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"
Jeremiah was a bullfrog
Was a good friend of mine
I never understood a single word he said
But I helped him a-drink his wine
And he always had some mighty fine wine
Singin' joy to the world
All the boys and girls now
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me
And if I were the king of the world
Tell you what I'd do
I'd throw away the cars and the bars and the war
Make sweet love to you
Sing it now, joy to the world
All the boys and girls
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me
You know I love the ladies
Love to have my fun
I'm a high life flyer and a rainbow rider
A straight shootin' son-of-a-gun
I said a straight shootin' son-of-a-gun
Joy to the world
All the boys and girls
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me
Joy to the world
All the boys and girls
Joy to the world
Joy to you and me
Joy to the world (yeah, yeah)
All the boys and girls
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me (yeah, now sing it baby)
Joy to the world
Joy to you and me
You know I meant, joy to the world
You know I meant joy
All the boys and girls
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me
You know I meant, joy to the world
You know I meant Joy
All the boys and girls (yeah, yeah)
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me (ah yeah you)
Joy to the world (I meant you and me)
All the boys and girls
Was a good friend of mine
I never understood a single word he said
But I helped him a-drink his wine
And he always had some mighty fine wine
Singin' joy to the world
All the boys and girls now
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me
And if I were the king of the world
Tell you what I'd do
I'd throw away the cars and the bars and the war
Make sweet love to you
Sing it now, joy to the world
All the boys and girls
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me
You know I love the ladies
Love to have my fun
I'm a high life flyer and a rainbow rider
A straight shootin' son-of-a-gun
I said a straight shootin' son-of-a-gun
Joy to the world
All the boys and girls
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me
Joy to the world
All the boys and girls
Joy to the world
Joy to you and me
Joy to the world (yeah, yeah)
All the boys and girls
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me (yeah, now sing it baby)
Joy to the world
Joy to you and me
You know I meant, joy to the world
You know I meant joy
All the boys and girls
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me
You know I meant, joy to the world
You know I meant Joy
All the boys and girls (yeah, yeah)
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me (ah yeah you)
Joy to the world (I meant you and me)
All the boys and girls
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The Night We Met
Lord Huron
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Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
I thought it was "Throw away the cars, and the laws, and the wars" I like that better. I like bars.
Yes this is a fun song to sing loud in crowds, every one just seems to have to join in. I got to see them in concert a few years ago and they left the stage for a bit with out having sung this song, and every one in the audience started singing it, they came back out and were like "So every one now its time for the frog song!" That was one hell of a fun concert, gosh, I would have been in like eighth grade at the time and have been out of high school for two years, so its been a while but WOW lol.
@MayorMenley I've seen them a couple times, and they clearly still love what they're doing and put on a great show.
A brilliant song... so liberating. =)
I have to disagree about the claim that the song has "no meaning", although I can agree that almost anybody can relate to it. The song has soo much meaning; it's incredible.
Strange enough, apparently the song was INTENDED to be 'nonsensical'. According to wikipedia, "Axton [the song writer] wanted to convince his record producers to record a new melody he had written and the producers asked him to sing anything for words. He sat down and put these words to the tune."
Now, either I am simply over-analyzing the song [which is a silly proposition =)] or Axton was more musically inclined than the site credits him for. If you read the lyrics and listen to how they are projected, you can't possible believe it was written to accompany the melody. It has so much passion; you can really understand and relate to the 'hippie' idea whether you experienced during the time period or not.
The song was released in 1974 during the epidemy of the 'Hippie Era' during the Vietnam War [1965-1973]. Ironically, the original band was active from 1968 to 1975; obviously the war very much influenced the band.
What I love most about the song is how it is delivered... any song can have good lyrics but if it is sang without emotion, it is essentially meaningless. I love this song because you can feel the energy of the band, and it's a wholelotta fun. =D
...About the religious references... it's an interesting perspective. I realized that Jeremiah was a significant figure in the bible [although I highly doubt he was a 'bullfrog' ;)], but I never connected the 'king of the world' to 'god'. I don't believe that the bands' objective was religious, but it's a neat theory.
...now I'm feeling silly for all of this analyzation. The song really speaks for itself =)
"Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea, joy to you and me" --love it!
I've always loved this song because it's just so bouncy and happy and CATCHY! Don't know about the religious aspect of the lyrics (certainly possible, but I'm the least knowledgeable person around when it comes to that sort of thing) but it has such a positive message, you know? Everyone can sing along and be joyful.
Not to mention, it's the song Scully chooses to sing to Mulder in 'Detour' on The X-Files...
the bufo alvarius toad of the southern united states contains dmt and bufotenin which are both psychadelic tryptamines and when extracted toad venom is consumed it leads to, well you know- this song
zagwert777...are you serious? Drugs? It's about experiencing joy and happiness, when you love everything around you, even Jeremiah the bullfrog.
this song was the last thing my mother said before she died believe or not she sang the song to all of us in the room and we sang along and she never said another word after that i want to incorporate a bullfrog into my tribute tattoo any ideas
It's about enjoying life!
Anyone ever notice hor the lyrics to this song make no sense whatsoever, but everyone can relate?
It's like the guys on cloud nine, just exclaming his happiness for life.
Very True. If You're sad, just think of Old Jerimiah, and you'll feel better. I mean think of a bullforg drinking wine. its just happy. For me this song is just a vocalization of the good things in this world, and the urge to take away the unproductive things, like war, alcohol and polutants.
this is a great song to sing really loud to when walking down crowded streets :) ...but maybe thats just me! lol