Cant believe i am the first to comment on this song. It is fantastic. So damm funky. One of those songs you just cant get out of your head.

The lyrics are a little sad but i really don't understand them. I think the song talks about a relationship and how time and distance has ultimately results in the two drifting apart.

Great Song!! Would appreciate if someone else could shed some light on its meaning.....

1 Reply  · 

Love this song too. I like the disco sound they have going on. Can't say I really know what the song is about, but I like it regardless of the actual meaning.
Do agree somewhat with what "The Kernal" said about a relationship drifting apart. Great song.

one of their best songs

god i wanna fuck tomas

It's hard to find the truly meaning in this song, but I'll try;

"I remember this young guy died and I took his part
He got far too many stitches on his pretty face
Long time to see but I always thought us two would be serious
I was looking around town, thinking the same as you."

It could be abput his girlfriend, and how the relationship was in the beginning. The first line could then be about the girls old boyfriend, and how the singer took his place.

"I'm far gone but your long distance call And your capital letters keep me asking for more

It's never been like that
It's never been like that"

Like The Kernal said, this part is about time and distance who make them grow apart.

"Where to go I had no idea about it
Most of the people do, there're only doing just fine
I don't wanna stay in place no more, see Ain't doing well well well, I am only doing just fine"

He don't know what to do, but he does not want it to be like this, he wants to change his situation, because he is not doing as good as he wants to.

The song is defintely about love, and as I see it, it is about some problems he has in the relationship, and he wants to change it.

I'm listening to the song now on my phone, have five from Phoenix that have been on perpetual shuffle for a couple of days.

I don't think the song's necessarily about a current relationship going awry, maybe an old flame or a crush that never really came to fruition, "Long time no see, long time no say" sounds like a reacquainting to me.

I remember this young guy died and I took his part
He got far too many stitches on his pretty face
Long time to see but I always thought us two would be serious

I think the young guy he's referring to is himself, second line, basically he's been through alot, he's been hurt, life took away his youth and beauty. That last line just makes me think it's about feelings for someone being revisited, maybe never spoken outloud.

The song could also be about a place, with the long distance call being more like a longing to go back home. I think that because I can't figure out what else "capital letters" would refer to but a state or city.

Favorite part might be this verse:

Where to go I had no idea about it
Most of the people do, there're only doing just fine
I don't wanna stay in place no more, see Ain't doing well well well, I am only doing just fine

Not wanting to settle, it's a simple concept, but it strikes a chord with me. That's it.

"Where to go I had no idea. $26.10 was the price to pay"

That line I think, he's talking about a bus ticket. He's young and has no idea where to go though. He was unsure about whether or not to leave

"those 26.10, I shouldn't give them away."

He's leaving away from the girl that hurt him. The part about taking the dead guy's part I think that maybe he went out with a girl who's b.f. died.

He's far gone because of the bus ride he took away from wherever the girl lived (where he was originally from). The part about the long distance call was her calling him and the capital letters could also be her name on the caller i.d. (who knows? that's my best guess though) I just picture him seeing her name on the caller i.d. and him wanted to answer the long distance call but doesn't answer, hence the second verse "long time no see, long time no say."

Long story short. I think the relationship didn't work because of the first guy. He couldn't take it anymore (her talking and mourning her loss) so he split and never looked back although part of him wanted to.

General Comment

What if the young guy that died is trying to tell us the relationship is from when he was younger. IE High
school or college? Had to leave for a job or whatever which creates the distance you guys have broken down
pretty well. The "death" could be his shifting priorities and general maturing. He seems to acknowledge that
maybe the relationship wasn't strong enough for him to stay, but he still misses the person.

I think you guys nailed most everything else. Capital Letters could just be a way to use the word letters so we would all get it what he's talking about while maintaining the flow of the lyrics. Also maybe the XOXOXO you see at the end of letters from loved ones?

General Comment

Or he left this girl for what he thought was a better life, but now he's not so sure.

General Comment

I feel this song has many similarities to "Too Young". It's about not wanting to waste your youth by being tethered to a person, place, or lifestyle. The message is quite obvious, but the way Thomas goes about saying it is scrambled... like a lot of Phoenix songs. Yet this really adds to the sound of a troubled, uncertain youth.

