In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Chloe don't know better
Chloe just like me, only beautiful
A couple of years of difference
But those lessons never learned
Chloe danced the tables in the french quarter
She always been given so I can't always make her laugh
But I'm proud to say
And I won't forget
Time spent laying by her side
Time spent laying by her side
And dreams like this must die
And dreams like this must die
And dreams like this must
You ever heard the story of Mr.Faded Glory?
Say he who rides a pony must someday fall
Been talkin' to my alter
Say life is what you make it
And if you make it death well then rest your soul away
Away away yeah child
It's a broken kind of feeling
She'd have to tie me to the ceiling
A bad moon's a comin' better say your prayers, child
I want to tell her that I love you
But does it really matter?
I just can't stand to see you dragging down Again
Again
My baby again, oh, yeah
So I'm singing
And this is my kinda love
It's the kind that moves on
It's unkind and leaves me alone
Yes it does
And this is my kinda love
It's the kind that moves on
It's unkind that leaves me alone
I uses to treat you like a lady
Now you're a substitute teacher
This bottle's not a pretty, not a pretty sight
I owe the man some money so I'm turnin' over honey
You see Mr.Faded Glory is once again doin' time, oh yeah
And this is my kinda love
It's the kind that moves on
It's the kind the leaves me alone
Yes, it does
And this is my kinda love
It's the kind that moves on
It's the kind that, it's the kind that
It leaves me alone, yeah
Like a crown of thorns
It's all who you know, yeah
So don't burn your bridges woman
'Cause someday, yeah
Kick it, oh yeah
And this is my kinda love
It's the kind that moves on
It's the kind that leaves me alone, yeah
This is my kinda love
It's the kind that moves on
It's the kind that, it's the kind that, yeah, yeah
Baby
I said com' on, com' on, com' on com' on yeah
I said baby
Don't burn your bridges, woman
Don't come back here
I said good times, tu tu tu
Tu tu tu
I said tu tu tu
Chloe just like me, only beautiful
A couple of years of difference
But those lessons never learned
Chloe danced the tables in the french quarter
She always been given so I can't always make her laugh
But I'm proud to say
And I won't forget
Time spent laying by her side
Time spent laying by her side
And dreams like this must die
And dreams like this must die
And dreams like this must
You ever heard the story of Mr.Faded Glory?
Say he who rides a pony must someday fall
Been talkin' to my alter
Say life is what you make it
And if you make it death well then rest your soul away
Away away yeah child
It's a broken kind of feeling
She'd have to tie me to the ceiling
A bad moon's a comin' better say your prayers, child
I want to tell her that I love you
But does it really matter?
I just can't stand to see you dragging down Again
Again
My baby again, oh, yeah
So I'm singing
And this is my kinda love
It's the kind that moves on
It's unkind and leaves me alone
Yes it does
And this is my kinda love
It's the kind that moves on
It's unkind that leaves me alone
I uses to treat you like a lady
Now you're a substitute teacher
This bottle's not a pretty, not a pretty sight
I owe the man some money so I'm turnin' over honey
You see Mr.Faded Glory is once again doin' time, oh yeah
And this is my kinda love
It's the kind that moves on
It's the kind the leaves me alone
Yes, it does
And this is my kinda love
It's the kind that moves on
It's the kind that, it's the kind that
It leaves me alone, yeah
Like a crown of thorns
It's all who you know, yeah
So don't burn your bridges woman
'Cause someday, yeah
Kick it, oh yeah
And this is my kinda love
It's the kind that moves on
It's the kind that leaves me alone, yeah
This is my kinda love
It's the kind that moves on
It's the kind that, it's the kind that, yeah, yeah
Baby
I said com' on, com' on, com' on com' on yeah
I said baby
Don't burn your bridges, woman
Don't come back here
I said good times, tu tu tu
Tu tu tu
I said tu tu tu
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I meant to post this as a general comment and not a reply. Sorry, I am new this site and how it works...apologies.
