Lyrics for Bled White as interpreted by EnjOy IncUbus

Bled White Lyrics
I'm a color reporter
(Rose city on the 409)
But the city's been bled white
(White city on the yellow line)
And the doctor orders drinks all night
(Drinking until he's trashed is just a waste of time)
To take away this curse
But it makes me feel much worse
Bled white
So I wait for the F-train
(White city on the yellow line)
And connect through a friend of mine
(White city to a friend of mine)
To a yesterdaydream
(Yesterdaydream was just a waste of time)
Because I'll have to be high to drag the sunset down
And paint this paling town
Bled white
So here he comes with the blank expression
Especially for me Because he knows I feel the same
Because happy and sad come in quick succession
I'm never going to become what you became
Don't you dare disturb me
(Don't complicate my peace of mind)
While I'm balancing my past
(Don't complicate my peace of mind)
Because you can't help or hurt me
(The anger, being mean was just a waste of time)
Like it already has
I may not seem quite right
But I'm not fucked, not quite
Bled white
Bled white

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AndForgetMeNots
04-15-2002

Rated 0 
i may not seem quite right
but i'm not fucked, no quite

another excellent elliot smith line..

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mon no jigoku
06-07-2003

Rated 0 
spell elliott right.

This was just copied from the lyrics at www.sweetadeline.net, but some of the lyrics are off, and there are background vocals between certain lines that add to the songs. "I'm a color reporter (rose city on the 409) but the city's been bled white (rose city to the other line) and the doctor orders (drinking till he's trashed is just a waste of time) drinks all night to take away this curse" etc. Then on the other bits... "don't you dare disturb me (don't complicate my peace of mind) while i'm balancing my past... (don't complicate my peace of mind) 'cos you can't help or hurt me (faith in me, baby, is just a waste of time) like it already has"... anyway the song seems deeper with the other vocals.

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man on tv
10-20-2004

Rated 0 
mon no is right, get the lyrics in there

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nevermind_03__
12-21-2004

Rated 0 
Full Lyrics

I'm a color reporter (rose city on the 409)
But the city's been bled white (white city on the yellow line)
And the doctor orders (drinking till he's trashed is just a waste of time)
He drinks all night to take away this curse
But it makes me feel much worse

Bled white

So I wait for the f-train (white city on the yellow line)
And connect through a friend of mine (white city to a friend of mine)
To a yesterday dream (yesterday dream was just a waste of time)
'Cause I'll have to be high to track the sunset down
And paint this pailing town

Bled white

So here he comes with a blank expression
Especially for me 'cause he knows
I feel the same
'Cause happy and sad come in quick succession
I'm never going to become
What you became

Don't you dare disturb me (don't complicate my piece of mind)
While I'm balancing my past (don't complicate my piece of mind)
'Cause you can't help or hurt me (the anger, being mean was just a waste of time)
Like it already has, it may not seem quite right
But I'm not fucked, not quite

Bled white
Bled white

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MARY K
12-23-2004

Rated 0 
it pretty much explains itself, doesn't it? i mean if you know about some of his life and music, this is about hiding within yourself, drinkin druggin and losing it, but not completely...

So I wait for the f-train (white city on the yellow line)
i always thought he was singing, "while sitting on the yellow line" like, on the side of the platform, which is actually insane, but loved it!

sometimes what i hear is totally diff. than the actual lyrics...

I thought he said, "column reporter" not color,

He drinks all night to take away this curse
But it makes me feel much worse

Well, he is him.

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oldflashy
12-26-2004

Rated 0 
For what it's worth, White City is a station on the London underground. But it's on the red (central) line. I always think this song has something of Baby Britain about it, so there you go.

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manic_ash
01-29-2005

Rated 0 
I really fucking love the line 'drinks all night to take away this curse // but it makes me feel much worse'...just. no words. that's the absolute truth.

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LevitateMe
02-11-2005

Rated 0 
about portland oregon? i visted there a little while ago, and it just seemed to fit the city, not only the lyrics but the entire song echoed the lonely feeling that the city can give you.

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dmantis
03-07-2005

Rated 0 
In terms of what city this song is referring to...

There is an earlier officially unreleased version of this song recorded during ES's "Jackpot! Sessions", which contains different lyrics. I tried my best to transcribe them.

Bled White (jackpot! sessions version)
there's a glow (???) at the border
(ghost city on the 409)
but the city's been bled white
(white city on the 409)
and the doctor ordered
(white city on the 409)
drinks all night
to see who throws up first
but left feeling much worse
cold white

so I wait for the 14
(white city on the 409)
and I wait for the 409
(white city on the 409)
in a yesterdaydream
(white city on the 409)
on a nicotine high
to drag the sunset down
to paint this paling town
cold white

so here he comes with a blank expression
looking for me cuz he thinks I feel the same
but happiness pulls me in my direction
going to pioneer square to feel the rain

don't you dare disturb me
(white city on the 409)
while i'm balancing my past
(white city on the 409)
cause you can't even hurt me
(white city on the 409)
like you already have
you didn't treat me right
but I'm not fucked - not quite
cold white
cold white
********
my feeling is that this earlier version of the song takes place exclusively in Oregon, and the lyrics were changed/polished up by the time the song was recorded for XO, incorporating Brooklyn (where ES lived for awhile after Oregon) into the XO lyrics ["So I wait for the f-train (white city on the yellow line)"]. The "F" train is my local subway line here in Brooklyn, and was probably used by ES as well, as he lived what would be a 10 minute walk from my apartment. And while the "F" train is technically on the orange line, I chalk the "yellow line" up to poetic license (yellow just sounds better than orange in the lyrical context of the song).

