| Soundgarden – Room a Thousand Years Wide Lyrics | 7 years ago |
|
Thayil on "Room a Thousand Years Wide": I really liked the music to the song and it needed words, and since no one else pursued it, I decided to. It's not really about things that have actually happened to me. It's more about experience in general. I've heard a lot of good ideas from people telling me what it's about. They said it's about God, Satan, Jesus, Satan, both, it's religious, it isn't religious...The truth is, it's just me. |
|
| Paul Simon – The Obvious Child Lyrics | 10 years ago |
|
It got me thinking when that first popped out. 'The cross is in the ball park.' The first thing I thought of was Billy Graham, or the Pope, or evangelical gatherings. But I came to feel what that's really about is the cross that we bear. The burdens that we carry are doable, they're in the ball park." - Paul Simon http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,153087,00.html |
|
| Led Zeppelin – Black Dog Lyrics | 10 years ago |
|
To somebody who isn't familiar with Led Zep's history, interviews and other such things, the meaning of this song seems pretty obvious. Verse 1: He meets a woman he's extremely turned on by. Verse 2: He learns the hard way she's just using him (for money, fame, etc). Verse 3: He says he wants a woman who will be a true companion to him and make him happy. Many guys have dated a girl that they were crazy about physically only to end up heartbroken because she was psychotic and selfish (myself in included). In this song, the guy is depressed about getting used by a hot chick for his money, car and fame. Now he wishes he had an honest woman who actually loved him and could make him happy (aka no longer depressed). Hence the title "Black Dog", which is a well-known term in England: "The Black Dog has been used as a metaphor for depression from antiquity to the present day" |
|
| James Taylor – Fire And Rain Lyrics | 10 years ago |
|
another re-telling of the tales above: Taylor wrote this in 1968 at three different times. He started it in London, where he auditioned for The Beatles' Apple Records. He later worked on it in a Manhattan Hospital, and finished it while in drug rehab at The Austin Riggs Center in Massachusetts. In a 1972 Rolling Stone interview, Taylor explained: "The first verse is about my reactions to the death of a friend (see below). The second verse is about my arrival in this country with a monkey on my back, and there Jesus is an expression of my desperation in trying to get through the time when my body was aching and the time was at hand when I had to do it. And the third verse of that song refers to my recuperation in Austin Riggs which lasted about five months." The lyrics, "Just yesterday morning, they let me know you were gone. Suzanne, the plans they made put an end to you" have been the subject of a great deal of speculation, with rumors that Suzanne was Taylor's girlfriend who died in a place crash. In a 1971 interview with Petticoat, Taylor explained: "It concerned a girl called Susanne I knew who they put into an isolation cell and she couldn't take it and committed suicide." Her name was Susie Schnerr, and Taylor also explained that it was months before he found out about her death, as his friends withheld the news so it wouldn't distract Taylor from his burgeoning music career. In a 1972 Rolling Stone interview, Taylor added: "I always felt rather bad about the line, 'The plans they made put an end to you,' because 'they' only meant 'ye gods,' or basically 'the Fates.' I never knew her folks but I always wondered whether her folks would hear that and wonder whether it was about them." The line, "Sweet dreams and flying machines in pieces on the ground" is a reference to a band Taylor was in called The Flying Machine. After the band broke up, Taylor went to England where he played his tapes to Paul McCartney, who signed him to Apple Records. Source: http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=761 |
|
| Depeche Mode – Broken Lyrics | 10 years ago |
|
I think "Broken" is about a person watching a friend who has a condition that is either lifelong or it just started but the person was predisposed to it from birth, like autism or Alzheimers. "You see the friend that I knew cannot be found, replaced by another, wearing his crown" - The friend's condition is deteriorating, (s)he's getting worse. "There’s a place where I go without any sound. Only you can reach me. Only you’re allowed." - This is from the point of view of the person suffering the condition. Really fits autism. Also really fits Alzheimers. "When you were a child, you'd dream all day long. You'd dream of the future, get lost in your songs." - This screams autism to me. "Words long forgotten, forgotten somehow." - This screams Alzheimers to me. "You were broken from the start." - The condition is either lifelong or the person was born predisposed to a condition that is now consuming them. I submitted a change to the lyrics that are currently there to match what I put in this comment. |
