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"
If you're feeling down depressed and lonely
I know a place where we can go
22 Acacia Avenue
Meet a lady that I know
So if you're looking for a good time
And you're prepared to pay the price
Fifteen quid is all she asks for
Everybody's got their vice
If you're waiting for a long time
For the rest to do their piece
You can tell her that you know me
And you might even get it free
So any time you're down the East End
Don't you hesitate to go
You can take my honest word for it
She'll teach you more than you can know
Charlotte can't you get out from all this madness
Can't you see it only brings you sadness
When you entertain your men don't know the risk of getting disease
Some day when you're reaching the age of forty
I bet you'll regret the days when you were laying
Nobody then will want to know
You won't have any beautiful wares to show any more
22, the avenue
That's the place where we all go
You will find it's warm inside the red light's burning bright tonight
Charlotte isn't it time you stopped this mad life
Don't you ever think about the bad times
Why do you have to live this way
Do you enjoy your lay or is it the pay
Sometimes when your strolling down the avenue
The way you walk it make men think of having you
When you're walking down the street
Everybody stops and turns to stare at you
22, the avenue
That's the place where we all go
You will find it's warm inside the red light's burning bright tonight
Beat her mistreat her do anything that you please
Bite her excite her make her get down on her knees
Abuse her misuse her she can take all that you've got
Caress her molest her she always does what you want
You're running away don't you know what you're doing
Can't you see it'll lead you to ruin
Charlotte you've taken your life and you've thrown it away
You believe that because what you're earning
Your life's good don't you know that you're hurting
All the people that love you don't cast them aside
All the men that are constantly drooling
It's no life for you stop all that screwing
You're packing your bags and you're coming with me
I know a place where we can go
22 Acacia Avenue
Meet a lady that I know
So if you're looking for a good time
And you're prepared to pay the price
Fifteen quid is all she asks for
Everybody's got their vice
If you're waiting for a long time
For the rest to do their piece
You can tell her that you know me
And you might even get it free
So any time you're down the East End
Don't you hesitate to go
You can take my honest word for it
She'll teach you more than you can know
Charlotte can't you get out from all this madness
Can't you see it only brings you sadness
When you entertain your men don't know the risk of getting disease
Some day when you're reaching the age of forty
I bet you'll regret the days when you were laying
Nobody then will want to know
You won't have any beautiful wares to show any more
22, the avenue
That's the place where we all go
You will find it's warm inside the red light's burning bright tonight
Charlotte isn't it time you stopped this mad life
Don't you ever think about the bad times
Why do you have to live this way
Do you enjoy your lay or is it the pay
Sometimes when your strolling down the avenue
The way you walk it make men think of having you
When you're walking down the street
Everybody stops and turns to stare at you
22, the avenue
That's the place where we all go
You will find it's warm inside the red light's burning bright tonight
Beat her mistreat her do anything that you please
Bite her excite her make her get down on her knees
Abuse her misuse her she can take all that you've got
Caress her molest her she always does what you want
You're running away don't you know what you're doing
Can't you see it'll lead you to ruin
Charlotte you've taken your life and you've thrown it away
You believe that because what you're earning
Your life's good don't you know that you're hurting
All the people that love you don't cast them aside
All the men that are constantly drooling
It's no life for you stop all that screwing
You're packing your bags and you're coming with me
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The Night We Met
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@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
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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,
Page
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Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
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.
para1= introduces charlotte, para2= tells you shes no ordinary prostitute, (leave the rest to your imagination!) para3= its saying to charlotte "you hate what you do, so why do it, you could get AIDS" para4= saying to charlotte "by the time your forty, you will be hated or disgusted by everyone, no-one will see your a good person" para5= saying to charlotte "why are you a prostitute! is it worth it! para6= saying to charlotte "everyone stares at you in disgust, is that what you want?" para7= saying to everyone "she might be a prostitute, but she takes far worse things than what you think, shes a tough ol girl" para8= saying to charlotte "this life will destroy you, you can still turn back because people still care for you, your ganna a plaything for the rest of your life, so you coming with me to start over"
its a great song about the dark side of prostitution, (like theres any light), its using charlotte as a symbol to people saying "you think that all prostitutes love what they are doing, well actually they hate it and it ruins them, so dont see them as sick people but victims" because thats what all prostition is like.
to all the above comments, 22 acacia avenue is a great song (its on live after death, no crap songs are played live), blaze bayley did really well, in order of best maiden singers its- Bruce then Dianno then Blaze, and besides the only REALLY bad album of maidens is virtual xi but x-factor is great.
P.S= heavy metal is not satanic!!
It's the sequal to "Charlote the Harlet" song from the self titled debut. It's obvisouly about a hooker who cannot escape the profression
This song is amazing, as well as the whole album! I love every single song on that album...it's amazing. Even when they put on "Total Eclipse", I love that song too. This is obviously about Charlotte the Harlot (and songs after this to come) and about how she stops her prostitution...I believe - basically the song, the person telling the story (I imagine it as Bruce always, which makes me have a bit of a laugh!) of Charlotte is telling her it's not worth it to be a prostitute because of the diseases she could get (STDs) and how people would look at her and think low of her...you know...that's the basic overall gist. Great song...I love it.
Its definetly about a hooker, its very obvious. A great album, i think this is the worst song on it tho, other then gangland of course. Not to take anything away from maiden, but that song is terrible
unfortunatly, iron maiden made gangland,which hhonestly i there worst song, but better than alot of songs, its just that id rather listern to 22 acacia avenue or hallowed be thy name
This song is particularly interesting in light of the sheer numbers of rock and metal songs that deal with women, especially the songs dealing with sex with women. Most of them are written by men who take it as a given (rightly or wrongly) that these women will want to have sex with them, or were perfectly happy to make men of them if it's a song about the past, or whatever. Then you have a song like this that's pointing out, look, this prostitute, who has lots of sex with lots of men (including, presumably, people like the band members) has feelings too and is actually ill-used by the men in her life--the song goes out of its way to point out in that one section ("Beat her, mistreat her" thru to "She always does what you want") that most of the men who visit Charlotte don't consider her thoughts or feelings at all, but are just using her for whatever it is THEY want. It seems like an admonishment that actually, that kind of attitude toward women, which a sizable chunk of rock was promoting or does promote, is really, really fucked up!
The weakest song on "The Number Of The Beast" is Gangland - what were they thinking? As for the 22 Acacia Avenue lyrics, they are not gay or depressing, the song is just not as memorable as Run To The Hills or Hallowed Be Thy Name. And by the way, Dickinson's voice is one of the best ever so dont make fun of it.
@widgetone Gangland is great dickhead, go fuck a cock you fag.
the world's oldest profession, but great song
theres no weak link in The Number Of The Beast, 22 acacia avenue is a great song, great lyrics, cool solo :) i love to sing it :)
I'm sorry, but saying that you hate Bruce Dickinson is sacriledge. He's the greatest singer of all time ever and no one will even come close to being as good as him. Blaze was a great singer too, and the only reason that lots of people don't like him much was that he was always being compared to Bruce (obviously, as he replaced him) and therefore always seems bad in comparison. But everyone's bad in comparison. Bruce is the coolest singer ever, and that's the way it's gonnna be for the rest of all time.
Bananaman lived at 23 Acacia Avenue. Apart from that its a damn good song, and Bruce Dickinson absoulutely ROCKS. Like me... nope...im lying to myself.
I believe thats 29 Acacia road to be exact :D