Dance, Dance

i think the song is pretty straight forward. basically saying to quit being so uptight and scard about thing. if you like a girl/guy, quit worrying and tell them. or if your going to do something, dont hesitate and just do it. the line "you always fold just before your found out", meaning that your intent on doing/saying something, but when your up to bat (metiphorically speaking) your get shy/nervous and give up. like a game of poker. you can look at your hand, and see a 4 of a kind. but your still scared that someone might have a higher hand, despite how small the chanses are, so you fold before they realize how great your hand is.

also the ling "why dont you sho me a little bit of spine" basically says to stop worrying about the what ifs, and go for it. to "dance"

thats my interpretation of it anyway. and honestly, since i started seeing the lyrics in this manor, iv become a bit less shy and started breaking from my shell a littl bit ^^.

This is possibly the most interesting song lyrically that i've ever heard. It just goes to show that there are 16 pages worth of posts on this song. Well i would say some lyrical differences in some versions people have posted are very important. In my opinion this song is about a guy who's girlfriend (of at least some time, but not too long) was cheating on him. I say girlfriend on some time but not too long because the context of the opening stanza makes the most sense in that context.

Now as for why i say the girl has been cheating on him: for starters, the guy is clearly not a happy guy at this point, his life is "it can't be much worse" vs. "no one should ever feel like" which are too pretty bad things that might come emotionally from finding out that his girlfriend cheated on him. I believe this right here is the most difficult, interesting and crucial stanza: "You always fold just Before you're found out Drink up, it's last call, last resort But only the first mistake" The being found out part leads me to believe that she was cheating, and right when he was about to find out, she dumped him. This move is a "last resort" because its actually a desperate move for her (I'll get to that later) and "only the first mistake" at least in his mind, because he loves her so much that he's forgiven her for everything she's done before this.

Now why is this move a "last call" or "last resort." One has to look at her motives for being in this relationship with him in the first place if she loved another guy for a while. This might lead one to believe that they're married, but i think this unlikely because of the first stanza and the fact that this seems to be a sort of almost regular thing for her (you "always" fold just..), and if they were married it would be a first. Now the reason she's probably in a relationship with him is for his money. He probably has a lot of it and ideally she'd like to marry him but have affairs with other guys, and still take his money. i know this is sort of a stretch, and there isn't really any evidence in the song for it, but that's my best explanation for this part of the song.

To reiterate my last point, "these are the lives (plural, VERY key) you'd love to lead" she would like to live this double life of cheating on this guy, but now that he almost found out and she dumped him, she can't. (So SAD!) Also, the part about showing spine "you've been saving for his mattress" again show that she's cheating on him.

The guy clearly loves her, as he's forgiven her for lots of stuff before (everything in fact) and does in fact want sympathy in the form of her having sex with him. He doesn't want to forget how her voice sounds, and he needs these words he's written about her just to get by. Her cheating has demeaned his love for her somewhat, but he was so attached to her he still needs her voice and her memory just to get by. Again, he still finds her physically very attractive and would love to have sex with her.

The last thing to explain is all this "Dance, Dance" stuff, after all, that is the name of the song! The guy says that he's "two quarters and a heart down" because a) a heart down obviously cause he's brokenhearted and b) 2 quarters down because he just spent them on a jukebox, which is his sort of way of coping with what's just happened. This particular jukebox probably has some emotional significance to him because he probably spent some time there with her, and he's remembering how she used to dance to it, and now he's sitting there, wishing she were still there, dancing to it. He's transfixed by this idea, and that's why he repeats these lines over and over again.

This guy has had a really rough time, and Fall Out Boy does a great job of embedding a really great story in a very catchy song. They tend to do this sort of thing a lot which is why i like them so much.

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This song has some amazing qualities to it. The music represents the lyrics as they go on, because you can hear the paranoia and obsession (especially the "i'm 2 quarters..." part). I feel like it's not about a post break up, but it feels like someone who's obsessing over someone he knows a little bit, but he doesn't know if she likes him back (or doesn't like him back) which is driving him to insanity.

Love it!

