This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Gravity is working against me
And gravity wants to bring me down
Oh, I'll never know
What makes this man, with all the love that his heart can stand
Dream of ways to throw it all away
Whoa, whoa
Gravity is working against me
And gravity wants to bring me down
Oh, twice as much ain't twice as good
And can't sustain like one half could
It's wanting more that's gonna send me to my knees
Oh, twice as much ain't twice as good
And can't sustain like one half could
It's wanting more that's gonna send me to my knees
Whoa, whoa
Gravity, stay the hell away from me
Whoa, whoa
Gravity has taken better men than me
Now how can that be?
Just keep me where the light is
Just keep me where the light is
Just keep me where the light is
Come on, keep me where the light is
Come on, keep me where the light is
Come on, keep me where, now, keep me where the light is
And gravity wants to bring me down
Oh, I'll never know
What makes this man, with all the love that his heart can stand
Dream of ways to throw it all away
Whoa, whoa
Gravity is working against me
And gravity wants to bring me down
Oh, twice as much ain't twice as good
And can't sustain like one half could
It's wanting more that's gonna send me to my knees
Oh, twice as much ain't twice as good
And can't sustain like one half could
It's wanting more that's gonna send me to my knees
Whoa, whoa
Gravity, stay the hell away from me
Whoa, whoa
Gravity has taken better men than me
Now how can that be?
Just keep me where the light is
Just keep me where the light is
Just keep me where the light is
Come on, keep me where the light is
Come on, keep me where the light is
Come on, keep me where, now, keep me where the light is
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I think it isn't about one certain situation in particular... Mostly about REALITY being like gravity. We all want to live in our own dream world and maybe our fantasies skew our perception of the real world. Then Reality comes to bring us out of the world we want and into the world that really exists, which is never as pleasant as the one we envision. "Its wanting more that's gonna set me to my knees" Higher expectations only disappoint him more. Getting your hopes up only causes more disappointment in the end.
now that's a good interpretation
@MarchingGrobanite Exactly MY interpretation! 👏👏
Aren't there any other 20-somethings out there?
This song is about not understanding his constant craving for more, regardless of what he has. In this song's context, it's about relationships, yet the meaning could easily be applied to careers and life in general.
What makes him want more? What prevents him from ultimate commitment? Gravity.
Another thing, it's not necessarily about someone else in particular or cheating. It's simply about never being truly satisfied because of an uncontrollable craving. aka. Gravity.
I think what he means by "keep me where the light is" is "keep me satisfied and happy without something more or different" The peace he's talking about is 100% sheer satisfaction, rather than 99% sure with a 1% gravity factor--that will inevitably grow to trip him up.
Just my $0.02!
nevermind the meaning... john mayer can play guitar like noone else can
Gravity=Temptation. Temptation is something that pulls you toward it like gravity. the only way to not let temptation reel you in ("bring me down") is to avoid it or stay away from it period.
In this case temptation (gravity) is working against him because it could mess up what he already has. However we cannot escape gravity and he cannot escape this temptation. He pleads in vain knowing that although its working against him, he's still gravitating toward it.
" Just Keep me where the light is"--keep him close to what he already has, don't let him wander away toward temptation--However its like asking that we float about in the air as we walk when its inevitable we be pulled to the ground by gravity, a force we cannot escape...
Gravity seems to express people's tendencies to self-destruct. Just like we can't fight gravity, we can't seem to fight this tendency to destroy the things we cherish in our lives no matter what we do. "I'll never know what makes this man with all the love that his heart can stand dream of ways to throw it all away." It can also describe how, like the force of gravity, the circumstances of life that are out of our control are the ones we get so fed up fighting with, and ultimately leads us to losing hope. "Keep me where the light is" is a plea for any reprieve from his misery.
This song obviously has the ability to be interpreted in many different ways, particularly depending on the mood that you are in. When I heard this song for the first time I was feeling pretty down about things and instantly identified with song as being about depression.
John Mayer is evidently awakened. "Gravity" refers to the tendency of the mind to constantly pull us towards our cravings, to wanting MORE! (sex, drugs, rock and roll, etc.). This is quite similar and perhaps the opposite of the aversion we have to what we don't want (pain, suffering, etc). (Would this be anti-gravity, John?) "Keep me where the light is" refers to staying in this moment (the same that is referred to in "Clarity") where there is only truth, the breath and unity. If one is completely present and awake, there is no craving, aversion or unconsciousness. This is bliss and is where love resides. I see you, John.
This song seems very much the same as daughters- falling in love with the wrong person. Its great how he puts it, “gravity." Does this = attraction, chemistry, passion? I don't know but I can relate, chemistry does not always = compatibility. I always thought that the line "and can't sustain like one half could" was "can't sustain like the one have could," either way its poetry, thanks for putting it so well John.
I think this song is really simple if you think about it... I think its about being with someone for a long time and routine has taken over , and meeting someone new who makes you feel like "gravity" doesnt exist, so you float when you are with this person. John then says in the song "Twice as much ain't twice as good And can't sustain like one half could It's wanting more that's gonna send me to my knees" meaning he knows that if he sticks himself in this situation he will lose the person he actually loves over a fling that isnt true love...He finishes the song by saying" Just keep me where the light is" basiclly saying ... just keep me safe and with this person and relationship im suppose to be with and not let this new person ruin what i have worked so hard for... <br /> <br />
if one assumes that gravity=love than the first line means that hes fallen in a love that he can never have and its bringing him down.
the line "ill never know what makes this man With all the love that his heart can stand" means that he wants to attain a higher love for this woman (by being in a relationship with her) but he will never know how that feels.
the line "dream of ways to throw it all away" can be interpreted many ways, it could mean suicide, but knowing john it probably means that he always thinks of ways to destroy their friendship so he can forget about her and try to move on with his life.
now i like this next part. the lines " Oh, twice as much ain't twice as good And can't sustain like one half could It's wanting more that's gonna send me to my knees " could mean a few things. i think it means that no two girls in the world could even come close to half of this girl whom he loves. by the line "Its wanting more thats gonna bring me to my knees" means that he wants more, and by more he means a relationship with this woman and he wants it so much that it will bring him to his knees (im not quite sure what he means by "bring me to my knees", possibly suicide? or maybe prayer?)
the lines " Gravity, stay the hell away from me And gravity has taken better men than me Now how can that be" mean that he has seen this woman be in relationships with other men before, and he thinks its because she thinks they are better, and by the lyrics "now how can that be" he means that he doesnt think that these other men are worthy and he himself would treat her so much better than hes seen any other guy treat her before.
"keep me where the light is" could also mean a few things, most likely he wants to stay where the light is and try and stay happy and not let it get him down.
thats just my interpretation of it, and of course there are many ways to interpret this song.
John is using Gravity as a metaphor for the burden of living a life of excess. Searching for things in life that will truly benefit you vs. the materlistic chase for possesions that have nothing of substance.. The pressure for americans in their twenties and early thirties to obtain wealth as a sign of status can feel like "Gravity is working against me".. Great Song...