Lyrics for The Kids Don't Stand a Chance as interpreted by prayingmantis84

The Kids Don't Stand a Chance Lyrics
A devastating backstroke
All the way from France
With shiny, shiny cuff links
A shirtsleeve to enhance

The pin-striped men in mourning
Are coming for to dance
With pure Egyptian cotton
The kids don't stand a chance

You criticize the practice
By murdering their plants
Ignoring all the history
Denying them romance

The pin-striped men in mourning
Are coming for to dance
Forty million dollars
The kids don't stand a chance

I didn't like the business
But that was at first glance
Your pillow feels so soft now
But still you must advance

The pin-striped men in mourning
The partners in the dance
The paper's shot to pieces
The kids don't stand a chance

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fakeaheartattack
02-17-2008

Rated 0 
i have no idea what is it all about, but it sounds really great! especially in a takeawayshow

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2 Replies
insideininsideout
02-24-2008

Rated 0 
this songs great
as well all of theirs
a devastating backstroke
lol

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Fierce_Bear
03-06-2008

Rated 0 
I think it's the Devil Swam a Backstroke

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Windy4england
03-18-2008

Rated 0 
To me, I don't know about you but this song is about either the drug trade or globalisation as the 'devil' (I agree with Fierce Bear its Devil swam a backstroke) who wears 'shiny cuff links' i.e. an affluent business man arrives and the 'Kids stand a chance': He makes his business deal and the local people and children can go rot in hell.

The fact that they're 'pin striped men of mourning' supports this idea that they are bringing with them death and destruction.

The third verse I believe is aimed at someone who believes that best answer to destroying the drug trade is by 'murdering the plants' and in doing so leaves the local economy ruined. Isn't this destruction of opium plantations going on in Afganistan at the moment?

The fourth and 5th verse kind of somes up how everyone's caught up in the drug trade and can't escape: Even though the rich business man who vaguely knows what he is doing is wrong ('I didn't like the business') is settled and his piilow is 'soft' He must still advance or carry on what he is doing because of outside pressures from gangs etc. As the pin stripe menin mourning (merely 'partners' in the greater dance) arrive possibly to collect the crop they discover that 'the paper's been shopt to pieces' Its been destroyed and the only people who truly suffer are the local people or 'the children'.

Overall I'd say this song was about the battle between rich businessmen and distant people's good intentions and the only people who lose out are the actual producers stuck in the middle.
I love this song one of my favourite Vampire Weekend Songs- i love the way its written from the eyes of someone who makes no oppinion on what's going on, possibly one of the uncomprehending workers? The song is so clever as it puts quite a melancholy meanings against a quite cheerful lyrics against an even more cheerful song!

I hope someone agrees with me :)

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twocent
03-22-2008

Rated 0 
according to the album lyrics it IS devastating backstroke
And it's MORNING not MOURNING (although maybe meant as a double entendre?)

It just occurred to me that possibly the pin striped men of morning dancing with the pure egyptian cotton is a poetic image of morning sunlight on bedsheets and that this is most likely a morning after song.

An amazing night somewhere dressed to the nines and then later some devastating maneuvers, and in the heat and magic of the moment it is nothing but momentous, but come the morning, it is apparent that nothing else will/could come of this triste, hence the kids don't stand a chance.

dont know about the business or the practice or the 40 million maybe it's the plot to another independent film.

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ap0theosize
03-24-2008

Rated 0 
imperialism.
"from france"
"ignoring all the history"
"pure egyptian cotton"
"still you must advance"

ap european history, thank you

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ap0theosize
03-24-2008

Rated 0 
imperialism.
"from france"
"ignoring all the history"
"pure egyptian cotton"
"still you must advance"

ap european history, thank you

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x...
04-20-2008

Rated -1 
twocent i never thought
abot that but if your right pinstriped men could
meen PJ's

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sled23
04-24-2008

Rated +2 
This song is an excellent criticism of life at Columbia and the struggle in choosing a career. There is enormous pressure to take jobs in finance, symbolized by the men of morning with expensive shirts and cufflinks. They dangle millions in front of college students, who don't stand a chance but to take it. At first, there is some hesitation, but the "pillow" begins to feel softer and one begins to advance.

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fits of print
06-04-2008

Rated 0 
definitely agree with the person above, seems to be about idealistic/rebellious college students being lured to big business. I'd say it satirizes naiveté more than it criticizes capitalism--but then, the whole thing may be toungue-in-cheek.

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japobere
07-11-2008

Rated 0 
Yeah it definitely is morning and devastating according to the album and their website. As for the meaning, it seems all over the place to me. I think the person who mentioned the drug trade might be on to something. They mentioned the opium fields and that fits perfectly with the line, "ignoring all the history," since opium has been around for a really long time. I think the song is about how kids don't feel like they have any choice (don't stand a chance) but to go into drugs especially with the incentives of money (40 million, pure Egyptian cotton). That being said, I have no idea what the backstroke and France references have to do with anything.

