Lyrics to
Private Hell

This version of Private Hell was released by The Jam in 1979.

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Closer than close – you see yourself –
A mirrored image – of what you wanted to be.
As each day goes by – a little more –
You can’t remember – what it was you wanted anyway.
The fingers feel the lines – they prod the space –
Your ageing face – the face that once was so beautiful,
is still there but unrecognizable –
Private Hell.

The man who you once loved – is bald and fat –
And seldom in – working late as usual.
Your interest has waned – you feel the strain –
The bed springs snap – on the occasions he lies upon you –
close your eyes and think of nothing but –
Private Hell.

Think of Emma – wonder what she’s doing –
Her husband Terry – and your grandchildren.
Think of Edward – who’s still at college –
You send him letters – which he doesn’t acknowledge.
‘Cause he don’t care,
They don’t care.
‘Cause they’re all going through their own – Private Hell.

The morning slips away – in a valium haze,
And catalogues – and numerous cups of coffee.
In the afternoon – the weekly food,
Is put in bags – as you float off down the high street

The shop windows reflect – play a nameless host,
To a closet ghost – a picture of your fantasy –
A victim of your misery – and Private Hell

Alone at 6 o’clock – you drop a cup –
You see it smash – inside you crack –
You can’t go on – but you sweep it up –

Safe at last inside your Private Hell.
Sanity at last inside your Private Hell.

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The Jam has released many songs over the years besides Private Hell. The Jam released songs from 1977 to 1992 spanning across albums like This Is The Modern World, In The City, All Mod Cons, Setting Sons, Sound Affects, Dig The New Breed, The Gift, and Extras. Decade Lyrics has over lyrics & songs by The Jam.

If you're a fan of the music of the 1970s looking for more songs from 1979 or the 1970s overall, you've come to the right place!

About Lyrics and Private Hell by The Jam

The lyrics to Private Hell are just the words, phrases, verses and chorus that The Jam used when the song was created in 1979. The lyrics to Private Hell have both easy-to-spot meanings and hidden metaphors that have been discussed by the music press and fans, but only The Jam and any collaborators know all of the inspirations for the song.

If you like etymology or breaking apart phrases and words, it is easy to understand the lyrics to Private Hell by The Jam. The word "lyric" itself derives from the Latin word lyricus, with the actual English word lyrics applied to the definition "words set to music" listed in Stainer and Barrett's 1876 Dictionary of Musical Terms. Continuing the chain, the Latin word lyricus derives from the Greek word λυρικός or lyrikós. This somewhat means "poetry accompanied by the lyre" or "words set to music." You can easily see that by looking at the background of the word lyric, that the "lyrics to Private Hell" means the words set to the music of Private Hell, or poetry accompanied by the lyre played by The Jam. The singular form "lyric" is still used to mean the complete words to a song. However, the singular form lyric is also commonly used to refer to a specific line (or phrase) within a song's lyrics. Hence, by this analysis of word structure, you could say that the lyric to Private Hell and the lyrics to Private Hell are both one and the same thing. None of this talk about the word Lyrics is really relevant to fans of The Jam who came here looking just for the lyrics to Private Hell, but we feel it is still fun to learn what's behind commonly used words and lyrics in songs.

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