She's shallow like the shoreline durning low tide
but my hopes are not quite as high
cant spot her faults but she spotted mine
she left me for herself
considering i would too
go figure, i'm bigger than that
the battles only halfway done
i might look young
but i'm no less defeated
how's the weather up there?
good God i wish i was tall



Lyrics submitted by loveisaverb


Short, Fast, and Loud song meanings
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17 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:someone said this might be about a girl pete dated, but patrick was still writing the lyrics for this album. just fyi.

    if I'd heard this song a few years ago, it probably would've been my theme song because of the chorus. back in the dark days before I accepted my fate as a 5'2" dude...
    Flag fiscalvaseon October 17, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:someone said this might be about a girl pete dated, but patrick was still writing the lyrics for this album. just fyi.

    if I'd heard this song a few years ago, it probably would've been my theme song because of the chorus. back in the dark days before I accepted my fate as a 5'2" dude...
    Flag fiscalvaseon October 17, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:bahaha. go short people. haha. i call this song my theme song cause 1) i'm short :P 5' and i'm done growing. 2) i'm fast. i run sprints in track 3) I'm possibly one of the loudest people you'd meet. my italian nature seems to stick to me or something :P

    Yeah. but this song is about some girl who is high on herself and doesn't like "short guys" i feel bad for short guys cause girls don't want to date a shorter guy. it's just the way we are :p but it shouldn't matter so much.


    and about the band members being short. yeah. they are... none of them are taller than 5' 8.


    HEHE! GO SHORT PEOPLE!! WHOOT!
    Flag flash5253on August 19, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:"She's shallow like the shoreline durning low tide
    but my hopes are not quite as high
    cant spot her faults but she spotted mine
    she left me for herself
    considering i would too
    go figure, i'm bigger than that
    the battles only halfway done
    i might look young
    but i'm no less defeated
    how's the weather up there?
    good God i wish i was tall"

    this song is about a girl a guy (presumably pete?) dated. the girl was extremely shallow, and always put down the boy for his flaws, like being short. "she left me for herself" means that the girl left the boy, but she wasnt really alone; she loved herself too much, and was incredibly conceited.

    so in short?
    the song is about a girl breaking up with a guy because she was incredibly shallow and thought the guy had much too many flaws for her.
    Flag shayanxwiggleson August 18, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I think FOB has the same problem alot of bands do, yes of course they are attractive and the people that only listen to them because of that, well they arent exactly in the right minds they should be, But the people that hang posters of them all over there rooms and never even buy an album or bother downloading a song, they are the real shame. I went to see fall out boy earlier this year, I got seats and sat down the whole time while everyone around danced around, shouting everytime pete made a fancy move, those people wouldnt even have been there if the concert had been held 1 or 2 years ago. shame. I love this song though
    Flag KILLrachelDEADon August 18, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:i hate when people only like the band for pete.
    i liked them before i even SAW pete.
    (or anyone else)
    my sister had the take this to your grave cd
    and i loved them right when i heard saturday.
    i mean,
    yes. pete is amazingly hot.
    but he isnt the band.
    i think patrick has the best voice ever.
    it makes my heart MELT.

    hah. ok.
    this song funny,.
    god, i wish they were all taller.
    haha. cuz im only 14 and im 5'8".
    and they need to get tall! so i can date them.
    **in my dreams**
    haha.

    oh yeah,,,
    and i think that MTV is a breeding ground for posers
    and it ruined a bunch of bands that were probably going to be really famous later in life,
    but MTV had to make them 'one hit wonders'
    and only play ONE SONG.
    RAWR.

    ok that was my rant.
    I LOVE FALL OUT BOY!
    bam.
    ok bye
    haha
    Flag em oh ell ell whyon July 27, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:this is my favorite song
    on evening out with your girlfriend
    i love the simplicity of the song
    it's just so there
    Flag blink18223xon June 07, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Hm... the only thing I dislike about FOB is the fact that a lot of people only listen to their Music because of Pete and they take advantage of that. One of my friends saw them in concert awhile back and I asked her how it was.. she didnt mention anything about the music but simply replied "Pete is So hot!"... They should do what Panic! At The Disco did... Make a music video w/o them in it and see how well that does... Definitely wouldnt be #1 on TRL that's for sure...

    P!ATD made a video like that for that exact reason. They realized that people we're obsessed w/ their look and they don't want people to like them for their look but for their music... FOB doesnt care as long as they make money...



    Just a Thought.
    Flag yeee_sonon June 06, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:God, I think "Good god, I wish I was tall" is just the catchiest line ever. *sighs*

    A lot of the boardies don't care for the really early FOB stuff, "it sucks! shitty recording!" but I think it's kind of cute.

    And yeah, that "wish I was tall" can be literal. Apparently, Patrick Stump (who wrote the lyrics for this CD) is only 5'4''-ish in size. (I'm 5'5" at the ripe age of 14 and I've still got growing to do...)
    Flag caelaeon June 05, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:"the 'good god i wish i was tall' line is not literal; neither is the 'how is the weather up there?'"

    Haha, yes they are. The song is about shallow girls in general and how the singer has trouble with them because he is short and looks young. Hence the irony of the line, "Go figure, I'm bigger than that."

    The song is also a play on the common conception that punk songs are "short, fast, and loud". That approach is why the vocals "don't seem to fit" as noted by the first original poster. Most punk lyrics don't mesh especially well with the fast paced music.
    Flag Jayemelon January 05, 2007   Link

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