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bayberryjenn
07-15-2008

Rated 0 
I actually think that it may be about cotton and the child labor used in Egypt and Uzbekistan to produce it. In Uzbekistan, they shut down schools and make the kids sleep in the fields during cotton picking season. Families in Egypt with cotton farms just can't afford to have their children not work. That would explain the references to pillows and Egyptian cotton, and perhaps the shirtsleeve.

I think the lines about history and romance do refer to the drug trade, because as far as I know, no one is murdering cotton in protest of child labor.

So, I think it is a statement on how western consumerism and the new appetite for luxury items is no better for third world citizens, especially children, than the drug trade.

I have no idea what to think of the France except that it is typically the start of most fashion. But I think "shiny, shiny cufflinks" is more important than that.

I'm also pretty clueless on "pin stripe men in morning," unless it's another fashion reference. "paper's shot to pieces" is another one lost on me.

Finally, I have to point out the shift in viewpoints. The first verse completely lacks a subject, so we assume the subject would be from the chorus--"Pin-Striped Men iof Morning." The next verse imoves to second person,"You," and the third verse is first person--"I didn't like the business." Not sure if it's on purpose, but it brings home the point about how we're ultimately responsible for a lot of what happens.

Great site---was clueless on the songs on this album, which I just found last week and fell immediately in love with.

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kevin arnold
09-17-2008

Rated 0 
before i read these lyrics, i believed it was about the current "war on terror" as well as the damage we're doing to our planet. the song title "the kids don't stand a chance" conveyed to me that it was telling the tale of the young men and women in the war who will die young and how the future generations will never know how beautiful this place is because our previous and current generations are destroying it.

"You criticize the practice
By murdering their plants"
i'll go ahead and take this literally...we're killing the planet and using it up, showing no concern for our kids and theirs.

"Ignoring all the history
Denying them romance"
will war ever make this place we live in more harmonious? let's go ahead and send or children to this ridiculous war to have them die and never let them experience falling in love, having kids and growing old.

i think the pin-striped men are all of those in power who work w/ each other to safe-guard their wealth even if it means exploiting the poor to have their will stand. they also come to those young, idealistic men and women who they know will have a role to play in the future as politicians to mold them and seduce them w/ wealth and power.

ok, gotta go back to work.

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muffy327
11-28-2008

Rated 0 
My interpretation seems to synthesize a lot of the above ideas, but with one new aspect:
The lines "forty million dollars, the kids don't stand a chance" made me think that maybe the song is talking about the children of the affluent. They have to inherit the capitalist/mercantilist pretty much greedy legacy of their parents (even though they don't agree with it, it provides their lifestyle), deal with the bullshit Columbia career challenge, face sexuality, face globalization... so pretty much for me, it is sort of a coming of age story, for the very elite rich. And then the realization that the kids of those people don't even have any chance of successfully dealing with the issues of the world, despite of that cash money in their pockets.

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ihateyoukenny
12-02-2008

Rated 0 
"Sled23" got it.

The song is about how recruiters come to colleges and try to persuade kids to select a certain career. "Forty million dollars," "pure egyptian cotton," and "shiny, shiny cufflinks" are the enticements the recruiters use, showcasing their wealth. Hence, "The kids don't stand a chance" - they're mesmerized by the wealth and opulence of the lifestyle, and are drawn to it.




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Konilon
12-06-2008

Rated 0 
I think 3rd line is about anti-homosexualality. Juugeing them for what they do(you criticize the practice)trying to stop people from being gay and also killing homosexuals (murdering their plants)Saying their evil when they don't even look at past people who did alot of good things even help build america(ignoring all the history)Gay marriage being illegal (denying them romance)I;m pretty sure the whole song isn't about that but that part of the song sounds like that.


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dyc6ko
12-10-2008

Rated 0 
sick song and awesome in concert GO SEE THEM

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anthropomorphised
12-11-2008

Rated 0 
Very, very clever song really.

I feel the second and third verse are clearly illustrating the subject matter here. The "Globalization", "new-age colonialism" and "consumerism" angles seem to be on the right track, and bayberryjenn seems to perhaps have found a specific case that they may be referring to. The third verse in my mind seems the most telling/straight-forward however. It appears to be directly commenting on the agricultural business practices of first world countries (such as the U.S.) and huge, multi-national companies like 'Monsanto' in particular, or perhaps just referring to the 'green revolution' of the 50's and its general effects worldwide.

