SongMeanings | Lyrics | Modest Mouse

M
Modest Mouse
Black Cadillacs
65 Comments

Lyrics for Black Cadillacs as interpreted by nuclearjesus

Black Cadillacs Lyrics

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And it's true we named our children
After towns that we've never been to
And it's true that the clouds just hung around
Like black Cadillacs outside a funeral
And we were done, done, done
With all the fuck, fuck, fucking around
You were so true to yourself
You were true to no one else
Well, I should put you in the ground
I've got the time
I got the hours
I got the days
I got the weeks
I could say to myself I've got the words but I can't speak
Well I was done, done, done
With all the circ, circ, circling around

I didn't die and I ain't complaining, I ain't blaming you
I didn't know that the words you said to me
Meant more to me than they ever could you
I didn't lie and I ain't saying I told the whole truth
I didn't know that this game we were playing
Even had a set of rules

We named our children after towns
That we've never been to
And it's true that the clouds just hung around
Like black Cadillacs outside a funeral
And we were laughing at the stars
While our feet clung tight to the ground
So pleased with ourselves for using so many verbs and nouns
But we were all still just dumb, dumb, dumber
Than the dirt, dirt, dirt on the ground
Well, wings on flames
Kings with no names
Well, this place just ain't got air right now
You were so all over town but still Crayola brown
Well, you should run around yourself right now
And we were done, done, done
With all the fuck, fuck, fucking around, circling around

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65 Comments

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RedFactory
04-13-2004

Rated +1

Great Song Great Band Great Album

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dhelm
04-15-2004

Rated 0

This song is about a failed relationship, and how rediculous some of the rules and run arounds are. Some bitter moments like "well i should put you in the ground." And how often relationships can become such bullshit after awhile. I really like how our schools and society value learning and using our verbs and nouns, but in the end most of the people are just complete dumbfucks.

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Now Imperfect
04-17-2004

Rated 0

Deffinately about a break-up, I love how they do the "fuckfuck fuckin'" and "dumb dumb dumber" lines..

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modest_hill
04-30-2004

Rated +1

I LOVE this song. "We named our children after towns that we've never been to" is such a great line. and now i want to name my children like that.

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Passerby87
05-02-2004

Rated 0

Yeah, so much knowledge of facts (names of towns and nouns)but it means nothing, but no personal experience. All their learning just made more masks to hide behind, and he's sick of it all.

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Passerby87
05-02-2004

Rated 0

Yeah, so much knowledge of facts (names of towns and nouns)but it means nothing, no personal experience. All their learning just made more masks to hide behind, and he's sick of it all.

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Passerby87
05-02-2004

Rated 0

Yeah, so much knowledge of facts (names of towns and nouns)but it means nothing, no personal experience. All their learning just made more masks to hide behind, and he's sick of it all.

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Dance Hall
05-10-2004

Rated 0

hmmm...pitchforkmedia.com reviewed this and said that they sounded a little like the clash in this song...but i am just not seeing the likeness.

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j.acob
05-28-2004

Rated -1

my song, motherfuckers

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DoorsFan
06-28-2004

Rated 0

"And it's true that the clouds just hung around
Like black Cadillacs outside a funeral.."

Great imagery.

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PeRdEdOr
07-05-2004

Rated 0

wo....i just came to this page and the song started in my player! WHAT A COINCIDENCE!!! rite...awesome. i love the first line. i love the fuck fuck fucking around too.

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764-mouser
11-12-2004

Rated 0

First of all, Insulting this record would be like making fun of a kid with down syndrome because many may not know this, but Isaac and the band went through a lot of hardships while making this album: Jeremy leaving, DUI's attempted murder charges, jail time, they actually started over at a point, and the list goes on. you can see it in the lyrics, its about bad news and how bad shit happens, etc.

But that out of they way, this was an alright album, but compared to their last 3 LP's it doesn't compare, and its hard to blame the record company because EPIC did a great job with the Moon & Antartica. It was Isaac's choic to make an album with shorter songs, but the thing we love about Modest Mouse IS the 7 minute songs and deep lyrics and cheesy effects. He's supposed to be writing for the FANS not the masses.

