Somebody's Watching Me – English Lyrics

• By: Rockwell
• Album: Somebody's Watching Me

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the eerie world of Rockwell's "Somebody's Watching Me," a classic that captures the essence of 80s synth-pop while exploring themes of paranoia and privacy. Discover how Rockwell's personal experiences and a little help from Michael Jackson created a timeless hit, perfect for learning about nuance in lyrical storytelling and cultural context.

[English]

Who's watching?

Tell me who's watching?

Who's watching me?

I'm just an average man with an average life

I work from 9 to 5, hey hell, I pay the price

All I want is to be left alone, in my average home

But why do I always feel

Like I'm in the Twilight Zone?

I always feel like somebody's watchin' me

And I have no privacy (oh oh oh)

I always feel like somebody's watchin' me

Tell me is it just a dream?

When I come home at night

I bang the door real tight

People call me on the phone I'm trying to avoid

Or can the people on TV see me or am I just paranoid?

When I'm in the shower, I'm afraid to wash my hair

'Cause I might open my eyes and find someone standing there!

People say I'm crazy, just a little touched

But maybe showers remind me of Psycho too much

That's why

I always feel like somebody's watchin' me

And I have no privacy (oh oh oh)

I always feel like somebody's watchin' me

Who's playing tricks on me?

(Who's watching me?)

I don't know anymore!

Are the neighbours watching me? (Who's watching?)

Well is the mailman watching me? (Tell me who's watching?)

And I don't feel safe anymore, oh what a mess

I wonder who's watching me now! (Who?)

The IRS?!

I always feel like somebody's watchin' me

And I have no privacy (oh oh oh)

I always feel like somebody's watchin' me

Tell me is it just a dream

I always feel like somebody's watchin' me

And I have no privacy (oh oh oh oh)

I always feel like somebody's watchin' me

Who's playing tricks on me?

(Oh oh oh)

(Who's watching me?)

I always feel like somebody's watchin' me

Ooh, num, ah, ooh

I always feel like somebody's watchin' me

(Who's watching me?)

I always feel like somebody's watching me

Ooh, num, ah, ooh

I always feel like somebody's watching me

(Who's watching me?)

I always feel like somebody's watching me

And I have no privacy (oh oh oh oh)

I always feel like somebody's watching me

I can't enjoy my tea! (Who's watching me?)

I always feel like somebody's watching me

Can I have my privacy? (Oh oh oh)

I always feel like somebody's watching me

Who's watching me? (Who's watching me?)

I always feel like somebody's watching me

Hee hee (oh oh oh oh)

I always feel like somebody's watching me

Stop playing tricks on me! (Who's watching me?)

I always feel like somebody's watching me

Why don't they leave me be? (Oh oh oh)

I always feel like somebody's watching me

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
watching /ˈwɒtʃɪŋ/ A1	verb - to look at something for an amount of time and pay attention to what is happening
average /ˈævərɪdʒ/ B1	adjective - typical; usual
life /laɪf/ A1	noun - the condition that distinguishes animals and plants from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual change preceding death.
price /praɪs/ A2	noun - the amount of money expected, required, or given in payment for something.
home /hoʊm/ A1	noun - the place where one lives
feel /fiːl/ A1	verb - to experience an emotion or sensation
privacy /ˈprɪvəsi/ B2	noun - the state of being free from public attention.
dream /driːm/ A2	noun - a series of thoughts, images, and sensations occurring in a person's mind during sleep.
night /naɪt/ A1	noun - the period from sunset to sunrise in each twenty-four hours.
door /dɔːr/ A1	noun - a hinged, sliding, or revolving barrier at the entrance to a building, room, or vehicle.
people /ˈpiːpl/ A1	noun - human beings in general or considered collectively.
phone /foʊn/ A1	noun - a telephone
shower /ˈʃaʊər/ A2	noun - a brief fall of rain or snow
eyes /aɪz/ A1	noun - organs that detect light and send signals to the brain
tricks /trɪks/ B1	noun - something done to deceive or outwit someone
safe /seɪf/ A2	adjective - protected from or not exposed to danger or risk
tea /tiː/ A1	noun - a hot drink made by infusing the dried crushed leaves of the tea plant in boiling water.

Key Grammar Structures

• I always feel like somebody's watchin' me

  ➔ Present Simple with frequency adverb + 'like' + Subject + Present Continuous

  ➔ Expresses a repeated feeling. The phrase "I always feel" indicates the frequency. The use of "somebody's watchin'" (somebody is watching) shows the ongoing nature of the action and the speaker's current feeling about it.

• I work from 9 to 5, hey hell, I pay the price

  ➔ Present Simple to describe a routine/fact.

  ➔ "I work" uses the present simple to describe a regular, repeated action, namely his job. "I pay the price" is a common idiom showing that he faces consequences for his work.

• All I want is to be left alone

  ➔ "All" + Subject + "want" + "to be" + past participle (passive voice)

  ➔ This phrase uses the passive infinitive "to be left alone". The subject (I) wants something to be done *to* them (being left alone), hence the passive voice.

• Or can the people on TV see me or am I just paranoid?

  ➔ Modal verb ("can") in a question + Question using "or" + "am I" (short for "am I being") + adjective.

  ➔ This is a complex sentence containing a question using a modal verb and an 'or' conjunction to present alternative possibilities. The final part utilizes 'am I' followed by an adjective describing a state of being.

• I'm afraid to wash my hair

  ➔ "To be afraid to" + infinitive

  ➔ This is a common expression that shows fear about doing a certain activity. "To be afraid" expresses the fear, and "to wash" is the infinitive of the action being feared.

• I wonder who's watching me now!

  ➔ I wonder + question word + subject + verb + now

  ➔ This is an example of an embedded question. The phrase "I wonder" introduces a sense of uncertainty. "Who's watching me now" is an indirect question, so the word order is subject-verb, not verb-subject as in a direct question.