Whole Wide World

Wreckless Eric

About Whole Wide World

"Whole Wide World" is a song written by English rock singer-songwriter Wreckless Eric, who wrote the song in May 1974, and recorded it in 1977, whilst an original member of the Stiff Records label. Additional musicians on the record were Nick Lowe on guitar and bass, and Steve Goulding on drums. The song was never a chart hit single for Eric, though it subsequently became his best-known recording. The only charted versions of "Whole Wide World" are a cover by the Australian band Mental As Anything, who took it to No. 53 on the Australian singles chart in 1995, and another by American alternative rock band Cage the Elephant, who took it to No. 11 on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart in 2017. 


Year:
1992
2:58
75 
#1

 Watch: New Singing Lesson Videos Can Make Anyone A Great Singer

When I was a young boy
My mama said to me
"There's only one girl in the world for you
And she probably lives in Tahiti."

I'd go the whole wide world
Go the whole wide world just to find her

Or maybe she's in the Bahamas
Where the Caribean Sea is blue
Weeping in the tropical moonlit night
Because nobody's talking about you

I'd go the whole wide world
Go the whole wide world just to find her
I'd go the whole wide world
Go the whole wide world
To find out where they hide her
I'd go the whole wide world
Go the whole wide world just to find her

Why am I hanging around in the rain right here
Trying to pick up a girl
Why are my eyes
Filling up with these lonely tears
When there's girls all over the world

Is she lying on a tropical beach somewhere
Underneath a tropical sun
Pining a way in a heat wave there
Hoping that I won't be long
I should be lying on that sun swept beach with her
Caressing her warm, brown skin
And then in a year or maybe not quite
We'll be sharing the same next of kin

I'd go the whole wide world
Go the whole wide world just to find her.
I'd go the whole wide world
Go the whole wide world
To find out where they hide her

I'd go the whole wide world
Go the whole wide world just to find her
I'd go the whole wide world
Go the whole wide world
To find out where they hide her

Yeah!
Whole wide world
Whole wide world

 The easy, fast & fun way to learn how to sing: 30DaySinger.com


Wreckless Eric

Wreckless Eric (born Eric Goulden, 18 May 1954, Newhaven, East Sussex, England) is an English rock and roll/new wave singer-songwriter, best known for his 1977 single "(I'd Go The) Whole Wide World" on Stiff Records. More than two decades after its release, the song was included in Mojo magazine’s list of the best punk rock singles of all time. It was also acclaimed as one of the "top 40 singles of the alternative era 1975–2000". After some years living in France with his wife and co-performer, singer-songwriter Amy Rigby, Goulden moved with her to the USA in the autumn of 2011. As of November 2011 they live in upstate New York and continue to tour together. more »

0 fans

Written by: Eric Frank Goulden

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Songtrust Ave

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind


10 facts about this song

Song Origin
"Whole Wide World" is originally a song by Wreckless Eric, an English rock and new wave singer-songographer. His version was released in 1977.
Cover Version
American rock band, Cage the Elephant released their cover version of "Whole Wide World" in 2017.
Lyric Inspiration
The lyrics of the original song were allegedly inspired by a phrase that Wreckless Eric’s manager said to him about finding the right woman, stating "you’ll find her in the whole wide world“.
Wreckless Eric’s Version
Eric wrote the song in 1974, and it was his first ever composed song which was finally released in 1977 on Stiff Records, which made him one of the earliest artists of the British punk and new wave scene.
Movie Appearance
Before Cage the Elephant's cover version, the song gained popularity in 2006 after it was featured in Will Ferrell's movie "Stranger Than Fiction,"
Cage the Elephant Version
The band transformed this rather simple and raw punk song into a vigorous, modern-sounding rock song, thereby placing the song into a new context and making it accessible to a young audience.
Acclaim
Despite the song not being one of Wreckless Eric's mainstream successes during its initial release, it has been celebrated in recent years. Mojo Magazine included the song in their list of the best punk rock singles of all time in 2001.
Album Inclusion
Cage the Elephant's version of "Whole Wide World" is included in their album "Unpeeled," which primarily contains live, acoustic versions of their previous songs, along with a few covers.
Unrequited Love
The lyrics of the song create a picture of unrequited love, expressing how the protagonist is ready to search the entire world for the love of his life.
Not a Commercial Hit
Interestingly, while being one of the most recognized songs of Wreckless Eric and a popular choice for cover versions, the song was never hit on the music charts during its initial release.

Discuss the Whole Wide World Lyrics with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add these lyrics to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Whole Wide World Lyrics." Lyrics.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/1014646/Wreckless+Eric/Whole+Wide+World>.

    Missing lyrics by Wreckless Eric?

    Know any other songs by Wreckless Eric? Don't keep it to yourself!

    Watch the song video

    Whole Wide World

    32,186
    976     50

    Browse Lyrics.com

    Quiz

    Are you a music master?

    »
    "Only hope remains, _______"
    A All I want is to be there beside you
    B All kinds of everything remind me of you
    C All I need is just a little more time
    D All together now in no man's land

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Chrome

    Get instant explanation for any lyrics that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Firefox

    Get instant explanation for any acronym or abbreviation that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Wreckless Eric tracks

    On Radio Right Now

    Loading...

    Powered by OnRad.io


    Think you know music? Test your MusicIQ here!

    Movies soundtrack

    Whole Wide World

    »