I just love this song ... My FAVOURITE!!! i just love how its mellow but soooo emotive!!!
i 2 think the fragmented lines are 'insights' into his mind... i don't think the song actually has anything to do with Japan even though the video is set there (BTW the video is awesome!)
it might be the trials and tribulations of love but in the end love prevails (everyone loves a cliche!) i really like the lines :
She said
I don't mind
if you don't mind
coz I don't shine
if you don't shine
put your back on me
put your back on me
put your back on me

It just sounds like mutual love- that to see you partner happy just makes you happy and that you'll do anything to take away their pain (lean on me/ put your back on me)
aghhhhh! so emotional ... love it ;)

I just love this song ... My FAVOURITE!!! i just love how its mellow but soooo emotive!!!
i 2 think the fragmented lines are 'insights' into his mind... i don't think the song actually has anything to do with Japan even though the video is set there (BTW the video is awesome!)
it might be the trials and tribulations of love but in the end love prevails (everyone loves a cliche!) i really like the lines :
She said
I don't mind
if you don't mind
coz I don't shine
if you don't shine
put your back on me
put your back on me
put your back on me

It just sounds like mutual love- that to see you partner happy just makes you happy and that you'll do anything to take away their pain (lean on me/ put your back on me)
aghhhhh! so emotional ... love it ;)

magic soakin' my spine?
c'mon, that's acid he's talking about!

"with magic soakin' my spine"
this song is about doing acid

.....or not?
Sorry but I really don't see how this song is at all about 'doing acid'. Me thinks it's more that he's realised that he needs to be strong and follow his heart and leave the town with his girlfriend to explore new places rather than stay stuck in his hometown forever. He is impassioned with this realisation (magic soaking my spine), and desperate to get to her before she leaves because she is planning to go without him thinking he doesn't want to come with her and has lost faith in their dreams. He's tried ringing her (you never returned that call- yes it's 'you' not 'he') but she didn't answer, but he's not going to give up on their relationship.

Here is my updated interpretation:

I'm on the corner of main street,
Just tryin' to keep it in line,
You say you wanna move on and
You say I'm falling behind,

(The guy's (let's call him Brandon) girlfriend has ended their relationship because she wants to move on and see what's beyond the 'city wall' but Brandon doesn't seem ready to take the risk of leaving the security of his hometown. Whilst she is preparing to leave, he's just loitering around reminiscing on their past together and trying to stay calm emotionally)

Can you read my mind?
Can you read my mind?

(Brandon doesn't want to say anything to hold her back, but he's hoping that they are close enough for her to be able to read his mind and realise that he does love her, he does want to come with her and follow their dreams but he's scared.)

I never really gave up on,
Breakin' out of this two-star town,
I got the green light,
I got a little fight
I'm gonna turn this thing around,

(Brandon still shares her dreams of leaving the town where everything stays the same and he's stuck in a rut. When he realises that she is serious about finally going, he decides to turn things around and follow his heart. The 'green light' symbolises the support that his family have given him- like a traffic light saying Go!, although after 'a little fight' in which he had to persuade them to give him their blessing.)

Can you read my mind?
Can you read my mind?

(Brandon wants to go with her but he's struggling with that point where you have to take the risk and go for it, even though his heart is telling him to follow her and leave)

The good old days
The honest man
The restless heart
The promised land
A subtle kiss
That no one sees
A broken wrist
And a big trapeze

(A series of clichés to summarise his past life growing up in his hometown. Also because they are clichés it symbolises how he has heard so many things before, the repetition and monotony of his smalltown life. He sees over the wall as being the promised land, and he is becoming restless after living so long in the same place. He values his upbringing and his homelife and everything that he has been taught but he knows it's time to move on. The subtle kiss represents his innocent childhood with his sweetheart and the deep love they share as it's private between themselves. The broken wrist and the trapeze symbolise the risks that he must take to realise his own American dream.)

Oh well I don't mind if you don't mind,
Cos I don't shine if you don't shine,
Before you go...
Can you read my mind?