ACTUAL LYRICS. not joking. straight from the band members

she says she's no good with words but i am worse barely stuttered out a joke of a romantic stuck to my tongue weighed down with words too overdramatic tonight it's it can't get much worse vs. no one should ever feel like

i’m two quarters and a heart down and i don’t want to forget how your voice sounds these words are all i have so i write them so you need them just to get by

dance, dance we're falling apart to half time dance, dance and these are the lives you love to lead dance, this is the way theyd love if they knew how misery loved me

you always fold just before you found out drink up its last call, last resort but only the first mistake

i'm two quarters and a heart down and i don’t want to forget how your voice sounds these words are all i have so i write them so you need them just to get by

why don't you show me a little bit of spine youve been saving for his mattress (with love)

dance, dance we're falling apart to half time dance, dance and these are the lives you love to lead dance, this is the way they know if they knew how misery loved me

why don't you show me a little bit of spine youve been saving for his mattress i only want sympathy in the form of you crawling into bed with me

dance, dance we're falling apart to half time dance, dance and these are the lives you love to lead dance, this is the way theyd love (way theyd love) dance, this is the way theyd love (way theyd love) dance, this is the way theyd love if they knew how misery loved me

dance, dance dance, dance dance, dance dance, dance

Listen you fucktards, if you dont like Fall Out Boy and think theyre shit, then why the fuck are you looking up their lyrics?! If you have nothing constructive to say, say nothing at all! Because you know what? WE DON'T CARE!

It's a bit of a stretch, but I think this song is actually a memorial to one of the most fascinating moments in human history, World War 2. It's written in the perspective of a Nazi-fanatic, and if you interpret the lyrics as coming from such you'll make a lot of connections.

Let's assume this takes place in around 1943-1944, when things started going wrong for Germany: Weighed down with words Too overdramatic Tonight it's "It can't get much worse" Vs. "No one should ever feel like"

Words means the now failing "Master plan". The Fatherland is bogged down by those whom it seeks to destroy. It's too "overdramatic", or complicated. The writer of the song realises this and doesn't think things could get much worse, but cuts himself off in the last line because it's treason to think of these things.

I'm two quarters and a heart down And I don't want to forget How your voice sounds These words are all I have So I'll write them So you need them just to get by

Simple. Everything else is starting to go wrong and this poor soldier only has the great leader's words to go by. He loves Hitler and this love propels him to go on.

Dance, dance We're falling apart to halftime Dance, dance And these are the lives you'd love to lead Dance, this is the way they'd love If they knew how misery loved me

Halftime in this context is the year. It's the midway point of the second war and things are starting to fall apart. "dance dance" is the holocaust, and they'll continue dancing [eg, killing the wicked] until they die [And these are the lives you'd love to lead, proclaiming FOB's superiourity complex when it comes to their pro-nazi beliefs]. "dance, this is the way they'd love" starts to show how delusional the song writer is, and the last line shows that he wishes the undesirable races would understand him as he gives them their [first and] final shower.

In the end, he just repeats "dance dance dance dance". This means that he wants the listener, you and I, to continue his work and lead the great empire into the future. They sing this line almost like marching. You can also interpret the name "fall out boy" to mean "from the fall out of the old nazi empire, a new one shall arise!"

Very interesting stuff

These are the lyrics for the Demo Version... The Album Version cuts out:

"We will own your thoughts We'll own the songs stuck in your head We'll leave you kicking and screaming So you can thank us in the end"

Awesome song nonetheless...

eh, i dont listen to 'good' music, i listen to music that sounds good, and this is catchy as all hell. fall out boy are pop punk.

if you only listen to 'good' music and refuse to give anything else a chance, you're an elitist.

btw, punk sucks. pop punk, electro and ska ftw

Ok, those who are really big fans of FOB, the others have a point. With a band like this, you can't expect it to be super deep. Just catchy and fun. I like this song, but I'm not a FOB fan as a whole. I like catchy things and grudgy crust punk as well. It's all good.

And for those ragging on FOB, get over it. Their drummer is a badass who wears Feral Edge shirts, so he's cool with me.

I'm pretty sure I heard it as 'Once stuttered a joke of a romantic,' rather than 'Barely stuttered.'

I always found this song heart-shattering. It just reminded me of all of the broken relationships out there that won't be fixed. It also shows a lot of ulterior motives in relationships. My opinion of course.