|
| The Band – The Weight Lyrics | 10 years ago |
| Wow, you ain't kiddin! | |
| Concrete Blonde – Tomorrow, Wendy (Andy Prieboy cover) Lyrics | 10 years ago |
|
"Andy Prieboy wrote that one, so I'll paraphrase him as to what I understand. Wendy was a real person. She was diagnosed with AIDS and rather than suffering the stigma, she decided to commit suicide. It's an old song, so this is a long time ago, and not that anything's changed much, by the way. But it's basically her dialogue with herself as to the decision she's going to make on her own. She's making the decision on her own, it's her one act of dignity in her life. And it's heavy, to say the least." - Johnette Napolitano http://www.songfacts.com/blog/interviews/johnette_napolitano_of_concrete_blonde/ |
|
| Tad – Pansy Lyrics | 11 years ago |
| The obvious meaning would seem to be the abduction, violation and murder of a child. | |
| The Band – The Weight Lyrics | 11 years ago |
| OH... and yes, those lyrics are from the A Simple Complex song "Void" ;) Meant to include that in my previous reply. | |
| The Band – The Weight Lyrics | 11 years ago |
|
skay: Annalee = anally. Wow, it seems so obvious now. Nice work! gitch: My interpretation is definitely twisted. But I think it's still a credible option. And yes, my mind is very capable of visiting the gutter, but fear not. It doesn't live there ;) |
|
| The Band – The Weight Lyrics | 11 years ago |
|
SPOILER ALERT! And by that I mean, reading this may spoil your enjoyment of this song. So you may not want to read it. I'm about to leap onto stage with a few dozen people at an awards show this weekend and join in on a big ol' super-jam of this tune, so I came here to get an idea of what people think this song is about. I noticed a severe lack of the "sick and twisted" perspective in the comments, so I'm here to fill the void. I get an entirely different meaning out of it than what I've seen posted. First, it's common for songwriters to mix sex and religion. It can be satisfying to take something sacred and twist it into something vulgar. I did it in one of my songs - specifically, making a biblical reference in my song about girl who suffers (using the term loosely) from sex addiction ("I'm filling a need as you're spilling your seed in the belly of angels" is the lyric). Now, I'm no follower of The Band. I barely know of this group. I don't have a history of hearing the nuances they've made in lyrical changes at different live performances. I haven't been exposed to their interviews. So this is an outsider's point of view. Okay, so let's imagine the writing session with a bunch of 20-something guys writing songs in the heat of the "peace, pot and microdot"-era of rock and roll. But, they were still unable to come right out and write nasty lyrics like Lil Wayne or Two Live Crew. So think: metaphors, metaphors, metaphors. Also, if you wrote a song in the 60s about dirty stuff, you didn't go on The Tonight Show and tell Carson "Well, I'm glad you asked. It's about banging chicks." So instead you made stuff up. "It's about the significance of friendship in hard times" or some crap like that, without revealing what your metaphors truly meant. And that's if you could even remember what you originally intended the lyrics to mean, depending on how totally bent out of your brain you were when you wrote it. So don't rely on interviews for the true meaning. Next, some definitions: Fanny (slang for female genitals) Load (slang for the product of ejaculation) Bag (slang for scrotum and testicles) Carmen (associated with 'femme fatale'/seductress) Go down (slang for oral sex) Rag (slang for menstruation - "on the rag") Jack (slang for masturbate - "jack off") Dog (slang for penis. see urban dictionary "doggy" def #6) Keep company (idiom for carry on a courtship, have sex with) Big Pink (slang for penis, something's telling me the album is loaded with dirty metaphors. "Music From Big Pink" is like saying "Writing songs by thinking with our penises") Furthermore, take into account that not only did these guys almost not even bother recording this song, viewing as a potential B-side and throwaway track. And they were also known for changing up the lyrics here and there when playing it live. (I read this info from chasing a link posted in one of the comments on here) My point: the lyrics aren't "set in stone". They were "winging it". Take some creative liberty. For example, "Fix your rag" could be "Fix the problem of someone being on the rag". Lastly, since the sex is being mashed into religion, ignore the names for a moment. Some names don't even have to signify "a person". So here's the sick and twisted interpretation. Verse 1: Man goes to whorehouse. There are no available prostitutes. Or maybe he didn't have enough money. That would certainly earn a grin, a farewell handshake, and a resounding "No" from the business owner. Verse 2: Man finds a place to hide to scope out a victim. He