My memory is slightly fuzzy on this, but the line "killing all their plants" and general references to "cotton" seems to be directly referencing the use and marketing of genetically modified (GMO) strains of cotton plants to developing countries (Bt cotton in particular). Companies like Monsanto have been attempting to introduce and sell their own strains of genetically modified plants to third world countries for years, and have at times resorted to quite ruthless and illegal tactics when governments or local growers have resisted. In many countries local farmers and governments were trying to prevent the introduction of foreign plant species so as to preserve the integrity of local varieties. These domestic crops comparably also relied on traditional farming methods which have worked successfully in their native regions for thousands of years and of course supported the local economy. The plants marketed and sold by Monsanto however rely heavily on pesticides (also available from Monsanto) and different, perhaps less sustainable farming methods. When various governments have tried to resist Monsanto's introduction of their products, Monsanto has illegally smuggled in species of their crop plants. These plants then cross-pollinate with local species and have the effect of polluting or diluting the gene-pool of local crops. The new local plants now contain strains of Monsanto's GMO plants (or are hybrids) and thus farmers are forced to use Monsanto's products whether they wanted to or not.

Anyways... The first line about the "devastaing backstroke from France" seems to further reinforce the reference to Monsanto since a documentary by a French journalist was published last spring criticizing the company titled "The World according to Monsanto". The film details a lot of what I've mentioned, but the rest can easily be found on the web:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsanto

And here's one on the green revolution which the song seems to be generally referring to:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_revolution#Water_issues



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ashinguy
12-16-2008

Rated 0 
There is a huge error in the lyrics posted here. The last line of the song is "The BED was shot to pieces/The kids don't stand a chance". This line concludes the bedrooom/sleep motif which runs throughout the song from "Egyptian cotton" to the pillow which feels so soft, to the culmination of the "pin-striped men's" plans. The imagery is being used to express the songwriters proposition that "the kids" are being lulled to sleep by "men" who have the intention of destroying what the youth hold dear. By the seriousness of the conclusion, one can see that the writer views this as equivalent to killing the kids.

I'm not here to offer any more insights into the meaning of the song because I think aside from the obvious themes of generational strife and idealism vs. cynicism, it's hard to really nail any one idea down.

I just think the change in the tone of the song between the second chorus and the third verse is very cool. In the previous choruses and verses, we are still waiting for the arrival of the pin-striped men. We're told that they will be coming in the morning. The singer's words are very sharply delivered and almost defiant. Finally, before the third verse, the pin-striped men have arrived. The singer begins to slur his words and sing as if in a dream-like state. The fire in his voice has been put out and his fears from the previous verses are gone. By the end of the song he still knows that the "kids don't stand a chance" but he's been lulled to sleep as if he himself were in the bed which was "shot to pieces". This extra dimension is pretty cool.

Really cool song with a lot of different layers, but you guys already know that.

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tehsuxs
12-18-2008

Rated 0 
This song might be about the war on drugs

"An estimated 40 billion dollars is spent each year by federal and state drug-control programs."
http://www.greenscc.org/PPWarOnDrugs.htm



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TSRTS13
12-27-2008

Rated 0 
yeah, definitely about idealistic kids going to college and being lured by big business, the "shiny, shiny cufflinks / a shirtsleeve to enhance," "pure Egyptian cotton," and "forty million dollars." the kids really don't stand a chance against all that, and they lose their ideals, "sell out," and turn to the business world. not sure if it's a lament for these kids or a criticism of their naivete and gullibility, but that's definitely the subject. great song.

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PeoplforPandaBear
01-09-2009

Rated 0 
Does anyone know what the musical term is for those rolling/fluctuating oOoOo's is called for the word "soft" when he sings the line, "...your pillow feels so SOFT now..."

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FullFilled
01-16-2009

Rated +1 
It's about child labour behind Egyptian cotton

You can read all about it here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2008/jun/08/childprotection.humanrights

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The_$t!G
01-17-2009

Rated 0 
I like it that everyone can make almost each explanation sound so logical,,
no irony, its great! love reading this.
great song!
:)

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Snowjoe
01-26-2009

Rated 0 
I like many of the ideas above I am going to take this another way.

I think the song has to do with the current economic struggles. Especially in Michigan and Ohio.

The U.S. is "borrowing" if you will some of the economic ideas and plans from France. i.e Socialized medicine, creating more government jobs. Hence the devistating backstroke from there.

"You criticize the practice
By murdering their plants"

This has to do with the manufacturing plants being shut down and many many jobs being lost. This is life blood of many of those areas. This could be a stretch but I believe that is what they were leaning toward.

"The pin-striped men in mourning
Are coming for to dance
Forty million dollars
The kids don't stand a chance"

This idea begs to the bail out dollars, I believe the tiny chunk of change will do nothing but delay the inevitable. The government is fixing nothing they are making people who are dependent on government checks and bail outs for survival. Their children stand no chance.


Great song, not exactly sure what is meant by the lyrics. Hope this comment turned it another direction.



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