The "26.10" is possibly a bus/train ticket, used to escape this old life. Or perhaps it refers to time, or time and energy (26 years and 10 months of age? The guys in Phoenix were around that age at the time)... somehow in reference to the character wasting their life away when they yearn for something more. It could mean both of these things.

It is pretty obvious that the "young guy" who died was the character himself. He feels aged, used, mistreated. He feels like he lost a part of himself, as well as all this time he'll never get back. The line about being serious shows that the singer falsely believed that he had a future in his old life. "Looking around town, thinking the same as you" is kind of hard to put in complete context, but this could reference either a lover or a friend who feels the same - lost but hoping that the pieces of their life will just come together.

The final verse is the most clear - the character has to leave his life behind, realizing that many people simply sit around and accept their life. The character has become disillusioned, so he leaves, and aimlessly looks for something more. The chorus is his regret for leaving the old life, and the attractions it holds - a "long distance call" shows that he is still connected. Yet he defiantly rattles that "it's never been like that" - or that he can't just accept his old life as satisfactory when he wants so much more.

...and that was a long way of saying that all, lol... really, the lyrics are not as important as the feeling of the song. You can really picture this guy stomping around aimlessly on a dark, rainy night, searching for something more. And from the bottom up, he screams that his existence can't be all that life has to offer.

General Comment

Wow, this song definitely hits home. I've been in a long distance relationship for almost a year, and this song is so easy to understand for me.

The singer definitely knows the feelings, the hardship, and the over powering love when reunited.

I'll put in () next to each line what I interpret this song as.



Where to go I had no idea (Where do I go next? I have no idea what to do)
26.10 was the price to pay (this number, 26.10 could mean several things, that is open to interp.)
A messed up kid with no ideals at all (I am a messed up kid, and I have nothing left-no ideals, anything)
I thought those 26.10 I shouldn't give'em away (the 26.10 is something important, and to keep himself safe, his own heart-he shouldnt give the 26.10 away)

I remember this young guy died and I took his part (he replaced the girls boyfriend)
He got far too many stitches on his pretty face (the guy dumped was hurt badly by this break up)
Long time to see but I always thought us two would be serious (from the moment they were together, they knew that they'd be serious- even though it was going to be a long time before they would see each other again)
I was looking around town, thinking the same as you.(the guy and girl both knew that they wanted to be together, even though they knew it was about to be a hard and a big journey)

I'm far gone but your long distance call And your capital letters keep me asking for more (distance wise, and possibly emotionally connected wise, the two lovers were far gone from each other, however when the doubting would start, each others long distance phone calls, and love letters always reminded the two why they were so serious, and why it was worth all of this pain)

It's never been like that (this relationship is definitely meant to be, because the feelings that these
It's never been like that two have, is stronger,and more real than anything they have ever experienced)

I'm far gone but your long distance call And your capital letters keep me asking for more

Where to go I had no idea about it (when it gets hard, the singer has no idea where to go and how to fix it)
Most of the people do, they're only doing just fine (most people who are in relationships that are not long distance, get used to having each other, and forget sometimes how special the other person is, so the absolute love gets lost because they haven't endured hardships, like the long distance couple have faced, and grown together with. So even though the couples that are together, know how to comfort each other better, than the long distance couple can, the relationships are only fine...not great)
I don't wanna stay in place no more, see Ain't doing well well well, I am only doing just fine ( the singer either doesn't want to stay in the town thats far away, or he just doesn't want to stay in this extremely hard place in his relationship- he's tired if being with the other people who are just doing just fine- when he knows that once he is with his love, he will be doing great)

long time no see, long time no say (it's been a long time since the two have seen each other and have really talked)
Got little to tell, I don't say much but I might (the two, when together, do not have to necessarily speak, the power of silence and touch brings them close too...but when the distance comes, the silence and touch is lacking, so the two may only do small talk, because there just really isn't much to say, even though they want to talk to each other. This isn't really a bad thing, it just causes some problems when they are apart.)
Something always told me us two would be serious (the two are becoming way serious)
I am looking around town, thinking the same as you (they both know that this is hard, but it has to work)

(the rest is a repeat from the top)

I'm far gone but your long distance call And your capital letters keep me asking for more

It's never been like that
It's never been like that

I'm far gone but your long distance call And your capital letters keep me asking for more

Long time no see... Long time no say...


