The Devil You Know
Neil Finn
I long to see the other side of things
Hung on the cliff, in search of something big
I can’t look down, I can only retreat
Who knows one day I’ll dive into the sea
Here we all are sitting like fools
Stuck by the rules of fate
Is what we are what we’ve grown to believe
Better the devil you know
Live for the day we throw caution to the wind
All we need is the courage to begin
I might get hurt but never be scared again
At once to feel the pleasure and the pain
Into the city, into the city every day
Into the city, piling through the factory gates
It’s not easy, it’s not easy to escape
All the decisions that you’ve already made
I long to see the other side of things
Hung on the cliff, in search of something big
I can’t look down, I can only retreat
Who knows one day I’ll dive into the sea
Here we all are sitting like fools
Stuck by the rules of fate
Is what we are what we’ve grown to believe
Better the devil you know
Song appears on:
Split Enz - Conflicting Emotions (1983 album)
Live: Fangradio webcasts, 2020
“‘The Devil You Know’ literally runs through my head every single day of my life, without exaggeration. The song was written by Neil Finn and... I just feel like he means everything he says. That comes through, every word... I feel the message makes sense to me. There’s an earworm element to it, but not annoying at all thankfully. It’s my best friend, basically.”