Skyline To – English Lyrics

• By: Frank Ocean
• Album: Boys Don't Cry

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the evocative world of Frank Ocean's "Skyline To," a masterclass in introspective songwriting that perfectly encapsulates the bittersweet essence of fleeting moments and nostalgic yearning. Through its poetic lyrics, you can explore nuanced expressions of love, loss, and the passage of time in English, discovering how simple phrases can convey profound emotional depth. The song's atmospheric production and poignant storytelling make it a rich linguistic and emotional experience, encouraging listeners to appreciate the subtle beauty of the English language as expressed through Ocean's unique artistry.

[English]

This is joy, this is summer

Keep alive, stay alive

Got your metal on, we're alone

Making sweet love, takin' time

'Til God strikes us

That's a pretty fucking fast year flew by

...

That's a pretty long third gear in this car

Glidin' on the five

The deer run across, kill the headlights

Pretty fucking

Underneath moonlight now

Pretty fucking, sunrise in sight

In comes the morning haunting us with the beams

Solstice ain't as far as it used to be

It begins to blur, we get older (blur, blur)

Summer's not as long as it used to be

Everyday counts like crazy (smoke, haze)

Wanna get soaked?

Wanna film a tape on the speed boat?

We smell of Californication

Strike a pose

Everything grows in the Congo

Everything grows

Ooh, can you come when I call again?

...

On comes the evening, gold seeking ends

Peace in my hand worth twice than a friend

And two limbs over shoulder, carried away

Because I'm stronger, the Congo is dim (smoke)

In comes the morning, ah-ah (smoke)

In comes the morning, ahh-ahh (haze)

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
joy /dʒɔɪ/ A1	noun - a feeling of great happiness
summer /ˈsʌmər/ A1	noun - the warmest season of the year
alive /əˈlaɪv/ A1	adjective - living; not dead
metal /ˈmɛtəl/ A1	noun - a hard, shiny material like iron or steel
love /lʌv/ A1	noun - a deep feeling of affection
strike /straɪk/ A2	verb - to hit forcibly
pretty /ˈprɪti/ A1	adjective - attractive or beautiful
fast /fæst/ A1	adjective - moving or happening quickly
long /lɔŋ/ A1	adjective - extending far from end to end
glide /ɡlaɪd/ B1	verb - to move smoothly and continuously
moonlight /ˈmuːnlaɪt/ A2	noun - the light from the moon
haunt /hɔnt/ B2	verb - to visit frequently in the form of a ghost
blur /blɜr/ B1	noun - something that cannot be seen or remembered clearly
soak /soʊk/ A2	verb - to become thoroughly wet
pose /poʊz/ A2	verb - to sit or stand in a particular way
Congo /ˈkɒŋɡoʊ/ A2	noun - a country in Africa
dim /dɪm/ B1	adjective - not bright or clear

Key Grammar Structures

• This is joy, this is summer

  ➔ Subject-verb agreement and demonstrative pronouns

  ➔ The verb "is" agrees with the singular subjects "this" and the second "this". Demonstrative pronouns are used to point to the subject.

• Keep alive, stay alive

  ➔ Imperative mood and verb repetition

  ➔ The verbs "keep" and "stay" are in the imperative mood, giving commands or instructions. The repetition of "alive" emphasizes the importance.

• Making sweet love, takin' time

  ➔ Present continuous tense (implied) and gerunds

  ➔ "Making" and "takin'" function as gerunds (acting as nouns) or are implied to be present continuous tense as an ongoing activity. The use of the progressive tense implies an action happening in the present.

• 'Til God strikes us

  ➔ Contraction ('til) and phrasal verb (strikes us)

  ➔ 'Til is a contraction of 'until'. "Strikes us" is a phrasal verb, where "strike" has a different meaning in combination with the preposition "us".

• That's a pretty fucking fast year flew by

  ➔ Expletive "That's" and idiom "flew by"

  ➔ "That's" introduces a statement, the adjective "pretty" is used as an intensifier, and "flew by" is an idiom meaning time passed quickly.

• Glidin' on the five

  ➔ Present Continuous and prepositional phrase

  ➔ "Glidin'" is in the present continuous tense, describing an action happening at the moment. "On the five" is a prepositional phrase indicating location or direction.

• In comes the morning haunting us with the beams

  ➔ Subject-verb inversion and participle clause

  ➔ The subject and verb are inverted for emphasis ("In comes" instead of "The morning comes"). "Haunting us with the beams" is a participle clause modifying "morning".

• Peace in my hand worth twice than a friend

  ➔ Inversion, prepositional phrase and comparative

  ➔ The sentence uses inversion (likely for emphasis) with the prepositional phrase "in my hand". The comparative structure "worth twice than" compares the value of peace.