Regardless, I think this is a very cool song and has great meaning. along with Bukowski, Blame it on the Tetons and The Good Times Are Kiling me.

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Chameleonica
12-05-2004

Rated 0

As far as I can see it, this song definitely has Issac talking about the problems the band was going through. Being in a band becomes more than music, it becomes a game if there are problems with record labels and band members and fame.

"And it's true that the clouds just hung around
Like black Cadillacs outside a funeral "
I think the clouds are the problems, and, like funerals, are unexpected and possibly have no solutions except getting over it.

"And we were laughing at the stars while our feet clung tight to the ground
So pleased with ourselves for using so many verbs and nouns"
I think this is about the band's standing in the music world. They have stayed true to themselves and not sold out, in that they have not settled to writing about completely pointless shit. They still know their roots.

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trippyapple
12-29-2004

Rated 0

the opening line still amazes me. it has such a masterful evolution from quiet annoyance to outright anger.

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SpringE
12-30-2004

Rated 0

i agree with most of what you said, 764-mouser, but i didnt agree with "He's supposed to be writing for the FANS not the masses." i think artist should write what they are thinking/feeling, not what anyone else wants

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stoolhardy
01-05-2005

Rated -1

I have to turn this song down when I listen to the Good News For People Who Love Bad News album. He says "fucking around" very prominently in the chorus. I guess they don't bother with the "Parental Advisory" labels anymore, I didn't see one on this album. No, I don't normally care about that or have a pole up my as - just an observation.

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Bobbodian
01-07-2005

Rated 0

Yeah, I hate all parent's groups, but I like when they have the label just to show off. It's really immature how obsessed we are with swearing, but subconsiously I feel cooler with the label on. Fucking parent's groups. Why ban arbitrary words? So kids won't learn them? They will anyway. Besides, if they don't know what it means, then so what? It's not like they'll go around saying "fuck" because they were somehow able to hear it in a song so that it stood out. I mean, we don't expect 6-year-olds to memorize the word "Cadillac", do we? And do we think that they'll learn about sex instantly when they hear the word "fuck"? What would be so wrong about it if they did? Why is sex dirty? Whatever, I'm only 13, there must be something I'm missing that all these 45-year-olds who mindlessly censor Janet's boob so that kids won't see what their face was pressed up against for the first months of their lives (and that girl children already have) aren't missing.

2 Replies

andyrer
02-11-2009

Rated 0

Sorry to fill the thread with Non-song stuff folks, but i cant let something this stupid float around. apparently bobbodian thinks we should teach our children how to swear as soon as possible so they wont have to go through the strenuous labor of finding out for themselves. I'm not that much older than him but I disagree with him because (1). as everyone knows, swearing is more often than not associated with some kind of anger or physical or verbal violence. that is how swear words have come to be in society and we cant escape that so i think its unwise to go down that road with immature and pliable young minds. (2). in order to keep civilization somewhat on course, people need to be able to behave in a civilized fashion and swearing is never polite or civilized. children should learn peace and civility in their homes not crudeness and violence. Also, he apparently thinks that since we were breast-fed when infants, we should grow up learning about sex... He is not very intelligent. Why? because KIDS EXPERIMENT! You idiot!! that is the nature of humans: to experiment in order to understand the world around them, so while they're experimenting with sex at 13, lets just go ahead and give 'em some cigarettes, vodka, and a high powered race car cuz they sure as hell will find out about them someday!! They arent ready. Maturity is an actual process, and you need to experience it.

Jexral
02-11-2009

Rated 0

I must apologize for the same reason for Andyrer. I, however, feel that Andyrer did not comprehend what was wholly meant by the OP. And, personally, I quite agree. In the end, fuck is a word. it has no possible ability to physically harm anyone. Sure, it is usually associated with anger and sometimes violence, but children are human and get the same feelings of anger as an adult does. I understand your reservations, but will you refrain from teaching your children the word 'fat' as many people will be offended by the usage of such a word in their presence? Secondly, your mind doesn't actually 'grow' from about the time that you are thirteen on. You acquire more knowledge, and based on that knowledge you are better able to make decisions, but your mind doesn't change much. In fact, at the age thirteen you are the most creative that you will ever be in your entire life. Sort of sad that all of that creativity is being wasted on the indoctrination of children in the public school system, eh?

