Over De Muur Lyrics in English Klein Orkest

Home / Lyrics Translation / Klein Orkest / Over De Muur

Below, I translated the lyrics of the song Over De Muur by Klein Orkest from Dutch to English.

These lyrics have verified word for word translations. Click any lyric word to see the translation and hear the pronunciation!

Verse 1

East Berlin

'Unter den Linden'

Verse 1

People walk

Past flags and banners

Verse 1

Where Lenin and Marx

Still stand on a pedestal

Verse 1

And everyone works

Hammers and sickles

While in parade step

The guard gets changed

Forty years of socialism

A lot's been achieved in that time

But what's that promised land

If there are walls around it?

If you have to be scared and careful

With your opinion?

Ah, what's that promised land

Tell me, what's it worth?

When someone who deviates

Is declared insane?

And only the birds

Fly from East to West Berlin

Aren't called back

Nor shot down

Over the wall

Over the Iron Curtain

Because sometimes they want to be in the west

And sometimes in the east

Because sometimes they want to be in the west

And sometimes in the east

West Berlin: the 'Kurfürstendamm'

People walk past porn and peepshows

Where Mercedes and Cola

Still stand on a pedestal

And the neon signs

That glitter and lure

Come dance! Come eat!

Come booze! Come gamble!

That's forty years of freedom

A lot's been achieved in that time

But what's that freedom

Without a house, without a job?

So many Turks in 'Kreuzberg'

Who can barely get by

Sure, you can demonstrate

But with your back against the wall

And only if you've got money

Then freedom isn't pricey

And the birds fly from West to East Berlin

Aren't called back

Nor shot down

Over the wall

Over the Iron Curtain

Because sometimes they want to be in the east

And sometimes in the west

Because there's bread sometimes

By the 'Gedächtniskirche'

Sometimes on Alexanderplatz

Lyrics and Translations Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

Did you like these lyrics?

SONG MEANING

Imagine two walks on the same afternoon — one along East Berlin’s monumental Unter den Linden, the other on West Berlin’s neon-soaked Kurfürstendamm. In Over De Muur (Over the Wall), Klein Orkest paints these parallel strolls in vivid snapshots: hammers, sickles and stern parades on one side, flashy ads and peepshows on the other. Both cities brag about their achievements — forty years of socialism versus forty years of freedom — yet the lyrics keep asking what those grand words are worth if people live in fear, poverty or silence.

The chorus releases a flock of birds that glide effortlessly over the wall and over the Iron Curtain, reminding us that true freedom ignores human borders. By showing the cracks in both systems, the song invites listeners to question propaganda, cherish open expression and dream of a world where everyone can move as freely as those birds.

Did you know?

In addition to reading lyric translations, you can now learn Dutch with music and lyrics from your favorite artists.

Yes, including Over De Muur by Klein Orkest!

No more boring lessons. You can now learn with engaging and culturally relevant lyrics from the best artists.

Klein Orkest Over De Muur Lyrics