sees an attractive woman walk by. Now remember that religious folks would claim women who dress provocatively are "the devil", out to tempt poor defenseless men, right? In fact, it's still that way in the middle east - and some parts of the bible belt. So he says something like "Hey baby come get some of this." She says "No/I gotta go/I'm gonna get the hell outta here". For the last part of verse 2, first a bit of history. I just read the following: "While the lyrics (of "The Weight") in all transcriptions have 'My friend can stick around', later live versions appear to drift into 'my friend just stick around.'" So that becomes this: "She said, 'I gotta go'. My friend, just stick around." The "stick around" line becomes HIS, not HERS. Now, let's take that "creative liberty" I spoke about earlier and interpret the last part as "okay, so your personality (Carmen) doesn't want to be with me, but your body (Devil) is going to stick around because I'm gonna force you to be with me." Verse 3: "Ain't nothin' you can say" because your mouth is full (hence "Go down"). I'll explain why "Miss Moses" is in there in a second. Verse 4: He wants to switch from oral to regular intercourse, but she tells him she's "on the rag". "Miss Moses" is a flippant reference to 'girl of the red sea' or 'girl on her period'". Remember, probably a lot of drugs involved in the writing process here, so it's not too big of a stretch. The way to "fix" it? Make her "jack the dog" (see "dog" above). Verse 5: "My bag is sinking low" aka he finished. The testicles (bag) drop after completion. Now he's gotta get back home to his wife (the other "Fanny", a derogatory term for any female, not just one woman in this song). His wife had sent him downtown to run errands, say hello to the store owner, anyone he sees along the way, etc, but he made "an extra stop" along the way. Now to soil the chorus. It is of course sung over and over throughout the song, but its meaning only becomes clear after hearing all of the verses. When I was in school, I had a teacher who would use the expression "Take a load off" when he wanted some student to sit down. It wasn't used nicely. It was "Hey Fred. Take a load off. Find your seat now or you can find it after school in detention". I see this same attitude in "The Weight". I interpret the chorus like this: "Stop walking by, seductive-looking (and therefore evil) female. I'm gonna make you lay down here next to me. Take my 'load' for free (I'm not paying you). But since you're menstruating, use your hand. And my load ends up on me instead of inside you." Maybe she told him she's menstruating to avoid being impregnated. "Put the load right on me" could also have two meanings. He has the guilt of what he's done, but of course it's her fault for being such an evil temptress. So she, in fact, has put the burden of guilt and remorse on him. And what better way to get a good satisfying chuckle as a songwriter than to mix religion into this mess, using biblical names as metaphors. Nazareth = a city. Crazy Chester = Alfred Chester Beatty acquired a papyrus containing a portion of the gospel of Luke. References to Moses, Luke, etc. Sorry if I'm ruining your vision of this beautiful song. And it really is a beautiful song. You can ignore all of this if you'd like. Finally, the only part I can't make heads or tails of is the Annalee part (third verse, second half). Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? |
|
| Ramona Falls – Sqworm Lyrics | 11 years ago |
|
Sqworm (n.) 1. A benzimidazole that acts by interfering with CARBOHYDRATE METABOLISM and inhibiting polymerization of MICROTUBULES. Definition of BENZIMIDAZOLE : a crystalline base used especially to inhibit the growth of various viruses, parasitic worms, or fungi |
|
| Cat Stevens – Longer Boats Lyrics | 11 years ago |
|
I see what has already been posted here. It's interesting that Cat Stevens originally made his interviews more interesting by talking about UFOs, and later said it was more about appreciating your land (or planet) and being aware that another country (or aliens) could come and take it from you (like the boats that came from Scandinavia to conquer Britain). As I read through the lyrics, I personally interpret the lyrics to be saying "I live in a peaceful land that does not have a religion that involves worshiping a god. People will eventually come and push religion on me and those who live here, and to my neighbors I say don't let them." To break it down: "Longer boats are coming to win us. Hold on to the shore." Missionaries will come to our land to "win us over" with their religion. But "hold on to the shore" my friends! Don't let them take over this land and convert it to their religion! "I don't want no god on my lawn. Just a flower I can help along. Because the soul of nobody knows how a flower grows." I don't want to become a devout follower of a god to worship, with statues of the saints and manger scenes and such. I just want the simple beauty of a flower on my land. And quite frankly, I don't think these religious folks really have the right answer of how the Earth and the things on it (like flowers) came to be. Nobody has those answers. "Mary dropped her pants by the sand and let a parson come and take her hand. But the soul of nobody knows where the parson goes." I heard of a woman who was convinced to become a devout follower and she left our wonderful land to join those religious folks. And nobody has heard from her since. Where did the priest and his congregation take her? I don't know. Is she still as happy as she once was? We don't know. |
