I know she said it's alright
But you can make it up next time
I know she knows it's not right
There ain't no use in lying
Maybe she thinks I know something
Maybe maybe she thinks its fine
Maybe she knows something I don't
I'm so, I'm so tired, I'm so tired of trying

It seems to me that maybe
It pretty much always means no
So don't tell me you might just let it go
And often times we're lazy
It seems to stand in my way
Cause no one no not no one
Likes to be let down

I know she loves the sunrise
No longer sees it with her sleeping eyes
And I know that when she said she's gonna try
Well it might not work because of other ties and
I know she usually has some other ties
And I wouldn't want to break 'em, nah, I wouldn't want to break 'em
Maybe she'll help me to untie this but
Until then well, I'm gonna have to lie too

It seems to me that maybe
It pretty much always means no
So don't tell me you might just let it go
And often times we're lazy
It seems to stand in my way
Cause no one no not no one
Likes to be let down
It seems to me that maybe
It pretty much always means no
So don't tell me you might just let it go

The harder that you try baby, the further you'll fall
Even with all the money in the whole wide world
Please please please don't pass me
Please please please don't pass me
Please please please don't pass me by

Everything you know about me now baby you gonna have to change
You gonna have to call it by a brand new name
Please please please don't drag me
Please please please don't drag me
Please please please don't drag me down

Just like a tree down by the water baby I shall not move
Even after all the silly things you do
Please please please don't drag me
Please please please don't drag me
Please please please don't drag me down



Lyrics submitted by omoyaw

Track duration: 04:43


Flake song meanings
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197 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment:I can't believe i have been listen to Jack Johsnon music for years, and today was the first time i listened to this song, and now i have it on repeat at work.

    Made my morning goes by quickly...
    Flag bal3iton February 16, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:this and a nice j.. im in heaven
    Flag JamzXIVon June 10, 2011   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation:This song is two stories in one song, it is a couple, or ex couple.The first person is confused, why won't this person commit to something? He wants the girl, but doesn't want to change her. She doesn't want him because he slows her life down and she doesn't want to commit to a relation ship.
    Flag sansocalon May 25, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:i like how nobody really looks at the last few stanzas when the tempo speeds up and the lyrics change. obviously he's had enough of all the bullshit and says, essentially, screw this crap, i don't have the time or patience to put up with you, its not worth it.
    Flag hajostekon January 08, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:She is a flake. We've all been there before. You set up a date with a girl and at the last minute she has something better to do. Basically he is into her more than she's into him and her ties are other relationships. Surprising song from Jack cause he probably could get any girl he wanted.
    Flag BeepDlueon May 21, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I feel like this song is about two people in some sort of a relationship( friends, maybe more) where one person is making an effort, and the other doesn't reallywant to, but the don't want to hurt the persons feelings. The part about saying maybe always means no, is like, i don't want to say no and hurt you, but i don't actually care, so i will say maybe and then ignore you, and the you are left feeling let down.
    The last part, to me, is when you realize what going on, and start standing up for youself. 'everything you know abotu me, your goinbg to have to change, your going to have to call it by a brand new name

    I know this probably isn't what the intended meaning is, but thats my interpretation.
    Flag outlawedchickyon December 21, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I think it's about a guy who is in a relationship with a girl and he feels like he is the only one making any effort. He does everything for her and gets very little in return. Someone who feels he is second best to everything else in her life, whereas with him; she is the priority. A typical case of one-way love. Alot of lies and let downs. I think the song is about him beginning to not care anymore. Become indifferent - stop trying.
    Flag entropy12on November 25, 2009   Link
  • +1
    General Comment:Like what everyone else is saying this song is obviously about a relationship on the rocks.

