Little Black Submarines – English Lyrics

• By: The Black Keys

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the emotional depths of The Black Keys' 'Little Black Submarines,' a song that masterfully blends acoustic vulnerability with explosive rock energy. Explore how the lyrics use vivid imagery to depict feelings of longing and struggle, and discover the musical techniques that make this song a modern rock classic. A perfect song to learn English through, focusing on metaphors and emotional expression.

[English]

Little black submarines

Operator, please

Put me back on the line

Told my girl I'd be back

Operator, please

This is wreckin' my mind

Oh, can it be?

The voices calling me

They get lost and out of time

I should've seen it glow

But everybody knows

That a broken heart is blind

That a broken heart is blind

...

Pick you up, let you down

When I wanna go

To a place I can hide

You know me, I had plans

But they just disappeared

To the back of my mind

Oh, can it be?

The voices calling me

They get lost and out of time

I should've seen it glow

But everybody knows

That a broken heart is blind

That a broken heart is blind

...

Treasure maps, fallen trees

Operator, please call me back when it's time

Stolen friends and disease

Operator, please

Patch me back to my mind

Oh, can it be?

The voices calling me

They get lost and out of time

I should've seen it glow

But everybody knows

That a broken heart is blind

That a broken heart is blind

That a broken heart is blind

...

Key Grammar Structures

• Operator, please

  ➔ Imperative mood – a direct command or request.

  ➔ The word "Operator" is addressed directly, forming an imperative.

• Told my girl I'd be back

  ➔ Reported speech with a modal verb (would) in the past.

  ➔ "I'd" is the contraction of "I would", showing reported future intention.

• This is wreckin' my mind

  ➔ Present progressive with colloquial contraction (dropping the -g).

  ➔ "wreckin'" is a colloquial form of "wrecking", showing informal speech.

• Oh, can it be?

  ➔ Modal verb in a yes‑no question (can).

  ➔ "can" asks about possibility, forming a direct yes‑no question.

• I should've seen it glow

  ➔ Modal perfect (should have + past participle) expressing regret.

  ➔ "should've" = "should have"; it shows a missed opportunity in the past.

• But everybody knows that a broken heart is blind

  ➔ That‑clause as a complement of the verb "knows".

  ➔ "that a broken heart is blind" explains what everybody knows.

• Pick you up, let you down

  ➔ Bare infinitive after coordinated verbs (imperative style).

  ➔ "Pick" and "let" appear without "to", typical of short commands.

• When I wanna go

  ➔ Informal contraction "wanna" = "want to".

  ➔ "wanna" replaces the full form "want to" in casual speech.

• Operator, please call me back when it's time

  ➔ Imperative clause followed by a temporal subordinate clause (when).

  ➔ "when it's time" specifies the condition under which the request should be fulfilled.

• Stolen friends and disease

  ➔ Past participle used as an adjective in a noun phrase.

  ➔ "Stolen" describes "friends" and "disease", indicating they have been taken away.