|
| Bon Iver – Holocene Lyrics | 12 years ago |
| Front man Justin Vernon explained the song title in an interview with Mojo: "It's partly named after the (geological) era, but it's also the name of a bar in Portland where I had a dark night of the soul." He also stated that "the title is a metaphor for when you're not doing well. But it's also a song about redemption and realizing that you're worth something; that you're special and not special at the same time." | |
| Stevie Nicks – For What It's Worth Lyrics | 12 years ago |
|
I believe this song is sung from the point of view of a girl who was in a bad place in life, but a man came along and helped her get to a better place. He was already in a relationship, but in the process of helping this girl, they became intimate. They both knew all along, however, the intimacy was not meant to last. This song seems to take place at the moment he is telling her they can't continue to see each other as lovers. I envision them parked in a car "looking out the windows" and "watching the cars drive by" as they accept the fact they can no longer be intimate. She expresses her sincere appreciation for all he's done while at the same time lamenting that he cannot be hers. |
|
| Alice in Chains – A Looking in View Lyrics | 13 years ago |
|
read the first verse: "Hear footsteps creak the floor The shadows give away Someone outside the door Won't let them in" now read what Sean Kinney (AIC's drummer) said of Layne Staley's last days: "I kept trying to make contact... Every time I was in the area, I was up in front of his place yelling for him... Even if you could get in his building, he wasn't going to open the door. You'd phone and he wouldn't answer." |
|
| Faith No More – Land Of Sunshine Lyrics | 14 years ago |
|
machwon is correct. this song contains specific references to the OCA personality test. if patton did say it was from fortune cookies, it was probably to avoid being guilty of copyright violation. if he didn't say it, people may have assumed that the lines came from "fortune cookies" because the term "land of sunshine" reminds them of the japanese flag? and perhaps they are making a connection to oriental food somehow? just a wild guess. the "land of sunshine" he refers to is depicted on the cover of the following book, which further confirms the connection to the OCA test. http://frommypointofview.info/wp-content/uploads/2007/07/eng-twth_large.jpg |
|
| Evanescence – Together Again Lyrics | 14 years ago |
|
Amy Lee on the song... I wrote something else that was moody, dark and really cool, and the director (of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe) wanted something that felt more hopeful. The song was about saying goodbye and moving on, and that’s what they’re doing in [the beginning of] the movie when they’re leaving their parents and going into some scary, unknown place. That’s how I wrote it, from their perspective. |
|
| Depeche Mode – Corrupt Lyrics | 14 years ago |
|
the two "But I wanna touch you" lines are "But I wouldn't touch you" and "Soon, you'll be crying" is "Soon, you'd be crying" the protagonist is bragging that he's too much for her, and telling her to stop tempting him. |
|
| Ke$ha – Tik Tok Lyrics | 14 years ago |
|
no satire here. she's the real deal. total floozy/bimbo. this song was written from real experience. she is a prime example of "the gimme gimme culture of today in which children go out and drink and have sex without any precaution or care for other individuals." she's no "crusader for faith" http://www.esquire.com/the-side/qa/kesha-pics-081309 KE$HA: Okay, for instance, I have a song on my record called "Steven" – I've been stalking this guy since I was fifteen, so it's a song about Steven: "Why won't you call me?" I have a song I wrote the other night called "Take It Off" about when I went to a drag show, and how really turned on I was by these transvestite men taking clothes off. I was like, What does that even make me? I'll usually go out, have one fucking insane night, come home half-drunk, stumbling, and write down a few words. The next morning I'll wake up and be like, Whoa, this story needs to be told. Like this single I have out right now, called "TiK ToK": One morning I just woke up, and I live in this house with I-don't-even-know-how-many roommates – it's this Laurel Canyon house with seven rooms and roommates fluctuating monthly. ESQ: And what, exactly, is going on there? KE$HA: Well it was the house The Eagles recorded Hotel California in. So it's just this huge hippy... There are a bunch of hippies who come in and out, and there are all these people sleeping on the couches. I don't really care, I don't mind it. But I woke up one day after we went to a party, and I was surrounded by ten of the most beautiful women you've ever seen. And I was like, I'm like P. Diddy – there's no man like this in the entire world. So that became the first line of the new single, and we just went from there. It's a daily process in my life. |
