The Narrow Way (The Journey)

The Narrow Way 4:57
     (written by David Gilmour)

Lyrics:
(See The Narrow Way, part III on Ummagumma. The lyrics are identical, except for the fifth verse:)
Toss your thoughts back many years
To a time when there was life with every morning
Perhaps a day will come
When the light will be as bright as on that morning

Lead vocals: Dave Gilmour

This song, in the context of the Journey Suite, seems to imply passage through a threshold of some kind. One certainly gets a sense of the hero venturing more deeply into the land of the enemy, and the farther he (or she) goes, the more impossible it becomes to turn back. Perhaps finding a friendly house along the way, the temptation to 'rest [his] aching limbs for a little bit' in a sense becomes another enemy to conquer — the desire to give up. But the hero closes his ears and eyes to these temptations, and travels on into the land where mystery swells and creatures crawl. The mythic narrative imagery of this song is rich when viewed in this context.

This song would be recorded in June of 1969 as The Narrow Way Part III for Ummagumma. The live version was substantially rougher, as the piece was still in the process of developing. Dave never was sure of the lyrics for the fifth verse, as these seemed to change with every performance.

TRACK LISTING
The Man
Daybreak
Work
Doing It
Sleep
Nightmare
Daybreak part two
The Journey
Beginning, The
Beset by the Creatures of the Deep
Narrow Way, The
Pink Jungle, The
Labyrinths of Auximenes, The
Behold the Temple of Light
End of the Beginning, The