In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
I-I'm gonna move down to Florida.
And I'm gonna bowl me a-a perfect game.
I'm gon' cut off my leg down in Florida.
And I'm gonna dance one-legged off in the rain.
Well they say that Sidney Poitier was a blind man.
And they say that LBJ was a Soviet Jew.
I said that when I go down to Florida [ways],
They're ain't no kind of sexual healing that I would not, should not,
or could not do, except this right here:
Well I'm movin' down to Florida.
And you know that I'm gonna hafta potty train the chairman Mao.
And I'm gonna make the governor write my doodoo a letter, child.
And then I'm gonna grind me a White Castle slider out of India's sacred cow.
Well, I'm goin down to Florida, child.
And I'm gonna build me the atomic bomb.
I'm gonna hold time hostage down in Florida, child.
Ain't nobody - ain't nobody gonna tell me what to do. Stepchild.
By this time I guess you've figured out about Florida.
Turn the muddy water into Vaseline stains.
They be makin' tadpoles the size of Mercuries in Florida.
That be tellin' Julio Iglesias what to sing, now.
Well, whoever said that Sidney Poitier was a blind man,
Knew the same of Elvis Presley, too.
'cause all the sausages that dance like Ray Bolger on the hood of a car in a traffic jam
Know just exactly.. what to do. Right here:
Well I be goin' to Florida.
Pole cats sit back in the Seminole sand.
You know when I'm in Florida,
Just like Vince, I want it all.
Well I went down to Florida.
I got hurt.
So I took all the children down to Florida.
We start to get down in the dirt.
Well I'm never going back to Florida
That's why I'm movin today
When I settle down in Florida,
I'm gonna explode the whole damn Tampa Bay.
Get that boy to Florida,
And teach him what to do.
And I'm gonna bowl me a-a perfect game.
I'm gon' cut off my leg down in Florida.
And I'm gonna dance one-legged off in the rain.
Well they say that Sidney Poitier was a blind man.
And they say that LBJ was a Soviet Jew.
I said that when I go down to Florida [ways],
They're ain't no kind of sexual healing that I would not, should not,
or could not do, except this right here:
Well I'm movin' down to Florida.
And you know that I'm gonna hafta potty train the chairman Mao.
And I'm gonna make the governor write my doodoo a letter, child.
And then I'm gonna grind me a White Castle slider out of India's sacred cow.
Well, I'm goin down to Florida, child.
And I'm gonna build me the atomic bomb.
I'm gonna hold time hostage down in Florida, child.
Ain't nobody - ain't nobody gonna tell me what to do. Stepchild.
By this time I guess you've figured out about Florida.
Turn the muddy water into Vaseline stains.
They be makin' tadpoles the size of Mercuries in Florida.
That be tellin' Julio Iglesias what to sing, now.
Well, whoever said that Sidney Poitier was a blind man,
Knew the same of Elvis Presley, too.
'cause all the sausages that dance like Ray Bolger on the hood of a car in a traffic jam
Know just exactly.. what to do. Right here:
Well I be goin' to Florida.
Pole cats sit back in the Seminole sand.
You know when I'm in Florida,
Just like Vince, I want it all.
Well I went down to Florida.
I got hurt.
So I took all the children down to Florida.
We start to get down in the dirt.
Well I'm never going back to Florida
That's why I'm movin today
When I settle down in Florida,
I'm gonna explode the whole damn Tampa Bay.
Get that boy to Florida,
And teach him what to do.
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Standing On The Edge Of Summer
Thursday
Thursday
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
A couple of these lines are wrong. It's actually "They be makin' tadpoles the size of MERCURIES," and also "grinding a White Castle SLIDER out of India's Sacred Cow."
@ApollyonCrash also “Turn the Muddy Water into Vaseline, Sting”… he’s talking about the singer of The Police, Sting. Or as I like to call him, Stink. He’s calling him a wanker, I think.