To your comments about sex: re-read your post. You quite plainly contradict yourself. You say that if children grow up learning about sex, then they will need to experiment, however that is why they were taught about it in the first place. Teaching them would negate the need for them to experiment, because they would already know about it. And, as I'm sure you know, children already to experiment. It is a simple fact of life. It doesn't really hurt them any to do this, though I again understand your reservations on the subject. It just seems absurd to me to restrict a person's right to their own body because you think they are probably not old enough to make such a decision. Maybe you weren't old enough, but you weren't them, so you can't judge them by yourself.

And about the cigarettes, and vodka: he didn't say anything about giving them harmful substances (or I suppose the equivalent of your suggestion and his topic would be actually having sex with children) so I don't see where that comes into play. However, talking to them about such things is absolutely the right thing to do. Kids need to learn about such things, or they will do exactly what you were trying to avoid with the sex, because they don't know about it. Hiding sex and drugs from kids is what causes so many of the problems that teenagers have today. Also, you shouldn't inhibit a teenagers right to do things that they want, simply because they are a teenager. as long as they are willing to deal with the consequences of their actions, they should do what they please.

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stodman
01-18-2005

Rated 0

This song is all about growing up, hitting 30 and realizing how stupid you were when you were younger. In the past, they thought they were true to themselves, but now they realize they were never true to anybody.
They laughed at the stars (Symbolism for the mystical and the apex of creation), while they were stuck going nowhere.

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764-mouser
01-31-2005

Rated 0

I have to disagree with what someone said back a while ago, Chameleonica I think... anyway:

"And it's true that the clouds just hung around
Like black Cadillacs outside a funeral "

I think this is how the cars hang out near the funeral, but when the funeral's over the go on, like clouds float away. death is unpredictable like the weather, and when the time comes, the cloud appear and so do the Cadalacs.

"And we were laughing at the stars while our feet clung tight to the ground
So pleased with ourselves for using so many verbs and nouns"

Just how we praise ourselves so much and kind of take our coats off like we're here to stay forever, regardless of the fact that we will soon kill ourselves off with our Wal-Marts and endless parking lots (you have to look at their older stuff and themes of Urban sprawl and Suburban decay) anyway, we will soon go extinct and look like fools by holding ourselves in high regard like we were a race of perfect beings.

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FloatOn33
02-01-2005

Rated 0

Jeez people. Its a word. Fuck is just a word. Have any of you parents group herd of saying "sticks and stones"? Fuck, shit, bitch- its all just ways of expressing yourself.

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sirgarycoleman
03-02-2005

Rated 0

I disagree with most of the first posters... this is not a song about relationsihps. One of the cool things about Modest Mouse is they don't just make stupid love songs all the time like everyone else and this isn't one either.

And spoolhardy, yes, you do have a pole up your ass or else you wouldn't even say such a thing.

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artful tiger
03-14-2005

Rated 0

"And we were laughing at the stars while our feet clung tight to the ground
So pleased with ourselves for using so many verbs and nouns"
great line and th cadillac one too- thats all i wanted to say. *humble thanks*

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gustergusher
04-01-2005

Rated 0

I must say I agree with sirgarycoleman. I have to believe that a band as great as Modest Mouse would not waste their time on love songs (all the time, if even at all) and they leave you searching for a deeper meaning in the lyrics. At least that's what I think, if not than what good would Modest Mouse be compared to all the other corny rock bands around? Nah, I still think Modest Mouse's lyrics are on the same level of the Mars Volta and the like, though this album is really not their best. Still, I love Modest Mouse.

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yankeeboystevel
04-11-2005

Rated 0

I love how the lyrics blend mindless rage with well-thought-out rage. haha. Don't know a word for that besides "brilliant". Modest Mouse didn't sell out, they matured.

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insaint
05-27-2005

Rated 0

the way he sings is incredible.

You were so true to yourself
You were true to no one else

those lines are great, so many good pieces of lyric in their songs..

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