|
| Depeche Mode – Hole To Feed Lyrics | 14 years ago |
|
Gahan describes the song as "about wanting to fill a gaping hole but not knowing what to fill it with, about sometimes the idea of having a hole to feed all being a figment of my imagination when I'm actually fine." Sounds like half the people I know. |
|
| Matisyahu – One Day Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| "'One Day' is the song I’ve been wanting to make since I started my career," Matisyahu told Spinner. "It is an anthem of hope with a big beat–the kind of song that makes you bob your head and open your heart at the same time." | |
| Heaven & Hell – Follow the Tears Lyrics | 15 years ago |
|
it sounds like someone did something that could get him lynched/killed and has to hide to stay alive. he regrets what he did but has to stay hidden. "Rise up but the hands all pull you down" - he can't escape what he's done because others would say he is no better than what he did years ago "Don't drink from the cup of human kindness, it's a strange brew and poison to the touch" - he can't go ask for forgiveness, people just want justice "'We'll be there for you.' I believed and I can tell you it's not true. Run away before they find you again" - if he speaks of what he did, people don't want to forgive, they just want justice "The consequence of the conscience is that you'll be left somewhere swinging in the air" - they'll bring justice on you if you confess and admit, so keep hiding out and never mentioning it. |
|
| Eminem – 3 A.M. Lyrics | 15 years ago |
| the reference to a bucket, a hose and lotion is from "The Silence of The Lambs" | |
| Blue October – Dirt Room Lyrics | 15 years ago |
|
I am writing a review this song for my music column and will reveal what MR means. Look for it here on Feb 26: http://www.411mania.com/music/columns/index_topic/subject/783 |
|
| Charlene – I've Never Been To Me Lyrics | 16 years ago |
|
i heard this song for the first time today ever on sirius4, and it really grabbed my attention immediately. i listened to it again about 10 times in a row. the meaning to me is so blatantly obvious. she sees/overhears a woman complaining about how tough life is as a mother and wife and longs for so-called freedom of traveling the world and partying etc. she wants to tell the woman that she has lived the wild life but regrets never settling down with one man and having a family. the first part clearly is directed at someone complaining about living the typical family life as wife and mother, and she is saying i wish someone talked to me and set me straight about not being a wild chick. and i wish i could talk to you and let you know how good you really have it. the second part is about some of the places she's been and wild things she's done the third part is wanting to tell this lady how alone she is now later in life from having lived the wild lifestyle. the fourth part is more travel and wild times, being "that party girl on the yacht getting drunk" and "that star f'er having sex with famous men". the fifth part, the spoken part, is what she wants to tell the lady that chasing the wild life in exotic places is not truly paradise, her child and her husband are where true happiness is found. we also learn that the lady got into an argument with her husband that morning. the sixth part is about regretting not settling down and having children and instead choosing the party life, and realizing too late that living "the sweet life" made her "bitter" (a play on the word bittersweet). loose sex instead of monogomy has made her bitter and unhappy. the moral of the story is that a woman who chooses to settle down and raise a family will be happier in the end than a woman who chooses the glamorous "carefree" wild lifestyle. |
|
| Lamb – Gorecki Lyrics | 17 years ago |
|
the line "Still in my heart this moment or it might burst" is actually "Still my heart this moment or it might burst". Still (verb) lessen the intensity of, calm. and i agree with most people on here about the meaning, it's pondering total completeness while next to someone you love absolutely. like the oracle in the matrix said "No one can tell you you're in love; you just know it, through and through; balls to bones." this song is about total satisfaction in mind body and soul when next to a certain somebody else. |
|
* This information can be up to 15 minutes delayed.