If you're the bird,
Whenever we pretend it's summer,
Then I'm the worm,
I know the part, it's such a bummer,
But fair is fair,
If my segments get separated,
I'll scream
And you'll be there.

Close your eyes (close my eyes),
(so I cotton off of your shoulder)
And feel the shine (feel the shine),
I'm hooked so toss me over,
And cast a line (oh I'll try),
Oh throw a party and greet my undersea friends (it depends),
As they arrive (if they arrive),

You and I left our troubles far behind (troubles far behind),
But I still have just one more question on my mind,
For all my pals who live in all the oceans and the seas,
With friends like these well, who needs enemies?

Da dat dah da da da da da da dat dah

If I'm your boy,
Let's take a short cut we remember,
And we'll enjoy,
Pickin' apples in late September
Like we've done for years,
Then we'll take a long walk through the corn field,
And I'll kiss you, between the ears,

If you're my girl,
Swirl me around your room with feeling,
And as we twirl, the glow in the dark stars on your ceiling,
Will shine for us,
As love sweeps over the room,
Cause we tend to make each other blush (you make me blush)

You and I left our troubles far behind (troubles far behind),
But I still have just one more question on my mind,
For all my pals who live in all the oceans and the seas,
With fronds like these well, who needs anemones?

You're the bird and I'm the worm,
And it's plain to see that we were meant to be
We were meant to be

Da dat dah da da da da da da dat dah

If you're the bird
If you're the bird
Then I'm the worm
We were meant to be



Lyrics submitted by LovelyMauve

Track duration: 03:28

"The Bird and the Worm" as written by Adam R. Young, Matthew Arnold Thiessen

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Lyrics powered by LyricFind


The Bird and the Worm song meanings
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29 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:You might think is weird i imagine like somehow like romeo and juliet like the bird and worm is like two of is a person who can't be with each other some reason and somehow asking why cant we just get along
    Flag MysterySimson April 06, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I always mis-heard "so i can cotton off of your shoulder" as something about "wiping a cottonmouth off..." wishi does make some sense being that cottonmouth is a poisionous snake and would probably kill birds...
    But thats just me. haha
    Flag melodysusernameon November 20, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:This song is so completely adorable <3 I once skipped down the hall singing the da da bit :) It was awesome. Adam is so cute when it comes to love songs. OMG Y U NO MARRY ME ADAM YOUNG????? I saw this in concert, it was adorable. *watches homemade video* awwwww!
    Flag oceanheart13on August 09, 2011   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:It actually is 'slide the cotton off of your shoulder'. I have a hard copy of the deluxe edition of Ocean Eyes, and it has a lyrics booklet and this is what it says.
    Also, it's 'well, I'll try' and not 'we'll all try'.

    And I just love the Finding Nemo reference in this song :)
    Flag Colourthestarson April 15, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I still dont understand why he used the metaphor bird and worm, they arent very sweet on eachother...
    Oh well, i love dissecting his songs, but not this one, id rather just love its catchy rhythm and the second verse cuz in the first one adam gets eaten alot
    Flag William0on December 05, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:it goes swipe the cotton off your shoulders.this is a good song about him and his love(girlfriend).i think its a good way to express his feelings for her.the bird and worm part could mean that he's nothing and she's better person then he'll ever be.and he could be saying about all his daydreams of her,and he thinks he and her were meant to be.its a great song,good for ay talent show, and still one of the best-known.
    Flag musicmindedon October 21, 2010   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:"With fronds like these
    Well, who needs anemones"

    I'm surprised no one has mentioned the movie Finding Nemo to be honest...
    It's the end of a joke that Marlin makes right at the end of the movie.
    When Owl City was here in Sydney earlier this year, he repeatedly said how much he loved the movie Finding Nemo and quoted "P. Sherman, 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney" during the concert.
    Flag MissBronon September 11, 2010   Link
  • 0
    My Opinion:This is a really cute song. I think my favorite description was from invisiboy42293, who said, "...the rest sounds a lot like Adam's standard quirky love ballad." Totally right. And I don't really see any bitter lines. The idea is that when you think of birds, worms go with them naturally, and that was sort of the idea. They were meant to go together. Bird and worm. Peanut butter and jelly. Bread and butter. So yeah. Hehe I love this song SO much! SO CUTE (and quirky, but hey, thats the best part =) and one of the reasons we all love Adam) ;)
    Flag 4everowlcityon June 20, 2010   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation:The lyrics are a bit confusing to me. Some parts sound almost bitter (the whole bird/worm analogy and the line "With friends like these, who needs enemies?"), but the rest sounds a lot like Adam's standard quirky love ballad. I think it's supposed to mean that in a proper relationship, there's really bad parts and really good parts, and the key to making it work is to enjoy both. Or maybe it's just saying that even fights and backstabbing are fun when you're madly in love. I dunno, anyone see it differently?
    Flag invisiboy42293on May 31, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:While it's clearly a song about being in love, I think it's actually a little sadder than the song sounds. I'm taking it as, being crazy in love with someone who you KNOW is not good for you, and will hurt you, but you can't help but love them. (Birds eat worms).

    If you listen, I mean, he's talking about being torn apart (if my segments get separated), and thrown away (I'm hooked so toss me over). And the whole "with friends like these". Clearly this is a girl that is NOT good for him, but he's going for it anyway and just enjoying it while he can? Or maybe a bit of wishful thinking that it will all work out (repeating "we where meant to be" at the end)
    Flag MMStarshineon May 27, 2010   Link

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