Seal – Kiss from a Rose Interpretation

Here is my interpretation of this song, an intriguing and dark song with many underlying meanings and messages it is trying to convey to the unaware listener.

“Kiss From A Rose”

There used to be a graying tower alone on the sea.
You became the light on the dark side of me.

There is a lonely lighthouse in the middle of the sea (him), and she “became” the light of his lighthouse that is on the dark side of him (implying he is the dark shadow of the lighthouse itself).

Him = Lighthouse
Her = Light on the Lighthouse

Love remained a drug that’s the high and not the pill.

He is deeply obsessed with the “light” which he admits it is his “love” and brings him a “high”.

But did you know,
That when it snows,
My eyes become large and
The light that you shine can be seen.

When it snows, the light (her) on the lighthouse allows the lighthouse (him) to be seen.

Baby,
I compare you to a kiss from a rose on the gray.

This is a very contrasting statement “rose on the gray”.

Rose = Bright red and vibrant
Grey = Dull and boring

“Rose on Grey”

= She is the brightness of his dull grey boring life.
= She is a red blossoming flower that lights up his world of grey
Ooh,
The more I get of you,
The stranger it feels, yeah.

Somehow, this has signs of something obsessively wrong or strange/unacceptable. It might be a forbidden love, akin to taboo love like necrophilia or incest, or racial differences in this context. The contrast of “grey” (him) and “rose” (her) is the taboo here. How can a grey lighthouse end up with a rose?

And now that your rose is in bloom.
A light hits the gloom on the gray.

She is a blossoming rose, and he is a gray gloomy (old/boring) man, and she lights up his life with her presence and prospect of procreation.

…But is it possible for them to have a happy ever after when they are two worlds apart?

There is so much a man can tell you,
So much he can say.
You remain,
My power, my pleasure, my pain, baby

MY POWER, MY PLEASURE, MY PAIN! These are the three strongest words in his whole song that he is literally shouting it out loud for the world to hear. This is the whole meaning of this song, the main central theme. She is the center of his life, his “light on the dark side of me”, his power, his pleasure and his pain. It is a love that is forbidden yet obsessive, twisted with pleasure and pain, power and helplessness. There is so much contrast in his love for her, that he is becoming addicted (in the next verse).

To me you’re like a growing addiction that I can’t deny.
Won’t you tell me is that healthy, baby

He finally admits it – he is addicted to this forbidden yet obsessive love spell this rose has cast on him.

Added Review in 2015

Kiss from a Rose is Literature

This post on Kiss from a Rose Meaning is the top searched on my blog for years running. Revisiting it now in 2015, the song lyrics is a work of literature. The words in the lyrics of this songs are metaphors for different things. When you start to break down the metaphors (Light, Grey, Rose) to different symbolic meanings, you can decipher the song to your own interpretation.

Love = Pain (Masochistic Love)

We can all relate to this song, especially when you had been obsessively in love with someone you can’t be with. That is why we can’t help, but listen to this song over and over again. It has a calming effect on the listener. It is also verging on the point of masochism. The overall meaning of this song is about masochistic love.

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What do you think about this interpretation? Share your views in the comments below.


AVERRAL writes under pen name Scarlet Risqué. She stars in Scarlet Queen YouTube with over a million views. She holds a degree in business. The RED HOURGLASS is ranked Top 50 Espionage Thriller on Amazon. She is currently writing the sequels to the Hourglass Series. Grab a free copy of her novel now RED HOURGLASS on Amazon
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4 Comments

  1. I agree with this interpretation. It is an interesting poem set to a musical setting that suits it well with it’s emotional dynamics well sung and played by the instrumentation. As it is the theme for Batman the words suit it as Batman is seen as somebody who can’t be loved by one woman. It is Batman’s song definately. Seal knows how to explain in a song how it feels to be an outsider experiencing love in a loveless world much like Beauty and the Beast…Wonderful!!! Music is the way feelings sound and this song has shown us a love that is forbidden and yet acceptible at the same time. Way to go, Batman!!!! LIZ

  2. I think it has to do with the fact that silver back gorillas are somewhat gray, and you know, he’s a gorilla if I’ve ever seen one. I mean c’mon, he might as well swing from a tree while he sings this song. Monkey.

  3. I was curious if you ever thought of changing the layout of your site?
    Its very well written; I love what youve got to say.

    But maybe you could a little more in the way of content so people could
    connect with it better. Youve got an awful lot of text for only having 1
    or two pictures. Maybe you could space it out better?

  4. Thank you Rosacea, maybe I will add more pictures, but i really like my layout and maybe because I am a writer I have so much things to say and so little pictures haha…

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