Elliott R.I.P.
Sometimes it had to hurt you a lot to be, but thank you for creating something truly beautiful and letting us listen.

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buwhaha
03-17-2005

Rated 0 
I think it is has something to do with feeling lost. You have stuff to do but you feel lost and out of place and nothing is for you. The whole "im a color reporter, but this whole towns bled white" could mean that. So you just get wasted instead.

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smmac
06-04-2005

Rated 0 
White city may mean a city where is snows. I'm' not sure what color reporter means. color commentary??

Brilliant lyrics though. I like the counterpoint between the main and background vocals. The background vocals sound a little more depressing. It's like he says something and then in a muttered tone says what he's really thinking. Just like in real life if you have something negative to say you often mumble it or say it in a hushed tone.

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samjuro
07-15-2005

Rated 0 
ha - I submitted the lyrics to sweetadeline.net the day before he killed himself. the above did a cut'n'paste from me!!!

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a band apart
07-17-2005

Rated 0 
Mary K - i prefered your sitting on the yellow line lyric! Sorry if thats blasphemous!

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upallnight
11-07-2005

Rated 0 
I also thought that the line was,

'drinking 'til destruction is just a waste of time'

But the other one sounds alot clearer.

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musicmandanoz
05-01-2006

Rated 0 
white city = chicago

eh?

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Naniwhy
05-07-2006

Rated 0 
I've always heard it as "Drinking to distraction's just a waste of time," but maybe I'm crazy.

And I love "sitting on the yellow line" - I think I'll play it that way from now on. Maybe it *is* blasphemous, but Elliott changed his lyrics around a lot, so I don't feel too bad about doing the same.

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catz-r-awesome
05-17-2006

Rated 0 
elliott smith is seriously my idol :)

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thelasttimeyoucried
07-14-2006

Rated 0 
I've always thought it was about Portland. He wrote this when he was still somewhat struggling. It's about how the city has some much music and it's so hard to get noticed.

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smartguyperiod20
10-05-2006

Rated 0 
pioneer square is a popular place in downtown seattle. like it s part of the city
I know he used to live in portland with is only like a couple hours away so i dont know if i helped or not

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zengrasshopper11
03-24-2007

Rated 0 
I think this song is about Portland.
"rose city" means portland. pioneer square is pioneer courthouse square, in portland. "white city" is because portland is a very white city, 75% white people. Before WWII other ethnicities were pressured not to live in oregon.
that doesn't explain the whole song i guess.

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maddilne
04-24-2007

Rated 0 
when he sang it, he sometimes said
'there's a girl at the border' in the beginning
a sweetie song, which is also really powerful.
'im not fucked not quite' oohh yeah.

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residentgiant
07-30-2007

Rated 0 
the first time i really paid attention to the lyrics in this song, i was in upstate NY visiting some former bandmates who i hadn't seen in a few years. this song came on my car's stereo and it so eerily described the situation i was in that it gave me goosebumps...
i live in NYC and i sort of figured he was talking about the (orange line) F train as well. to me it'll always be about nyc but now i know its about oregon...

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couitneyy
08-17-2007

Rated 0 
My interpretation is that he is a "color reporter"- someone who thrives on color, and yet he's in a city "bled white"- a city void of color, the thing he needs to flourish. Basically he's bored or uneasy about the dismal, uninteresting world surrounding him.

The lines "Because I'll have to be high to drag the sunset down/And paint this paling town" suggest that he is going to try and bring life back into the town. How is debatable. His being "high" could either mean being happy and above all the sad, disappointing souls of the city, or it could simply mean high on some form of drug. By Elliott's track record, I would assume the latter, but the lines "I'm never going to become what you became/Don't you dare disturb me" hint that Elliott meant that he is going to try and figuratively be "above" someone or some people.

Not Elliott's best, however that doesn't say much as even Elliott's poorest songs are better than most other artists and moving in some way. Seems he tried to create a slightly more upbeat one here. It worked but..I don't know. I kinda prefer the slower tempo for Elliott.

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Peekajew805
11-10-2007

Rated 0 
This song i am very sure is about drugs in most def. Portland, Or. The yellow line goes to a drug like neighborhood. The rose city, the in the alt. version singing about the square its a very well known place in Portland, i am very sure i live there. A beautiful song

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MikeProudhon
11-19-2007

Rated 0 
People amaze me on this website, every Elliott Smith song that isn't about drugs is described as being soley about drugs, while this one, which is explicitly about drugs use, nobody seems to mention the connotations. "And connect through a friend of mine" I mean, how obvious is that?

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