We took a walk that night, but it wasn't the same
We had a fight on the promenade out in the rain
She said she loved me, but she had somewhere to go
She couldn't scream while I held I close
I swore I'd never let her go

Tell me what you want to know
Oh come on, oh come on, oh come on
There ain't no motive for this crime
Jenny was a friend of mine
So come on, oh come on, oh come on

I know my rights, I've been here all day and it's time
For me to go, so let me know if it's alright
I just can't take this, I swear I told you the truth
She couldn't scream while I held her close
I swore I'd never let her go

Tell me what you want to know
Oh come on, oh come on, oh come on
And then you whisper in my ear
I know what you're doing here
So come on, oh come on, oh come on
There ain't no motive for this crime
Jenny was a friend of mine
Oh come on, oh come on, oh come on



Lyrics submitted by Linger:, edited by heycarol

Track duration: 04:04

"Jenny Was a Friend of Mine" as written by Brandon Flowers, Dave Brent Keuning, Mark August Stoermer, Ronnie Jr. Vannucci

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Lyrics powered by LyricFind


Jenny Was a Friend of Mine song meanings
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128 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:What Forrest Gump Should Do To Jenny...
    Flag leonurusg8on March 18, 2013   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:That's a double Killer song! ;)
    Flag Angels7on March 14, 2013   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I went to the Big Day Out to see The Killers and I realised (and felt like an Idiot as I was in the front row and Brandon smiled at me) that I didn't know this song... Im 13 Ive know all the songs since I was 6 and only just realised recently that I love The Killers and knew all their songs.. I.. uh.. love this song Im agreeing with all the trilogy Ideas
    Flagged FreeBradon February 01, 2013   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation:“We took a walk that night, but it wasn't the same
    We had a fight on the promenade out in the rain
    She said she loved me, but she had somewhere to go
    She couldn't scream while I held her close
    I swore I'd never let her go”

    The person was very close to Jenny, but she seemed to be “changing” somehow. They argue because of it and Jenny ends up finding a way of “saying goodbye” to her friend without telling him/her her reasons, so her friend thinks that she’s gonna kill herself, that’s why he/she says something about never letting her go. Maybe he wants Jenny to feel loved, just in case he never sees her again.

    “Tell me what you want to know
    Oh come on, oh come on, oh come on
    There ain't no motive for this crime
    Jenny was a friend of mine
    So come on, oh come on, oh come on “

    The person is talking to a cop while being interrogated because Jenny is now missing and they think that her friend is somehow related to it. The person claims to be innocent, so he/she says that there isn’t a reason for him/her to have killed Jenny, since they were friends.

    “I know my rights, I've been here all day and it's time
    For me to go, so let me know if it's alright
    I just can't take this, I swear I told you the truth
    She couldn't scream while I held her close
    I swore I'd never let her go”

    Still at the police station, the person says that he/she knows his/her rights and the cops need to let him/her go home, and hopes it’s all right. It’s been hard talking about it and the person swears to be telling the truth since he/she is innocent. “She couldn’t scream while I held her close, I swore I’d never let her go”, the person is telling his/her story to the cops again, hoping they’ll finally let him/her go.

    “And then you whisper in my ear
    I know what you're doing here
    So come on, oh come on, oh come on”

    The person might be talking about what Jenny said to him/her, since she(Jenny) knew what her friend was doing there, which was trying to convince her of going away or killing herself.

    “There ain't no motive for this crime
    Jenny was a friend of mine
    Oh come on, oh come on, oh come on”

    The person continues to claim innocence.
    Flag heycarolon November 13, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Some strange interpretations. I think its clearly about a guy who develops deeper feelings for Jenny, who sees him more as a friend, although I suspect they may have neem intimate. They go for a walk in the rain like usual, but when he professes his love for her it doesn't go as well as he had hoped, and when she tries to leave, he "held her close".......strangling her to death. Clearly the second verse is the dialogue between the cops and him during the interrogation. Pretty straight forward there.
    Flag esmjlm080507on November 07, 2012   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:It's about an obsessive bf killing his ex after knowing she's been cheating. It's a murder trilogy, already been explained before. It is literal, starts with "Leave the Bourbon on the Shelf" "Midnight Show" and then this is the last part of the story...
    Flagged uroverratedon September 01, 2012   Link
  • +5
    General Comment:When I listen to it, I hear the Cure. Brandon and RS have similar voices. They should do a duet, it'd be awesome/
    Flag walkthroughtheglasson April 19, 2012   Link
  • +4
    General Comment:He was friends with Jenny, fell in love with her, and when she wants to break up with him, he goes insane and kills her.
    Flag patricknelson4on March 30, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Ive always found this song very powerful, and interpret it as he was friends with jenny, then he fell in love with her, and he tried to suppress his feelings but he couldnt and she didnt feel the same, therefore the friendship broke down, and he doesnt understand why he fell in love and he regrets that he did. (no motives for this crime)
    Flag georgesteeron January 19, 2012   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation:You guys take this song text too literally. Its not about a love story between a man and a woman, but a love story between a man and heroin. Jenny is slang for heroin.

    "We took a walk that night, but it wasn't the same
    We had a fight on the promenade out in the rain
    She said she loved me, but she had somewhere to go
    She couldn't scream while I held I close
    I swore I'd never let her go"

    He's trying to quit his drug abuse, but somehow he's too addicted.

    "Tell me what you wanna know
    Oh come on, oh come on, oh come on
    There ain't no motive for this crime
    Jenny was a friend of mine
    So come on, oh come on, oh come on"

    "Tell me what you wanna know" is the heroin asking him what kind of hallusinations he wants to experience after injecting. Drug abuse is a crime, but without any motive. He gets locked up by the police for being a junkie.
    Flag nemis79on August 20, 2011   Link

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