This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
I spend the days with my vanity
I'm lost in heaven and I'm lost to earth
Didn't give you minutes not even moments
All my life in a tower of foil
Shaded feelings, don't believe you
When you were there before my eyes
No one planned it took it for granted
I count the hours since you slipped away
I count the hours that I lie awake
I count the minutes and the seconds too
All I stole and I took from you
But Bonny don't live at home, Bonny don't live at home
Words don't hold you, broken soldiers
I count the hours since you slipped away
I count the hours that I lie awake
I count the minutes and the seconds too
All I stole and I took from you
But Bonny don't live at home, Bonny don't live at home
Words don't hold you, broken soldiers
All my silence and my strained respect
Missed chances and the same regrets
Kiss the thief and you save the rest
All my insights from retrospect
But Bonny's not coming home, Bonny don't live at home
Save your speeches, flowers are for funerals
I'm lost in heaven and I'm lost to earth
Didn't give you minutes not even moments
All my life in a tower of foil
Shaded feelings, don't believe you
When you were there before my eyes
No one planned it took it for granted
I count the hours since you slipped away
I count the hours that I lie awake
I count the minutes and the seconds too
All I stole and I took from you
But Bonny don't live at home, Bonny don't live at home
Words don't hold you, broken soldiers
I count the hours since you slipped away
I count the hours that I lie awake
I count the minutes and the seconds too
All I stole and I took from you
But Bonny don't live at home, Bonny don't live at home
Words don't hold you, broken soldiers
All my silence and my strained respect
Missed chances and the same regrets
Kiss the thief and you save the rest
All my insights from retrospect
But Bonny's not coming home, Bonny don't live at home
Save your speeches, flowers are for funerals
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
No one has commented? This is perhaps one of their best and most moving songs.
The singer seems to have had a fight or falling out with Bonny: "Shaded feelings, don't believe you"
Now Bonny is gone and the singer is counting the time and missing him and thinking about the things he owes him, stole or maybe learned ("All I stole and took from you").
He has no way of seeing him ever again since he no longer lives at home and can't get in touch. He misses him and regrets all the missed opportunities.
The final shock comes at the end in that he'll never have a second chance to make up for all the lost opportunities, "Save your speeches, flowers are for funerals."
this view is completely wrong.<br /> firstly bonny is a girls name.<br /> 'when you were there before my eyes'' etc... basically, author was in a relationship with a girl called bonny. he never gave her the time she deserved, lived for his vanity 'i spend the days with my vanity' and basially built a weak defense away from her with his 'tower of foil'<br /> it is clear that he broke up with her and now regrets everything<br /> 'all my silence and my strained respect'<br /> and wants her back<br /> 'i count the hours that you slipped away'<br /> <br /> 'but bonny don't live at home' suggests he can no lnoger find her and that she has become an obsession for him<br /> and then he finds out she is dead 'save your speeches and flowers for the funerals'<br /> <br /> this intepretation is im pretty sure 95% right or so, and is the view shared by most prefab fans of the meaning.
That was the direction I ws thinking originally. The use of the male pronoun "he" is confusing in this song. It's very clear both in the lyrics here and when you listen that he says "he don't live at home." I don't think I've ever known a native English speaker to accidentally mess up on the pronouns unless he's talking about "Pat" and he doesn't know the person. Anyway, very confusing. But yeah, it's clear someone died at the end. Maybe a post-op transexual during surgery. ;-)<br /> <br /> But yeah, I'm sure you're right. Must be right. For sure right.
some of the lyrics are wrong its not he dont live at home its "bonny dont live at home" for the second part of it. you can clearly hear "bonny", its 2 syllables and i'm sure "he" is just one syllable, unless you have a different version from itunes.<br /> <br /> and its also no one planned it, took it for granted.<br /> <br /> and this song could be about bonny committing suicide and he found out... though not sure..<br /> <br /> just from the words "no one planned it, took it for granted." and "I count the hours since you slipped away"<br /> <br /> <br /> i do agree with catherine <br />
The background vocals clearly say 'he' and you can hear it as well in the live version.<br /> <br /> The most likely explanation is that this song was inspired by The Catcher in the Rye novel as a few other songs at that time. <br /> Bonnie is potentially a reference to Allie Caulfield (and note there are some similarities in name choice). The reference 'flowers are for funerals' and would align with the line 'Who want flowers when you're dead?' and broken soldiers would align with Holden's sentiment.
I need it struck a chord after being separated from my boys after divorce,they will come back to me one day I live in hope.i know they are well and healthy and living their lives????.