You Are Young

Album: Strangeland (2012)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The song title first appeared in pianist Tim Rice-Oxley's head as he simultaneously lost and found himself among a huge crowd of music lovers at Glastonbury. It was the realization that "you're never too old to feel those moments of epiphany," he said.
  • Rice-Oxley discussed the song's lyrics on the band's website: "This is quite a philosophical song. I think more than anything it's a message to myself to try and stay young at heart. It definitely feels like a message to my daughter too, in places. And also from the beginning it always made me think of standing in a crowd at a festival, a huge mass of people united by a feeling of bliss and freedom, which are things that are most easily associated with being young - as you get older it gets harder to find that feeling, and I love the idea that music can lift us out of ourselves, make us forget our everyday troubles, make us feel young. I also think the line 'You've got to bring some good into this world' pretty much sums up my view of being a human being - I kind of feel that bringing some good into the world is about the best thing you can hope to do in life. I'd say it's the reason we make music."
  • According to Rice-Oxley, the four Keane members can, "remember very clearly a moment when we were rehearsing this song together." He added: "We had spent many hours chopping and changing the structure of the song, trying to make it snappier and less ponderous, and when we eventually felt we had something worth listening to we went into the control room to listen to what we had done. When it got to the 'outro' section after the breakdown there was a real feeling of energy and excitement in the room, of knowing we had created something a little bit magical. Those are the moments you live for as a band."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Dan Reed

Dan ReedSongwriter Interviews

Dan cracked the Top 40 with "Ritual," then went to India and spent 2 hours with the Dalai Lama.

Goodbye, Hello: Ten Farewell Tour Fake-Outs

Goodbye, Hello: Ten Farewell Tour Fake-OutsSong Writing

The 10 biggest "retirement tours" that didn't take.

Steely Dan

Steely DanFact or Fiction

Did they really trade their guitarist to The Doobie Brothers? Are they named after something naughty? And what's up with the band name?

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: Tarantino Edition

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: Tarantino EditionMusic Quiz

Whether he's splitting ears or burning Nazis, Quentin Tarantino uses memorable music in his films. See if you can match the song to the scene.

Booker T. Jones

Booker T. JonesSongwriter Interviews

The Stax legend on how he cooked up "Green Onions," the first time he and Otis Redding saw hippies, and if he'll ever play a digital organ.

Petula Clark

Petula ClarkSongwriter Interviews

Petula talks about her hits "Downtown" and "Don't Sleep In The Subway," and explains her Michael Jackson connection.