We know of an ancient radiation
That haunts dismembered constellations
A faintly glimmering radio station
While Frank Sinatra sings "Stormy Weather"
The flies and spiders get along together
Cobwebs fall on an old skipping record

Beyond the suns that guard this roost
Beyond your flowers of flaming truth
Beyond your latest ad campaigns
An old man sits collecting stamps
In a room all filled with Chinese lamps

He saves what others throw away
He says that he'll be rich someday
We know of an ancient radiation
That haunts dismembered constellations
A faintly glimmering radio station
We know of an ancient radiation
That haunts dismembered constellations
A faintly glimmering radio station

While Frank Sinatra sings "Stormy Weather"
The flies and spiders get along together
Cobwebs fall on an old skipping record



Lyrics submitted by Ice

Track duration: 04:01

"Frank Sinatra" as written by John Mccrea

Lyrics © Cake - Stamen Music

Lyrics powered by LyricFind


Frank Sinatra song meanings
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69 Comments

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  • -1
    My Interpretation:Couldn't it be about God?
    You can imagine a bed bathed by the Sun and its meaningless in the cosmo getting zoom out. Then it goes behind the flowers of flaming truth (the stars in the sky, like a garden), where a old man stand, watching over the people, collecting our trash (as he collect our daily activities, completelly meaningless for us but amazing for him, like a person who observes a ant society glass). 'He says that he'll be rich someday' is just an irony, saying that even the allmight fucking God is poor, lost in the trash he collect trying to give a reason to life.
    Maybe the Frank Sinatra singing means that God is just there listening to 'the best singer' that he could find, don't minding that he is in the past, as for God time doesn't exist or doesn't have much importance
    The ancient radiation would be the light coming from the most external stars of the Universe, that pass through galaxies already gone or dismantled, until it reach us, so weak after all that way as a faded radio wave. Beyond all that is the old man sitting XD
    The flies and cobwebs over the record is either the representation of one of the trash we produce that amaze God, or either on the God's house itself. After trillion years, how would God be? Entusiastic with everything, cleaning and singing as someone that bought a house 1 week ago, or like a ancient highlander that already saw everything and is hardly amuzed?
    What would be the Chinese lamps I have no idea, however
    Flagged Gyropiloton February 01, 2013   Link
  • 0
    My Opinion:It's talking about a person who still uses old ways
    Flag zxc1412on November 05, 2012   Link
  • 0
    Lyric Correction:Guys, the "faint screaming" you hear...? Cake does this all the time in every song-- there's always a guy doing that, saying things, and going "Woah!" That has nothing to do with the song.
    Flag worsetimesarehereon November 04, 2012   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:Forgive me for my Tin Hat theory, but I've always thought this song was about time travel. So, in a future world, we are not doing well. The world is violent, aoverpolutted, etc and I guess you could so close to apocalypse/armageddon. So, one of the world's goverments manages to send a man back in time useing a terminator time machine ( one-way, no way back.) "...while Frank Sinatra plays stormy weather..." The man is sent back to approxmantly 30's-50's, a big time for Sinatra. Useing the objectives his govement gave him, he manages to fix many of the world's future problems by correct them as they first begin in the past, creating an almost butterfly effect. While thier, however, he manages to "collect some stamps" because he'll be "rich one day." He basically invests in things thought trivial during the 30's-50's and gains welath from them, knowing how they would be used in the future. Now, the "...flies and spiders getting along together, while cobwebs fall on an old spinning record." I'm pretty sure theirs a Biblical verse that roughly states " theirs a season for all things." Theirs been so many different kingdoms and empires throughout history, but even grand empires fall, and those who are left pick up and create a new empire in its place, starting the cycle over again. Now, a skip in a record is when the needle has reached an error in the disk, and goes backwords to a more durable part in the disc to continue playing ( I'm pretty sure it can also move forward during a skip, not sure though.) This means that with this new technology of time travel, their will never be another "fallen empire." and that we can just send another man back in time to correct our mistakes, thus breaking the "season for all things" cycle, and creating an almost, if not totally perfect, society.
    Flag lalalacaloon August 27, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:even though we fight we get along at some point in our lives that is the message in the flies and spiders part. Ive pissed off people but did they always hate me no,just currently
    Flag thefmon June 20, 2012   Link
  • -4
    General Comment:I think that this song is about fallout. first off the ancient radiation is the radiation that has been every where for years! The faintly glimmering radio station is GNR, an in game radio station that is having some problems transmitting its broadcast.

    While "Stormy Weather" is not in the soundtrack, all of the sound track is music from that time. The Flies and Spiders getting along might be enemies having to work together to survive in the wastelands. The "Flower of Flaming Truth" could be the HELIOS ONE a solar farm that can be used as a death ray, owned by a group of people trying to get order back to the wasteland. The last part is the most obvious part. The main character is the old man, long after he has completed the game. Now he just collects thing to sell later.
    Flag bocaj527on March 15, 2012   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:Best. Cake. Song. Ever. Hands f***ing down. No one will convince me otherwise.
    Flag MyUnderstatedAngeron November 20, 2011   Link
  • -5
    Link(s):TEST
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    Flagged GoalsByMession June 29, 2011   Link
  • -5
    Link(s):Great song.
    Visit Goals By Messi
    goalsbymessi.blogspot.com/
    Flagged GoalsByMession June 29, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:i think its about how people that are well off get to caught up in their lives (beyond the suns that guard this roof,beyond your flowers of flaming truth,beyond your latest ad campaigns)to notice that in other parts of the world that those people dont think of or care about (we know of an ancient radiation, that haunts dismembered constellations)that there are people that are just scraping by (he saves what others throw away, he says that he'll be rich some day)thats just my theory
    Flag jbuckleyfanon June 14, 2011   Link

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