Know something about this song or lyrics?
Add it to our wiki.
If you only once would let me
Only just one time
Then be happy with the consequence
With whatever's gonna happen tonight
Don't think we're not serious
When's it ever not
The love we make is give and it's take
I'm game to play along
All I can say I should say
Can we take a ride?
Get out of this place while we still have time
The best DJs are saving their slowest song for last
When the dance is through it's me and you
Come on, would it really be so bad
The things we think may be the same
But I won't fight for more
It's just not me to wear it on my sleeve
Count on that for sure
All I can say I should have said
Can we take a ride?
Get out of this place while we still have time
You want to take a ride?
Get out of this place while we still have time
We still have time
Can't say I was never wrong
But some blame rests on you
Work and play they're never okay to mix
The way we do
All I can say I should have said
Can we take a ride?
Get out of this place while we still have time
You want to take a ride?
Get out of this place while we still have time
We still have time
Only just one time
Then be happy with the consequence
With whatever's gonna happen tonight
Don't think we're not serious
When's it ever not
The love we make is give and it's take
I'm game to play along
All I can say I should say
Can we take a ride?
Get out of this place while we still have time
The best DJs are saving their slowest song for last
When the dance is through it's me and you
Come on, would it really be so bad
The things we think may be the same
But I won't fight for more
It's just not me to wear it on my sleeve
Count on that for sure
All I can say I should have said
Can we take a ride?
Get out of this place while we still have time
You want to take a ride?
Get out of this place while we still have time
We still have time
Can't say I was never wrong
But some blame rests on you
Work and play they're never okay to mix
The way we do
All I can say I should have said
Can we take a ride?
Get out of this place while we still have time
You want to take a ride?
Get out of this place while we still have time
We still have time
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
mtv.com/news/articles/1493739/…
Nov 15 2004 8:52 PM EST 474
Jimmy Eat World 'Work' It Out With Liz Phair On New Single
Second single from Futures is about interoffice romance.
By James Montgomery (@positivnegativ)
.
Though Jimmy Eat World frontman Jim Adkins has never worn a tie to work or sat in a cubicle all day, he knows a thing or two about illicit interoffice romances.
"My advice about office romances? Don't do it. But if you do, good luck," he said. "I've never actually worked in an office, so I don't know. But I can imagine being in close quarters with someone, and you've got to have separate public and a private personalities."
"But Jim and [bassist] Rick [Burch] did have a fling for a while," joked drummer Zach Lind. "So I guess that counts as an inter-band thing."
The Adkins-penned "Work" is the second single from Futures, which debuted at #6 on the Billboard albums chart — the band's highest opening — and has sold more than 167,000 copies. Futures' first single, "Pain," still sits at #2 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart (see "Jimmy Eat World Tap Into The 'Pain' Of A John Cusack Classic").
In "Work," Adkins yelps, "Work and play, they're never OK/ To mix the way we do." And in person he comes this close to copping to the song's real meaning.
" 'Work' is about doing something you know you shouldn't be doing," he laughed. "It's about walking into an unhealthy situation, on purpose. Which could mean it's about an interoffice romance."
The song features backing vocals from indie-sexpot-turned-red-hot-soccer-mom Liz Phair, and the guys admit they were a bit intimidated by working with the woman who set hearts aflutter on her 1993 album, Exile in Guyville (which famously features her cursing at, flirting with and ranting about her myriad of male suitors).
"We're all fans of Exile, so maybe a bit of a crush thing was happening," Adkins said. "She definitely brings the sexiness. An unquantifiable sexiness, sure, but she definitely brings it. She was super cool to work with. 'Work' sounded like something she would sing, so we hunted her down through people we knew in Los Angeles. We showed her the song, she really liked it, so she came down and sang on it."
Jimmy Eat World plan to shoot a "Work" video, although they didn't know whether or not it would include Phair. Until then, they're touring nearly nonstop, crisscrossing North America until the middle of December, then heading overseas next year.
"If we're not on the road, we're on tour," Lind sighed.
"You never check out," Atkins added. "I hear a lot of bands complain about touring, and it does get to be a bit emotionally draining. But you have to put it into context: It's just a bunch of shows."
"If you only once would let me
Only just one time
Then be happy with the consequence
With whatever's gonna happen tonight"
There's an attraction to a girl he really likes and wants to have just one time and for her to not regret whatever happens.
"Don't think we're not serious
When's it ever not
The love we make it's give and its take
I'm game to play along"
He's letting her know the love they make is for real and that they both get something out of it, and that he's willing to continue"
"All I can say
I shouldn't say
Can we take a ride?
Get out of this place
While we still have time"
Where ever it is that they are, perhaps at work, he's saying that he shouldn't ask her if they can get out and just go while there's still time, which apparently he does ask her.
"All the best DJs are saving
The slowest song for last
When the dance is through
Its me and you
Come on, would it really be so bad"
They apparently went out and are getting ready to end their "date" and afterwards it's just the two of them, he seems to try to convince her to sleep with him.
"The things we think might be the same
But I won't fight more
Its just not me to wear it on my sleeve
Count on the for sure"
They are so much alike and even though they sleep together she doesn't seem to want more, he reassures her that he won't ask for more and that whatever happens he won't bring back up or use it against her "it's just not me to wear it on my sleeve, count on that for sure".
"All I can say
I shouldn't say
Can we take a ride?
Get out of this place
While we still have time
You wanna take a ride?
Get out of this place
While we still have time
Yeah - We still have time"
"Can't say I was never wrong
But some blame rests on you
Work and play they're never ok
To mix the way we do"
Apparently something has gone wrong and even though he doesn't deny the blame he feels they are both responsible, idk perhaps she's pregnant... Thus "All I can say, I SHOULDN'T say"
I absolutely agree with the interpretations that say it's about picking up a girl at a club - I will only add that the reason it's called "Work" is that picking up girls is often referred to as "doing work." Simple as that.
urbandictionary.com/…
Just because they're an emo band doesn't mean they can't have a few songs about meaningless sex. I love it!
A guy is out on prom with his girl, and he wants to have sex, but she is not sure.
"If you only once would let me
Only just one time
Then be happy with the consequence
With whatever's gonna happen tonight "
Obviously, this quote can be directed directly at him having sex with his girl.
"Don't think we're not serious
When's it ever not
The love we make it's give and its take
I'm game to play along."
She is afraid he is only in it for sex, and he's saying he is serious about the relationship, but she has to let him have his desires too.
"When the dance is through
Its me and you
Come on, would it really be so bad?"
Sex. Not much else to say about this one. Just reinforcing point.
The chorus is saying to me that they are not supposed to have sex at their age, so they need to get out of there while they still have time. I will say that the chorus may also mean the marriage in the future as was said by a previous comment.
Don't just say I'm wrong, I am just giving an interpretation.
and it's pretty obvious that it's about a high school couple
the whole chorus is him telling her come let's do this before we both go off to college and don't see each other
the 2nd verse is after prom or some other dance and him asking her to have sex with him but he's not gonna force her to do it
I think in the bridge they finally had sex and in the end it ended up being a bad decision and he kind of in a way blames her
I don't that's just what I think the song's about