I got a loaded gun in the closet
And another one in the dresser drawer
Just in case the one in the closet didn't make a big enough hole.

She had his breakfast ready every morning
And his lunch in a box sitting there by the kitchen door.
She'd make sure he had everything he needed
And hug his neck and tell him how much she loved him
And it was beautiful.
You should have seen it.

Then she'd make herself a pot of coffee,
Just the way she liked it
And sit down and enjoy the quiet of the house all alone,
But, by two-o-clock or so every afternoon
The quiet would start getting to her and she’d watch
The clock until he came back home.

And she understood just what he needed
When he came home every evening
Was a couple of beers and a couple of minutes
To cuss about his day.
So she'd fix him a nice hot supper
While he ranted and raved about one thing or the other.
And she never once told him what he was going on about
Didn't add up to a thing.
And she never touched that gun in the closet.
It was his and it was there just because he wanted it to be.
She didn't get out much, so she never knew just what it was
That made him so afraid.

Most women today would say she was a disgrace.
Most men would say she wasn't much to look at.
And they all would say she'd be a lot better off
If she cared a little more about what they all think.
She could have a life of her own if she had a little pride,
Some silicone implants, and another man on the side.
But she's got a loaded gun in the closet.
And it's there anytime she wants it.
And her one and only man knows it and
That's why he put it there in the first place.



Lyrics submitted by TonyRo2

Track duration: 05:14

"Loaded Gun in the Closet" as written by Earl Hicks Patterson Hood

Lyrics © RAZOR & TIE DIRECT LLC

Lyrics powered by LyricFind


Loaded Gun in the Closet song meanings
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13 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:First off I believe the lyrics listed here are wrong- the first line starts with “He kept” not “I got”. I think the lyrics mean that he doesn’t want to live without her if she goes it would leave a “big… hole” in his life. He’s scared she will do what everyone thinks she should do, “She didn't get out much, so she never knew just what it was. That made him so afraid.” But she doesn’t care what everyone else thinks and she never touched the gun in the closet, “it is only there because he wants it to be.” He put it there for her to shoot him anytime she wants to leave him and he has another one in the dresser to finish himself off if the bullet she shoots doesn’t kill him. The mention of the second gun in the first stanza I think is the key to understanding what the gun in the closet is for. If it was for her to shoot herself then why not mention the one in the nightstand as well? She could use this one or that one to kill herself. The same goes for shooting himself – either way it doesn’t take two guns to kill yourself or anyone else- if the first bullet doesn’t work you can shoot again you don’t need another gun. If the gun was to show his intent to kill her should she try to leave he would have one gun locked up (possibly where she could see but not touch it) and no other guns in the house. If she decides to leave him he either hopes she will shoot him or he will force her to shoot him on the way out. That is when the second gun comes in to play he wants to make sure he has another gun to finish himself off. And you know it is for him to use on himself because it is to be used, “Just in case the one in the closet didn't make a big enough hole” it is there just to finish what the other gun started not to have a shoot-out with her. I think it is a wonderful love ballad about two people that are a dying breed trying to live a world that no longer exists. But perhaps I am wrong- wouldn’t be the first time!

    Flag Perspicacyon December 05, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:OK. I read it again. I'm still confused. But i'm kinda stickin' with what I said before.
    Flag grandwazooon April 12, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:It is quite simple if you read the last verse. Yes, at first I was confused just listening to the song. That is why I'm here.
    In the song, people think she should fix herself up and maybe, possibly, get a man on the side. HE would not like that. That is why he has a gun in the closet. He would shoot her if she ever left him.
    Flag grandwazooon April 12, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:The gun in the closet is for her to use on herself. As much as she realizes how meaningless his life is, he realizes much more how empty hers is, and that it's just a matter of time before she wants out. The cruel irony is that doesn't realize it -- until the end the whole song is from her perspective and about how silly his job and complaining is. It's a trick ending to the song (well, not just the song) that is truly harrowing.
    Flag Quentincon November 12, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I must have missed the suicide/murder hints -- I didn't get that at all. To me, it's just a simple song about people with very simple lives. Seems songs aren't written about 'boring' people like this.
    The gun is almost romantic -- she knows he keeps it for some reason, but it's also there for her -- just in case whatever "it was that made him so afraid" would make her use it, even though "she didn’t get out much, so she never knew just what it was."
    Flag RoddyPiperon October 25, 2010   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:The gun is to keep that woman in her place. What is he is afraid of is that she will leave him. She knows it and that is why she is the too perfect wife that doesn't do anything but what he wants.

    She and the gun are his property one and the same, and both are kept safe in their place. One will never leave without the other.
    Flag Tedvion February 26, 2009   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:the gun is definitely put there for her... but what she does with it isn't made clear on purpose. he just knows she'll need it sooner or later, whether it's killing him or killing herself.
    Flag Heckletonon March 14, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:Everytime I hear this song, I come to a different conclusion as to who the gun is meant for...and whether it was ever used. Does she shoot him? Does she shoot herself? Or 30 years from now, will that same gun, with the same bullets, still be in the same spot in the closet. I hope we never find out. It's what makes the song what it is.

    I love this line, though:
    She didn’t get out much, so she never knew just what it was
    that made him so afraid.
    Flag KentuckyStraighton May 23, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:The gun is his. She never touched it. I've always thought he shot himself with it, and the gun becomes hers. She keeps it just in case she decides to do the same.
    Flag ruarchitecton May 22, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I think the gun is there because the husband is suicidal without the will to pull the trigger - he's "hoping" his wife will shoot him.
    Flag fildawgon April 29, 2007   Link

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