    The first verse suggest that he's let her down and instead of try to make it right she's just brushing it off telling him to "make it up next time". From speculation I think that he feels that since she's not making a big deal of it she may be keeping something from him ("maybe she thinks I know something, maybe maybe she thinks it's fine"). He's letting his imagination run. And then at the end of the first verse he's frustrated for over thinking it so he says "I'm so tired of trying".
    In the chorus he's stating what he feels: "It seems to me that maybe pretty much always means no". So from him letting her down, as touched on in the first verse, she said she "might just let it go". He is replacing maybe with its other form MIGHT in other words he thinks she's saying that she might let it go so she won't hurt his feeling but really she's not letting it go...she's just saying she might. They're lazy because they won't put the energy into talking about it and instead are just brushing it off "'cause no one likes to be let down" so it's easier that way.
    In the second verse he starts off by showing that he does care for her by noticing little things she likes such as "the sunrise". She says she wants to "try" and make their relationship work but he realizes that even though she will try she has some "other ties" (this could be family, friends, work, ex's...not sure). Then he shows he cares for her again by saying he doesn't want to break those ties he just wants to help her untie them, so he wants to help her and be a part of all aspects of her life. Then he finishes off this verse by acknowledging that she's not ready for that yet so while he waits it out he's going to have to lie about everything being fine as he feels she is also lying about this as shown in the first verse.
    The ending 3 verses I'm not entirely sure about but I feel the jist of them is that he wants to make it work and that even with anything she does, and if she falls, he'll be there and he doesn't want her to give up on him.

    Sorry that's so long, I hope it helps someone out. This is an amazing song I'm sure lots of people can relate to. I love Jack Johnson.
    Flag tpozon November 01, 2009   Link
  • +2
    General Comment:I think this song is about trying to get back together or forgiving someone in a relationship. It seems that he made a mistake in the relationship, which she says is fine

    "I know she said it's alright But you can make it up next time".

    But in reality, when he talks to her about getting back together or forgiving him she always tells him maybe, and he is realizing that she simply can't let go of whatever he did and he's getting tired of it:

    "It seems to me that maybe
    It pretty much always means no
    So don't tell me you might just let it go"
    Flag adoptabeachon September 26, 2009   Link
  • 0
    My Interpretation:As some have suggested, I think this is more than just a song about a girl who's a flake. That's only half of it. "Flake" seems more of a metaphor for the failing relationship itself -- that is, they are BOTH being flakes, in their own, different ways. Particularly, he is flaky in his behavior, by not giving her the time and attention a partner deserves. She is ambivalent in her responses to this behavior and with her feelings about continuing or ending the relationship.

    Support for this argument as follows:

    First lines -- clearly HE has flaked out on HER in a specific situation. "It's alright, but you can make it up next time," she says. But of course it's not actually alright. She knows it, and he knows she knows it.

    But it's not just him -- she has mentioned "other ties" (perhaps other romantic possibilities, other obligations), and her uncertainty about moving forward with him. After all, he's being flaky to her, and she's giving him an appropriate response. "Maybe she thinks I know something, maybe she thinks it's fine" --perhaps she thinks he's afraid that she is romantically involved with someone else ("other ties"), but, in truth, he doesn't know how she's really feeling in response to him.

    He tells himself he has no right to question her "other ties" -- "I wouldn't want to break 'em", because he knows he's not doing his own part. A good line follows -- "maybe she'll help me to untie this" -- in a way, he also has "other ties" -- he's entangled by his behavior, his own flakiness. Unless she can somehow help him past his barriers to commitment, he's gonna keep lying, "too" -- pretending it is working, making excuses, etc. -- just as she is lying that everything is alright.

    "Often times we're lazy..." -- reinforces the idea they are letting each other down with their flakiness, something neither actually wants.

    Here's the best line -- "it seems to me that maybe pretty much always means no" -- this nicely captures the concept of flakiness in general. In this case, he applies it back to her -- "Don't tell me you might just let it go." No, she won't let it go. One could suggest that "let it go" refers to accepting the situation, tolerating his faults. But I think it more likely refers to letting their relationship go. Despite her concerns with him, she's won't actually end it. Neither of them will. They are stuck. Thus, the ending of the song is his plea for the relationship's redemption. He swears he is going to stop being a flake. Will she?
    Flag bcostel1on September 12, 2009   Link

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