That's enough for now, he should've never left you broken
He should've held you, things your father never could do
That's enough for now, he would've never left you broken
He would've held you, things your father never told you

--

I think this song is written from Isaac's perspective, to his mother. This song has been quoted as being about his grandfather's death. I believe there's a hint of bitterness here. It doesn't sound like he was the most self-actualized or emotionally generous person.

--

The century before you never could turn 21
Years and years he waited just watching for a son
For someone to go ahead, take the name he said
Years and years he waited and a daughter came instead

--

This is heartbreaking. If his grandson could've observed that he wanted a son and not a daughter (His mother), his prejudice and/or bitterness must have been so overwhelmingly obvious. It's heartbreaking to think about. Truly.

--

But that's enough for now, he should've never left you broken
He should've held you, things your father never could do
That's enough for now, he would've never left you broken
He would've held you, things your father never told you

--

I think this is supposed to be comforting to his mother. The pain is over now; he should've done things differently, he owed you so much more than he was capable of, he was an incapable father, but it's over now...

--

Sixty years of sorrow he got five or six of bliss
Left my mothers mother without so much as a kiss

--

To his grandma, he realizes she was a victim of his "abuse" as well, though it doesn't specifically state how far it stems. How can this man have not kissed his wife goodbye?

--

But that's enough for now, he never wanted to leave you broken
He would've held you, things your father never told you
That's enough for now, I would've never left you broken
I would've held you, things your father never could do
Words your father never told you

--

Oh Jesus. The poor guy starts blaming himself, perhaps some sort of self awareness made him realize he's abandoned his own family. It seems as though he realizes that his grandfather would have wanted things done differently. Isaac wants to believe that his grandfather had better intentions, that he was truly a feeling being deep down.

This song really strikes a chord with my because my own father inspires the same feelings in me. His callousness is really inexcusable, but nothing I say or do will make my little brother and sister feel less pain. I moved to a different state for a few years and I do continually blame myself for not being there for them. I can save them. I can fix them. I can look after them. It's not too late for me; but it sounds too late for Isaac. For that? I can't imagine how he must feel.

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omg i am in love with this song. so much emotion....

it makes sense that it's about his grandfather... but I interpret it as being about a girl who has a troubled relationship with her father, and this guy is there to fill in the gaps in her life. but then the father dies and she feels guilty ("He's not longer with us but he left this dusty room, In your name and it's an honor, it's a shame but it's your honor, Take it on your shoulder 'til you can find another").

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Both of your comments make sense. It seems like there's more toward the mother approach, but the girl taking a new name also is good. Such a terribly tragic song.

I agree partially with the first poster's comments...
But I think that his grandfather had chronic depression:
"Sixty years of sorrow he got five or six of bliss
Left my mothers mother without so much as a kiss"

I think this partially led to abuse from his end leading to him not being the best father to his mother.

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In an interview, about this song, Isaac says:

"I felt lost [dealing with the fallout from the death of his beloved grandfather], all these emotions and these songs came out. But then 12 months ago, I was talking to a friend of mine who gave me some perspective on it and some books to read. I realised I was seeing only the pure realism of it all and there is good in life still, even if people die or jave miscarriages, whatever. And i began to have hope again"

I love this song cause it can mean so many different things to people. One of the things i thought it may be about is:

A man fell in love with a woman and they were together for 5-6 years and had a young daughter but then the woman fell in love with another man but when he found out about the other man he left without so much as a kiss, while the other man and the woman got married and carrired on in life. I also this fits in with this verse

The century before you never could turn 21
Years and years he waited just watching for a son
For someone to go ahead, take the name he said
Years and years he waited and a daughter came instead

First of all i always thought 'son' to be 'sun' as i believe it changes the whole verse.
I think the first two lines are about how the man waited so long to fall in love and have a child but when he did, the child probably took the other mans name which fits in with the 2nd and 3rd line, or maybe this could be about the fact that the other man took is child or his girlfriend.
And i think the fourth means that after this he waited so long to fall in love again or have is woman back but then his daughter grown up turns up instead.



Last but not least i think this is about birth and death and is the verse that also maybe lead me to think that the father had died at the begining and that actualy fits the song to, but it always fits dying at the end.

Breathing comes in pairs
Except for twice
One begins and one's goodbye

I think the lines are about birth and death, ow you always breath in and breath out except for your first breath and your last, so it could be about of you're going with the man dying at the start how his daughter was born as he died or maybe how his duaghter life is now starting in this new house while his ends.

This brings me to the chorus

That's enough for now, he should've never left you broken
He should've held you, things your father never could do
That's enough for now, he would've never left you broken
He would've held you, things your father never told you

I think the first bit is how the father should of stayed in touch with his daughter despite the break up, but because he wasnt they were things that he could never do.
The second verse is about the fact that if the father was given the chance to stay with his child he would of but he never got the chance to tell his daughter this before he died.
But i think that's enough for now is saying that he didnt do that the fact that he would of is enough.


The daughter's father watches, quietly we assume
He's not longer with us but he left this dusty room
In your name and it's an honor, it's a shame but it's your honor
Take it on your shoulder 'til you can find another

The last verse i think actualy fits the end of the story, how after the daughter found her father while much older maybe she had a son, but her father now old died, which i think think is what the first line fits her father his still watching looking over his daughter and son and he left them his house in her name to honour and show the fact that he did care about his daughter, and i think he saying to the daughter to take this house until she can move on and find another.