There is a great blog about Andy Wood and MLB that has a lot of wonderful stories and anecdotes by an author know as DKING. D met Andy in the mid 80's when Andy applied for a job at a store that D owned on the gulf coast of Texas. The two eventually became close friends and Andy ended up living with D for a period of time.
D had known a woman that he became close to. He was in a band and wanted this woman to be the lead guitarist of the band. She was murdered...and this left D with a huge void in his life. One day, Andy came walking through the door of the store, just like this woman had earlier, and D felt like he was having a "flashback". As the two became close to one another, the talk of this woman came up. D was having dreams at night where this woman was appearing to him. After talking with Andy, he was having similar dreams, with a woman of the same description. She was also contacting him with subjects such as an early and untimely demise. The two became convinced that Andy and the deceased woman were spiritual twins and Andy came into D's life to fulfill a purpose. Andy referred to this woman as his "Capricorn Sister"...his twin soul. When Andy wrote the song about this woman he used the name Chloe because it meant a woman of mystery in the Scripture. This song is not about a prostitute, a stripper, or a person that influenced Andy into drug addiction.
When the line says "Chloe danced the tables in the French Quarter..." it referred to something that D did to come in conatact with Chloe's spirit. He said that he would go to the nightclubs in Galveston, TX and look for Chloe's soul, and after a few drinks he would chase her from tabletop to tabletop (literally), trying to catch her. Andy actually told D one night that he could see her sprit jumping from table to table just ahead of him. D asked Andy why he changed the setting in the song from Galveston to New Orleans and Andy told him that Galveston already had a popular song and that New Orleans was "sexier".
The original draft of the song ended with "Dreams Like This Must Die". D told Andy that the song cannot end like that because Chloe is still alive in his heart...and that he could never forgive him if he let the song end like that. Andy added the line "Dreams Like This Must..." to the end of the song saying that the interpretation could be left up to the listener.
I hope that this clears up some meaning of the song.
That's really beautiful. It made me tear up. Thanks for sharing.
@lelly interesting, i've read the blog about andrew and I wonder if everything is really true.
I may actually have written this song, back in 1987. When I, as a youth, was visiting Seattle, in connection with a visit to the Mother Love Bone group, organized by the music magazine "Okej". I then possibly met Chloe, at one of the "cafèbars" there, and thought that she was somewhat similar to a type like me. By the way, I'm somewhat dark blond, and may have a somewhat special appearance. Chloe was perhaps a girl/woman with a so-called French ethnicity, perhaps Germanic French. Maybe it was like that. Will possibly explain more later. Maybe it was like that. Will possibly explain more later. The song possibly describes a shorter acquaintance, but possibly met her later as well.
Hey, again. It was back in 1987/88, long time ago, can be difficult to remember.
The mystery for me as a lyricist is who "Chloe" was, trying to remember this. Chloe is a new female acquaintance that was made the "Okay long weekend" I was in Seattle with the female Okay journalist, in 1987/88. Chloe may have been a girl/woman who may have worked in some type of café, night club, in the French quarters of Seattle (the french quarters), maybe it was even some type of strip club. In one way or another, during the 3-4 days in Seattle, I also visited a night club in the French Quarter, and got to know a girl/woman. Even a shorter acquaintance possibly, hehe. The text can describe some of this. Later that same year, in 1987/88. I once again traveled to Seattle, but this time on my own initiative, in connection with a type of "international summer school" in Seattle, or out on the island where Andy came from, Bainbridge Island. Who do you think I met there then, it was "Chloe" herself, who had now advanced to be a type of substitute teacher, at this international summer school that I also attended. That then explains the lyrics in the song; "I used to treat you like a lady, now you're a substitute teacher", previously I had met her as a cafe waitress/stripper, and treated her like a woman (can be in the sense of flirting, sex, etc. ), and later described her as a substitute teacher, in connection with the next meeting, a few months later.