(Brandon doesn't 'shine' if the one he loves doesn't, so he's supporting her final decision to leave as he wants her to be successful and happy with no regrets about following her dreams. He probably knows that she is torn apart inside about having to end their relationship, but he doesn't want to make her doubt herself. He wants her to know that he still loves her, and that he's sorry that he isn't as strong as her.)

It's funny how you just break down,
Waitin' on some sign
I pull up to the front of your driveway,
With magic soakin' my spine

(Brandon comes to the realisation that his life means nothing without his girlfriend. It's sort of saying how so many people wait for a sign rather than follow their heart and their instinct, but eventually you just KNOW what you need to do. Brandon is feeling the aftermath of their break-up and knows that he cannot live with this feeling of loss forever. Impassioned with this realisation (the 'magic' being his passion taking over), he gets in the car and races to her house (kind of like the last episode of Friends with Rachel and Ross at the airport...or whatever it was!) to win her back. Aww how romantic!)

Can you read my mind?
Can you read my mind?

(Brandon saying- I'm not going to lose you girl! I just kind of imagine her eventually answering the door after he is giving up hope and they just stare at eachother, and she reads his mind by looking into his eyes, and she knows that their love is too strong for anything to come between them- ok I'll stop getting carried away now......ok I lie cos I so won't!)

The teenage queen
The loaded gun
The drop dead dream
The chosen one
A southern drawl
A world unseen
A city wall
And a trampoline

(Perhaps as they are getting older they are getting bored with the insular life and need to break free else they will probably end up getting into trouble and losing sight of their dreams. The 'loaded gun' could represent this, but also how it is time for their dreams to be realised- the final shooting of the gun. The 'world unseen', 'city wall' and 'trampoline' represent the obstacles and risks like before- Brandon needs to jump over the wall to freedom, but it takes courage.)

Oh well I don't mind if you don't mind,
Cos I don't shine if you don't shine
Before you jump...
Tell me what you find,
When you read my mind

(Brandon is meaning- before you go, can you see how much it's hurting me to see you leaving, when I'm still apprehensive but desperate to come with you at the same time?)

Slippin in my faith until I fall,
You never returned that call
Woman, open the door, don't let it sting,
I wanna breathe that fire again

(Brandon is losing hope of rekindling their relationship and it's hurting him as he has tried ringing his girlfriend to tell her that he's changed his mind, but she isn't answering, perhaps in an effort to block him out and move on as it is painful for her too. Brandon is desperate to reach her and get another chance to reignite their love as he knows that they both need eachother.)

She said...
I don't mind if you don't mind
Cos I don't shine if you don't shine

(His girlfriend doesn't want to lose him either but she has to get out of the small town. She's saying to him that of course he can come with her and share the dream as long as he is really happy to. She wants to help the one she loves chase his dream but she didn't want to push him into leaving when he wasn't ready to. She doesn't mind him coming with her because although she is trying to move on from her past, he is such an important part of it that having him by her side would never be a hindrance to her. She's happiest when he's with her and she needs to see him living his dream too in order to truly fulfil hers.)

Put your back on me,
Put your back on me,
Put your back on me,

(She is telling Brandon that she will always be there to support him as she knows that leaving is a huge step for him, especially as he intially put his hometown before their relationship because he was so apprehensive. She wants him to be able to trust her and stick at their dream everything will be alright as long as they have eachother. OMG I actually want to cry it's so beautiful!!!)

(ooooooo)

The stars are blazing like rebel diamonds,
Cut out of the sun...

(The stars symbolise their hope for a future together outside their smalltown. The rebel diamonds? Well they are rebels in a way, as have broken away from their hometown and their traditional family lives. They have taken the risk of leaving security, but there is a confidence that everything will be fine. The stars have been 'cut out' of the sun, implying that the stars and the sun are intricately connected- the stars were originally part of the sun. This symbolises how the two lovers will always have their hometown to come back to, and how they will never forget where they have come from)

Can you read my mind?

