Faith No More – Mouth To Mouth

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Send "Mouth To Mouth" Ringtone to Cell

You tied the knot
A legend is what you bought
I give you cold water and you
Swear it was wine
You bought time
If you can fool yourself, then why not them?
Just keep on passing it mouth to mouth to mouth

I can dress up the dead man
But I can't bring him back to life

You tied the knot
Peeled your skin off, leaving a bundle of nerves
I give you a wet noodle, you swear that it was my tongue
A sharp one
Instead of that same old mouth to mouth to mouth to mouth

I can dress up the dead man
But I can't bring him back to life

Send "Mouth To Mouth" Ringtone to Cell


Lyrics submitted by jt

Track duration: 03:48


Mouth To Mouth song meanings
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  • 0
    General Comment:Well, personally I think your all reading to much into this. Anyone ever consider this is just about someone giving someone else mouth to mouth judging by the lyrics a suicide victim and how disgusting it was to give a dead person mouth to mouth.
    Flag BWJ1993on January 04, 2013   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I believe "tying the knot" refers to "tying your own noose" or sealing your own fate. The "you" does this by fully embracing the message given to him. I think it's interesting that the "I" in the song is fully aware that his message is false, a legend that the subject believes is completely true. He gives "water"/ "a wet noodle" to the subject that he believes is "wine"/ "my tongue". Both verses refer to the subject fooling himself into believing something that isn't anything special is really something intoxicating and revelatory. The line about peeling his skin and exposing the nerves is about how sensitive the subject becomes, completely thin-skinned.

    There seem to be two analogies associated with "Mouth to Mouth". The first verse refers to the subject spreading the message by mouth, person to person. In the second verse, by pairing the reference to the messengers tongue, seems to make it analogous to CPR, the subject believes he's receiving new life but CPR is just breathing hot air into another's lungs.

    The "dead man" is either the subject, a person who has no life, only a hollow message,
    or if we're talking religion it's about beautifying the religion's messiahs and prophets without being able to truthfully speak for them.

    While the song has the obvious religious allusions of "water into wine" and bringing a dead man back to life it doesn't necessarily have to deal with Christianity. The music is middle-eastern so it could deal with Islam but it could really be about any dogmatic belief, spreading false messages to the masses
    Flag SpasticMinnowon October 14, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Carnival? No. About passing around a myth...maybe. Water and wine? Read the damned Bible for fuck's sake.
    Flag champiodion December 31, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Well, spacemunky, to each their own, but I like this album a lot better than The Real Thing. Something about young Patton's vocals grates on my nerves from time to time...

    Crack Hitler's analysis seemed the best to me. I guess I can see the marriage point of view, too.
    Flag The Honest Liaron December 30, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:ok this is just silly. what on earth would you be passing "from mouth to mouth" about a marriage? who would be the "why not them?" ... and what's that got to do with a dead man, or water-wine. this is clearly about religion and the passing down of beliefs from generation to generation. hence "mouth to mouth".

    Flag myxsomaon July 22, 2009   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Whether it's about marriage or not, it's definitely about delusion. And the combo of keyboards and guitar on this one are just sick! One of three bright spots on their worst album, Ashes to Ashes and Stripsearch were also great.
    Flag spacemunky_666on January 29, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I definitely agree with the last comment. To push things further, I think it's about someone getting married for all the wrong reasons, and all the wrong reasons are like a veil that keeps them from seeing the neglect/abuse coming from their partner. Or, the person they married isn't the same person anymore and they refuse to see it. ("I can't dress up a dead man...")
    Flag cherriebombXDon September 19, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:seems to be about disintegration in marriage

    'you tied the knot / a legend's what you bought'
    Flag GotMeNowon February 22, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:yeah your right about the middle eastern thing.

    I dunno if this song means anything reallly, it can efnitiely be interpreted lots of ways. one point i can make is that to me 'tying the knot' means only one thing and thats marriage
    Flag bongoon November 20, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I thought the song was more about how this person thinks somebody else is more sexually interested in them than what they really are, so they believe it, tell their friends about it, but the person is not very interested in them in reality. Kind of like a delusion.

    Actually, the keyboards were influenced by Middle Eastern music.
    Flag chessdoggon November 12, 2004   Link

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