Setting a fire to the 3rd bar - whatever that meant.

Rather spontaneous also as a week before we finished recording the album this song simply didn't exist. Garret had the idea to get Martha Wainwright on the record as we'd been listening to "Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole" a lot, you know, for self-esteem - I didn't want her to just sing backing on one of the other songs so I went off and wrote a song especially for her.
It came pretty easily and the lyrics are my favourite on the album. I guess I was inspired by Martha.
We called her up and sent her the song and she said yes. Thank the Lord.
Perfectly, she had a show in Dublin the day we finished in Grouse Lodge so we booked a studio and got to spend our last day recording.
Listening to one of the finest contemporary female singers sing the words I wrote for her, with such passion is more than I could have dared to dream of. Thanks Martha xo

- Gary Lightbody

Set The Fire To The Third Bar

I find the map and draw a straight line
Over rivers, farms, and state lines
The distance from me to where you'd be
It's only finger-lengths that I see
I touch the place where I'd find your face
My fingers in creases of distant dark places

I hang my coat up in the first bar
There is no peace that I've felt so far
The laughter penetrates my silence
As drunken men find flaws in science

Their words mostly noises
Ghosts with just voices
Your words in my memory
Are like music to me

I'm miles from where you are,
I lay down on the cold ground
I pray that something picks me up
And sets me down in your warm arms

After I have travelled so far
We'd set the fire to the third bar
We'd share each other like an island
Until exhausted, close our eyelids
And dreaming pick up from
The last place we left off
Your soft skin is weeping
A joy you can't keep it

I'm miles from where you are,
I lay down on the cold ground
And I pray that something picks me up
and sets me down in your warm arms

I'm miles from where you are,
I lay down on the cold ground
I pray that something picks me up
and sets me down in your warm arms

Snow Patrol featuring Martha Wainwright