(Brandon is thrilled to have his girlfriend back in his life, living their dream together like they always said they would.)

So that's my thoughts on IMO one of their best songs.
Sorry it was SO long!!

this is by far one of my most favorite killers songs!!!!!

First off, while many of the Killer's songs have Springsteen's influence, I think this has to be the most obvious of them? I'm not even a huge springsteen fan (don't get me wrong, I respect his music a lot) but the lyrics and music are so familiar...

As to meaning, I think poorlilrockstar hits it on the head...

He's singing about his relationship with a girl who is dreaming of leaving the small town in which they've grown up.

with:
you say you wanna move on and
you say I'm falling behind

he's saying that she thinks he's not doing anything about leaving and that he's not making any effort to go. She meanwhile is ready and still wants to get out. The Read my Mind from the title and most of the song, is him explaining how he really does still want to leave so telling her to hang on and stay with him.

In:
I never really gave up on
breakin' out of this two-star town
I got the green light
I got a little fight
I'm gonna turn this thing around

he's saying he still wants to leave, her wanting to leave him is perhaps the green light (egging him on to go) and turn this thing around is that he is going to rescue the relationship by finally doing it.

The most difficult part of the song to place is:
The good old days
the honest man
the restless heart
the promised land
a subtle kiss
that no one sees
a broken wrist
and a big trapeze

but I think, like many people here, that he is simply reminiscing of older times, life in the town and their relationship. Part of this I think is simply song-writing license (i.e. it sounds good ;-).

I think he then alludes to how he doesn't care about anything that she doesn't:
Oh well I don't mind
if you don't mind
coz I don't shine
if you don't shine
before you go

but that she is so important to him.

My favourite part is also I think, the most telling:
it's funny how you just break down
waitin' on some sign
I pull up to the front of your driveway
with magic soakin' my spine

I think he's saying how you grow up with dreams of bigger things and moving away etc, but as the monotony of each day goes on you get tied up in going one day to the next. It simply seems easier to stay put and not make the leap. The last two lines in that verse are in my mind a flash-forward to leaving and he's saying how the magic and dreams are coming back as he's actually taking the step with her to leave.

The next verse is, similar to the one above in my opinion, with a collection of memories. However, the city wall and trampoline are in my opinion: the metaphorical barrier to him leaving the town and the solution to the problem (her finally having had enough). i.e. finally being pushed into doing something about how he feels and what he wants.

I'm not too sure about the first two lines in:
Slippin in my faith
until I fall
you never returned that call
woman, open the door
don't let it sting
I wanna breathe that fire again

but the last few lines are him saying "look, I'm ready to go, give me another chance I want to feel the excitement we had when we first dreamed of getting out again."

The reversal of the I don't mind if you don't mind is I think her saying ok and lets do it (i.e. patching things up and ready to leave together).

The last verse is a complete mystery (perhaps the appearance of the sky as they drive away (new stars, the rebeliion they created by leaving...

Well, there is my 2cents worth...

The stars are blazing like rebel diamonds cut out of the sun
when you read my mind
"Speaking only for myself, I have to imagine that nothing could be more amazing than seeing stars that blaze like rebel diamonds cut directly from the sun. Yep, that would be one fine sight. But this will only be possible WHEN she reads his mind."
seems like they're both know that hes been trying hard or gave a lot of sign and somehow she kind of ignore all of it

it's about escaping! duh...

I used to not like The Killers much, but this song made me an instant fan! Such awesome lyrics, and such a catchy tune!!! I love it.

my favorite killers song, and that's sayin A LOT!!!
this song gets me higher that speed!!!!! higher that heavens!!! higher that tree tops! highest highest highest!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i can sing my guts out with this song, the meaning, who cares, its amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i feel like .... whoa!!!

well i've analyzed the song. im pretty sure its about a person who wants to fullfill his dreams, who wants to have a better life! the journey! i think it might be about 2 ppl, like the first one trying to convince the other to come with him.
"can you read my mind?" --> like u know wut im thinkin?? i wanna get out! like do you agree with me?