(My long distance relationship was just like this, still is like this. My love and I are now engaged though, but this relationship has been through a lot- but now we are stronger than anything else.)

such a good song.

Song Meaning

heres my attempt

Where to go I had no idea
26.10 was the price to pay(for a bus ticket/or train)
A messed up kid with no ideals at all(he lost his ideals)
I thought those 26.10 I shouldn't give'em away(he needs to get where hes going)

I remember this young guy died and I took his part(long time ago he was called to fight in the army)
He got far too many stitches on his pretty face(perhaps from an explosion)
Long time to see but I always thought us two would be serious(he didn't think that time would change them)
I was looking around town, thinking the same as you.(they were making one final viewing of the city together before he left)

I'm far gone but your long distance call And your capital letters keep me asking for more(the calls and letters that soldiers sometimes get)

It's never been like that
It's never been like that

I'm far gone but your long distance call And your capital letters keep me asking for more

Where to go I had no idea about it(he was lost in the battlefield or station)
Most of the people do, there're only doing just fine (the vets know what to do and have already become hardened(as shown by the "only doing just fine"))
I don't wanna stay in place no more, see Ain't doing well well well, I am only doing just fine(hes tired of standing guard or at ease as soldiers often do and has now become slightly hardened)

long time no see, long time no say
Got little to tell, I don't say much but I might
Something always told me us two would be serious
I am looking around town, thinking the same as you
(his thoughts as to what should happen when he gets back)

I'm far gone but your long distance call And your capital letters keep me asking for more

It's never been like that
It's never been like that

I'm far gone but your long distance call And your capital letters keep me asking for more

Long time no see... Long time no say... (when they actually meet up leaving us to guess what happens.)

My Interpretation

As I am taking Spanish courses right now, I thought that the singer was speaking Spanish at the end of the song when he yells, "Long time, no see/Long time, no say!" since both Spanish and French are romance languages (Phoenix is a French band) and they border each other. The pronunciation is the same in both English and Spanish (sé is pronounced 'say'), but it alters the meaning. In Spanish, "no sé" means "I don't know", so I thought that lyric was basically saying, "I haven't seen in a while, and I don't know why," in a 'we used to be good friends' fashion. Rather than what he does say, which sounds more like surprise: "You don't say. It's been a long time."
The other part of the song I interpreted in my own way was "I'm far gone but your long distance call/And your capital letters keep me asking for more." I read this as a double entendre; 'capital letters' being A) what begins a sentence (i.e. the singer is intrigued every time a new sentence begins, and it really means a lot to him when he gets new letters) and B) 'capital' being the British sense of the word, 'capital' being as good as it gets, and again being extremely important to the singer and exciting to receive.
Next, I thought that the lyric "$26.10 was the price to pay/A messed up kid with no ideals at all/I thought, those $26.10/I shouldn't give 'em away," had a different meaning than what everyone seemed to be agreeing upon. I thought that $26.10 was a small price for the singer to pay, but being a kid with no ideas, he passed up the opportunity that a measly $26.10 could've brought. I interpreted it as the singer choosing the possession of money over the opportunities it can present.
Moving back a bit, I saw "It's never been like that" as the singer taking back the previous lines of the chorus and instead saying that receiving his special person's letters and calls was simply an idealistic look at what he hoped would eventually occur with him and his situation. It seemed to me that the first lines of the chorus were the Hollywood version of how a long distance relationship should be, and the singer lies to himself, but only briefly, and then confides in the listen that it's never actually been like the idealism he has.
Finally, the line "I was looking around, thinking the same as you," is the classic cinematic moment where the separated lovers are apart at different sides of a city, looking down into the town. I think the singer is imagining his lover across the city from him, and though they might be apart, they're thinking the same thing. Whether it's "I love you", "I hate you", or "I miss you," I don't know, but that's how I saw it.
Alright, thanks for reading. I love this song so much, that's why I delved into it as far as I did.

My Interpretation

I think its about a guy wanting a girl but she is with someone else and the persons he love died or something happens to him and she decided to go with the other guy now-

- he knew they would be together so he waits for her

-he is far away from her but calls and texts keep them together

the rest i have noooooo idea and it killsss meee!!!!!!!wish i could hear it from their mouths

Log in to reply

Song Meaning