Know something about this song or lyrics?
Add it to our wiki.
I take a shot of gin, a Jameson or Jack to start the morning off with a friend
I'll celebrate like it's the anniversary of the day that we first met
I regret to see all your eulogies, separating all of this
To remind me of all the things I'm leaving
Cause dear, four years hurts less than five
(It's better off this way)
I'm sorry for all my crimes
And the wandering days of my old fable lies
Now I wonder as I'm sliding under, thus out of control of the drink
If I have enough left in the bottle to see all the things up again
I regret to see myself so full, my eyes are checking time
Still I don't know how I'll survive
Cause dear, four years hurts less than five
(It's better off this way)
I'm sorry for all my crimes
And the wandering days of my old fable lies
It's clear, I am an awful mess
(Get this off my back)
Soon the only thing I'll have left is your memory and promises never kept
When she came home, I made her sick
My feet tap out the rhythm as the drum kicked in
To hurt the only one I've loved
This is so damn hard, but I'm giving up
The person that you love is dead
I pried him out with the jack, and chains of sins
So happy anniversary
The best gift I could think to give you was to set you free
Wake up, you're sleeping
Wake up, you're sleeping behind the wheel
Wake up, you're sleeping
Wake up, you're sleeping behind the wheel
Behind the wheel
I'll celebrate like it's the anniversary of the day that we first met
I regret to see all your eulogies, separating all of this
To remind me of all the things I'm leaving
Cause dear, four years hurts less than five
(It's better off this way)
I'm sorry for all my crimes
And the wandering days of my old fable lies
Now I wonder as I'm sliding under, thus out of control of the drink
If I have enough left in the bottle to see all the things up again
I regret to see myself so full, my eyes are checking time
Still I don't know how I'll survive
Cause dear, four years hurts less than five
(It's better off this way)
I'm sorry for all my crimes
And the wandering days of my old fable lies
It's clear, I am an awful mess
(Get this off my back)
Soon the only thing I'll have left is your memory and promises never kept
When she came home, I made her sick
My feet tap out the rhythm as the drum kicked in
To hurt the only one I've loved
This is so damn hard, but I'm giving up
The person that you love is dead
I pried him out with the jack, and chains of sins
So happy anniversary
The best gift I could think to give you was to set you free
Wake up, you're sleeping
Wake up, you're sleeping behind the wheel
Wake up, you're sleeping
Wake up, you're sleeping behind the wheel
Behind the wheel
Lyrics submitted by TerribleThings___x, edited by DecStars
Track duration: 04:15
"Four Years" as written by Brian Mcternan, James Buddy Nielsen, Daniel Gerard Trapp, Garrett Michael Zablocki, Heath Matthew Saraceno
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., CHRYSALIS MUSIC GROUP
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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!
love,
Morgan.Massacre
"I take a shot of Jameson or Jack to start the morning off"
- Pretty obvious. He's so wrecked by the relationship that he has to be drunk all day to put up with it.
"I'll celebrate like it's the anniversary of the day that we first met"
- I'll have as much fun drinking alone as I did drinking with you back when we were happy
"I've been practicing our eulogy"
- I've been practicing our breakup speech
"Separated all our things. I took my name off the lease. I'm leaving"
- Doing all the unpleasant but necessary breakup chores.
"Dear, four years hurt less than five. (and it's never a good time)"
- This hurts, but it will hurt more if we drag it out another year. It needs to just happen.
"I am sorry for all my crimes. And the wandering gaze of my unfaithful eyes."
- Self explainatory
"Now I wonder as I'm sliding under the subtle control of the drink. Will I have enough left in the bottle to say all the things I'm thinking?"
- Will I have the strength to tell you all that I feel, all the things wrong with this relationship and how unhappy we both are?
"I've been practicing my exit plan. Nervously checking time. I still don't know how I will survive."
- Self explainatory and similar to the last verse. He doesn't think he's got what it takes to make the split.
"When [she] came home I made her sit. My feet tap out a rhythm as I draw breathe in."
- She comes home and he starts his shpiel.
"To hurt the only one I've loved. This is so damn hard, but I am giving up."
- He considers one last time all that he has invested in the relationship and he breaks up, though not as eloquently as he'd like.
"The person that you loved is dead. I flooded him out with the Jack and Jameson."
- What a line! My alcoholism has changed me. I'm a shell of the person I used to be. I'm a lot worse off than I was 4 years ago; that person you knew and fell in love with 4 years ago has been gone a long time.
"So happy anniversary. The best gift I could think to give to you was to set you free."
- Good bye. I hope your life is happier without me than it was with me. This is the best thing for us, even though neither of us can see it now.
"Wake up. You're sleeping. Wake up. You're sleeping behind the wheel."
- This is harder to make sense of, but it's a real theme with the whole album. I guess because sleeping is as close to death as we're going to get in life, that the two are one in the same. The relationship is dead and wandering to wherever it is that relationships go when they are ended. It's a morbid and alien process. All the happiness, all the work, all the feelings just exit and all you know is a dull ache of loss.
Considering that, I think this is how Buddy wishes his breakup had gone. He wishes that he were strong enough to admit his own alcohol dependence and how it was tearing them apart. He wishes he had the strength to tell her that it wasn't her fault and that he will always miss and love her.
Too bad his didn't turn out that way.
I agree. Like it has a general sounding meaning, but like for me it has a more significant meaning, I can relate to it. Like most senses fail songs. Can't wait to see them.
No problem. Directly from the booklet.
But I like how you edited and punctuated and such.
So do I, ): he was only 18 too.
Poor Buddy. I know what it's like to lose someone as well... =/ Awesome song either way.
I love this song. The whole new album rocks, It's like they changed a bit, but only enough to make it not a repeat of old albums. I love their sound and their music. All their songs are beautiful and deep.
Mostly because Buddy explained it on their myspace page.
Buddy met a terminally ill fan (Marcel) on one of his tours he became very close to him. (Yellow Angels explains how me met and because close to him and all of their experiences.)
But one day his mom came to Buddy and said his cancer was worsening, buddy flew out there to spend all the time he could before he passed away.
This is what buddy wrote about it.
“It was one of the most intense and stirring times in my life. The sheer pain this 18-year-old boy was in was mind blowing, yet his optimistic outlook and sense of humor was steadfast. This kid changed my life and although he is no longer with us, he lives on everyday in the pictures I took with him, to remind myself that life is never as bad as you think it is."
This song is written about his passing, how buddy handled it, what he felt like inside.
He tried everyway to make it better, started with alcohol for a while, that made him empty, time wasnt even passing anymore.
He could only give up and be happy he was finnaly free.
To understand this more, listen to the lyrics and think of someone who passed away, maybe from an illness?
It will reach your heart and you will understand.
R.I.P. Marcel
When she came home I made her sit.
My feet tap out a rhythm as I draw breath in.
To hurt the only one I've loved...
This is so damn hard but I am giving up.
The person that you love is dead;
I flooded him out with the Jack and Jameson.
So happy anniversary. The best gift I could think to give you was to set you free.
hes talking about how hard it was to end it, but the best thing was to set her free, they would both be free of the misery they were both in trying to make it all work.