"i dont shine if u dont shine"" that's like, i need you with me, come.

"The good old days
the honest man
the restless heart
the promised land
a subtle kiss
that no one sees
a broken wrist
and a big trapeze"
a listing of the things he was through, like the effort, the romance....etc, its the same with the other listing....

i love this song cuz its about all of us, we all want to get over ourselves, to fullfill expectations, reach goals!! this song is simply brilliant!

dont u love the intro and the end? the music is beautifully performed!!

i love the part :
"The stars are blazing
like rebel diamonds
cut out of the sun
can you read my mind? "

the killers are genius!

Songs about loving home but hating it at the same time. I think its about the lead singer returning to vegas after moving away for a while.

For some reason something about the melody and/or lyrics of this song remind of a Tom Petty song...not sure which one, but does anyone else feel this? Am I just crazy? :)

cause i don't shine, if you don't shine {:

Everyone seems to have the EXACT same 2 repsones to this song, which is somewhat sad - it's either about a break-up or a suicide...boring. I have a new take...the song is about someone who has "made it" and is about to leave the small-town life for the the big-time, but has a significant other that will be left behind. This is more appropriate when you consider the source and if you evaluate ALL the lyrics, not just the ones that you can surmise a meaning from...think about it. The Killers are utterly brilliant and Brandon is soulfully graceful...Drink it up!

Jessden, I think you have it all dead on except the last part. The way he sings it (which you have to consider) sounds like desparation. And I don't think its positive. She wants to move on....she will.... He is saying put your back on me...put your back on me... That is the key part. If she is saying it, sure, i agree, its positive. But if he is saying it, which I think he is, he's begging her to let HIM lead her out of this town. Which she has already given up on...

I just do NOT think this one is positive... Nice spin though.

Wow, I heard some of the lyrics so differently:

"and a big trapeze" = "and a picture piece"

"Slippin' in my faith until I fall" = "slippin' in my bed until I'm mauled"

"He never returned that call" = "YOU never returned that call"

Hm, oh well...

This song still has beautiful lyrics. I think they're about how the girl wants him to move on, get on the fast track, and in a way he does too, but he can't help reminiscing about "the good old days." I love all the images listed in a row - "a southern drawl
a world unseen
a city wall
and a trampoline" - it's like his life is flashing before his eyes. They're like a flashback, a dream.

the songs about a ending relationship and although the boy does not want the relationship to end hes been having the same thoughts (can you read my mind) hes trying to turn his life around for the girl but in the end just for himself

I feel like, yes, there's a girl that he's with that wants to skip the small town that they're in and see something new. She thinks he's holding her back.

He wants her and thinks that he too has been thinking of leaving too, but is kinda hesitant to risk telling her and being shot down (so he wants her to read his mind). He has dreams of a new life (promised land?) and giving it a shot (green light, a little fight) but knows it's a risk (broken wrist).

He pulls up to her house and feel excited/scared and is going to tell her. He wants to feel her fire/passion before she leaves. They can leave the city (jump the city wall w/ a trampoline). He tells her and she doesn't mind if he doesn't mind. She tells him they shine when they're together and to she has his back (put your back on me?)

At the end he's happy and stars are blazing because they're going off together.

.....MAYBE

I saw the Killers in AC last summer..and Brandon had such emotion on this song...when he sang the chorus....he stood up on this rolled up screen that was on the front of the stage with his fist pounding his chest on "well i dont mind if you dont mind cause i dont shine if you dont shine"it was an amazing performance

I'm really shocked that only one person has seen the parallels between this song and F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel, "The Great Gatsby".

