tongue, you save face ♪

♪ Or feeding on the blood that's running from a black day ♪

(soft slow rock music)

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
love /lʌv/ B1	noun - a deep affection or strong feeling of attachment verb - to feel deep affection for someone or something
wings /wɪŋz/ B1	noun - the paired limbs birds use for flying
fall /fɔːl/ A2	verb - to drop down to a lower position
eyes /aɪz/ A1	noun - organs of sight
light /laɪt/ A2	noun - visible radiant energy verb - to make something visible or bright
mind /maɪnd/ B1	noun - the mental faculty that enables thinking and feeling
stutter /ˈstʌtər/ B2	verb - to speak with involuntary repetitions or prolongations of sounds
tongue /tʌŋ/ B1	noun - the muscular organ in the mouth used for tasting and speaking
face /feɪs/ A2	noun - the front part of a person's head
blood /blʌd/ B1	noun - the red fluid that circulates in the bodies of many animals
day /deɪ/ A1	noun - a 24‑hour period
rain /reɪn/ A1	noun - water droplets that fall from clouds verb - to fall as rain
black /blæk/ A2	adjective - of the darkest color; having no hue
cry /kraɪ/ A2	verb - to shed tears, usually from sadness or pain
trade /treɪd/ B1	verb - to exchange goods or services noun - the activity of buying and selling
cut /kʌt/ A2	verb - to divide something with a sharp instrument
feed /fiːd/ B1	verb - to give food to someone or something
save /seɪv/ A2	verb - to keep safe from harm or loss