But that's enough for now, he never wanted to leave you broken
He would've held you, things your father never told you
That's enough for now, I would've never left you broken
I would've held you, things your father never could do
Words your father never told you

I think this verse is telling the daughter that he never actualy wanted to leave his daughter wihtout a father and how presumable the grandson (the story teller in this song 'left my mothers mother')is telling his mum that.


Anyway this is just one of the million interpritations of the song going thru ma head and i believe this is going to be one of the songs that mean different things to different people as i said i love this song and sorry for the spelling.




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Oh yes im sure 'The century before you never could turn 21' is 'The century before you never could turn to anyone' (it would also make alot more sense)

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i took my fathers last name when i was born (in your name and it's an honor)
now he's gone and i have a lot of anger towards him (it's a shame but its your honor)
i have to deal with it (take it on your shoulder)
until i get married and i can change my last name (til you can find another)



breathing comes in pairs (you inhale and then you exhale)
except for twice
one begins and ones goodbye (exhale when your born....you never finish your last breath when you die you inhale and you're gone)

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some of these lyrics are at the very end of Where The Story Ends.
does anyone know why?

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This is a great song. He seems to be talking to his mother in this,
and refers to his grandfather (her father). It's very heartfelt.
I love it. My favorite Fray song.

If you listen the whole CD through, you notice that there's the little Intro to this song at the end of "Where the Story Ends". To me that adds to the song, it gives so much passion and heartfelt emotion to this song... And i think its something that Isaac feels very emotionally about in his heart and its definitely a song written out of personal experiances. And I like both explanations for the song, and i kind of can relate to both the grandfather and the girl friend's father instances. An all around well written song.

I think this song is written about an absentee great-grandfather and the impact it had on his/a grandmother.

It sounds to me as though this song is written to his (someones) grandmother ('mothers mother' is a reference to his grandmother as a child). There seems to be dating in the second verse.

The first verse talks about the departure of the father. We assume he's watching, "he's around", "he cares" about the child, much as most children with absentee parents fantasize about. Despite his absence this child has his father name, a burden as it reminds her (the kid) of the father who is not present. This would have been customary during the period I suppose. 'Take it on your shoulder 'til you can find another'. You're stuck with the name until the greatgrandmother or the grandmosther marry (again).

The second verse immediately speaks of the times, the 'century' the story takes place. 'The century before you could never turn 21' (life expectancy), 'mothers mother' as a child and reference to 'dusty room' makes me think of the 1930 and the depression (dust bowl), though life expectancy was probably longer at that time, and the reference to century I guess puts us in the 1800s? He's waiting for a son, an heir, again important part of culture at the time, and is pressed for time due to short life expectancy. A reference to a sir name ('take the name he said') again shores this up. However a daughter is born instead. This would be a reference to the grandmothers birth I think. I think then we can assume he's left because he had a daughter and not a son as he wanted.

The first two lines of the bridge are a little ambiguous to me. The second two lines are a reference to either the 60 years of misery he (great grand father) experienced because he lived much longer than expected without his daughter. He traded 5 or 6 years of bliss, freedom and possibility of a son, for having no connection to his daughter. Alternatively its related to the grandmothers misery experienced over 60 years because she never knew her father. Hard to determine which way it was written. 'Left my mothers mother without so much as a kiss' - self-explainatory.

I don't really know how the namesake fits into the song. But that's enough for now is lost on me. I think the rest of the verse is 'he should've never left you broken, He should've held you, things your father never could do', self-explainatory. And then I suppose Isaac interjects at the end saying that he would never do what the great grandfather had done.

This is my take. If I'm correct I wouldn't be further suprised if the liniage was English, Irish, or Scottish... maybe European. I think the story may have taken place in another country. Maybe.. I might just be BSing here. But I get an Angela's Ashes feel for some reason.

I was just at their concert, and just before they performed this, Isaac said, "This is a song about the shitty relationship I had with my grandpa..." (and just about every girl in the audience said 'Aww..')

I was at their concert in Cleveland last week and before starting this song he said "This is a song about a shitty relationship I had with my grandfather...and that's that" then started playing.

I am a 27 year old male, who had a "shitty" grandmother. She told my parents never to have a kid for her because she did not want to be a grandmother. I can relate to this song so well. I think I only saw her about 5 times in my whole life. To fully understand this pain breaks my heart. I nearly cry every time I hear this song.

I read most of the comments about this song and for the most part, I agree. One thing I did not see is that it appears to me that the grandfather wanted a son so badly, that when he got a daughter, he wrote her off from the very beginning. "Years and years he waited, just watching for a son...go ahead, take the name he said..." The grandfather was more concerned with the family name continuing on to the next generation than to really appreciate his daughter for who she was and who she became, and obviously to appreciate Isaac.

Does anyone have an idea of why the "daughter's father watches" at the beginning of the song? My guess is that there is a portrait of him hanging in the room that the daughter has inherited.

well my take is basically the same thing as the others
but the first few times i heard it i thought it was about a daughter who was never accepted by her father because he wanted a son. and i though he left her mother. but as the song goes on Slade says "left MY mothers mother...without so much as a kiss."

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