"I'm on the corner of main street
just tryin' to keep it in line
you say you wanna move on and
you say I'm falling behind"
^Gatsby and Daisy were once in love, but she left him to get what she thought was a better life. She was moving on, he was falling behind

"I never really gave up on
breakin' out of this two-star town
I got the green light
I got a little fight
I'm gonna turn this thing around"
^Gatsby never gave up on his pursuit of Daisy, and completely changed himself("turn this thing around") in order to get her to love him again. The green light is also pertaining to the green light on the dock connected to Daisy's house. Every night Gatsby would stare out at the green light, longing for Daisy.

"The good old days
the honest man
the restless heart
the promised land
a subtle kiss
that no one sees
a broken wrist
and a big trapeze"
^Gatsby is living in the past throughout the whole novel, and longing for the relationship that he and Daisy had. The broken wrist and the big trapeze is a metaphor for someone like Gatsby, who was once nothing, seeing how both sides live (swinging from side to side).

"Oh well I don't mind
if you don't mind
coz I don't shine
if you don't shine
before you go
can you read my mind?"
^Gatsby would do anything for Daisy, and only wants to make her happy.

"it's funny how you just break down
waitin' on some sign
I pull up to the front of your driveway
with magic soakin' my spine"
^In the end of the novel, Gatsby dies still in love with and longing for Daisy, and never knows how she actually, truly feels about him.

"The teenage queen
the loaded gun
the drop dead dream
the chosen one
a southern drawl
a world unseen
a city wall
and a trampoline"
^Daisy is the teenage queen, the loaded gun is clearly the ending of the book, the drop dead dream is Gatsby literally dying and being under the impression that Daisy does not love him, the chosen one is Tom, A southern drawl relates to Gatsby and Daisy meeting in Louisiana, a world unseen is Gatsby getting a taste of how the elite live, and the city wall and trampoline is Gatsby "jumping into" high society.

"Slippin in my faith
until I fall
You never returned that call
woman, open the door
don't let it sting
I wanna breathe that fire again"
^Gatsby kept trying and trying to win Daisy back, and the "fall" is his death. From "you never" to "fire again" is Gatsby being eventually rejected by Daisy, and Gatsby's longing to live in the past and have what he once had with Daisy.

"She said
I don't mind
if you don't mind
coz I don't shine
if you don't shine
put your back on me
put your back on me
put your back on me"
^Originally Daisy loved Gatsby, and tried to love him again.

And I'm not entirely sure how the last verse would parallel "The Great Gatsby", but other than that, it's pretty much the same story line.

Look, the Gatsby idea is pure genius, but I think the song also could have a different meaning... I think its about a first love in a tiny town in his youth... he always wanted to leave "I never really gave up on breakin' out of this two-star town I got the green light" means he did. However the rest of the song deals with a relationship. He is probably a traditional kind of guy "the good old days, the honest man", and is "the restless heart" looking for "the promised land". She is "the teenage queen" (highschool sweetheart probably) and she's his "drop dead dream" and he thought she was "the chosen one" who he would be with forever. but something isn't working, she's actually a loaded gun, and you can't use a big trapeze with a broken wrist - symbolic of how their love has faults - and a trampoline won't get him over a city wall - maybe symbolic of a divide between them (he's moved away?) or merely that their love isn't big enough to last.

He isn't sure of what he's going to say ("magic soaking his spine" is maybe nerves and sweat) and he wishes she could "read my mind" instead of him having to say anything

Well I am going to see the Killers for the first time tomorrow night. But I have known this song for a while - and for me - it is clear.

This is a guy moving away from a place he has been for a long long time. And it is difficult. But he is resolute, and he does it.

I did it when I left Scotland in 1991. And here i am in Philly in 2008. U know you cant do it yourself, you need help, but you also know that you have to ask for it.

And when you let someone know that "I dont mind if you dont mind, I dont shine if you dont shine". then they will hold your hand and help you.

Awesome song - I cant wait for Friday at the Borgata.

Oh well I don't mind
if you don't mind
coz I don't shine
if you don't shine

one of my favourite lyrics of all time def.

My favorite song by the Killers! :) Absolutely love it. Reminds me of my childhood for some reason.