Got a call from an old friend we'd used to be real close
Said he couldn't go on the American way
Closed the shop, sold the house, bought a ticket to the west coast
Now he gives them a stand-up routine in L.A.

I don't need you to worry for me 'cause I'm alright
I don't want you to tell me it's time to come home
I don't care what you say anymore this is my life
Go ahead with your own life leave me alone

I never said you had to offer me a second chance
I never said I was a victim of circumstance
I still belong
Don't get me wrong
And you can speak your mind
But not on my time

They will tell you you can't sleep alone in a strange place
Then they'll tell you can't sleep with somebody else
Ah but sooner or later you sleep in your own space
Either way it's O.K. you wake up with yourself

I don't need you to worry for me 'cause I'm alright
I don't want you to tell me it's time to come home
I don't care what you say anymore this is my life
Go ahead with your own life leave me alone

I never said you had to offer me a second chance
I never said I was a victim of circumstance
I still belong
Don't get me wrong
And you can speak your mind
But not on my time

I don't care what you say anymore this is my life
Go ahead with your own life leave me alone


Lyrics submitted by kevin

My Life Lyrics as written by Billy Joel

Lyrics © Kanjian Music, BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network, Bluewater Music Corp., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

My Life song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

37 Comments

sort form View by:
  • +1
    General Comment

    I believe it's one where you find the meaning hidden in between the lines..it's general but yet personal. It's actually very DEEP on the surface. Ultimately it is about the need for one to find their own way in life, to be strong in holding their own. They may make believe they can do without others and tjeir well intentioned advice, but in the end must realize they need to be mor humble, accept their help and admit they don't know it all. Otherwise they will end up becoming a victim of their own foolish choices and circumstances in life. I think it mostly is to do with a couple or very good friends that were very close and now have been separated and are strangers but call out of the blue after time has passed. The woman has more wisdom than the man and he is too proud to accept her help or that she may see more than he can see. He wants to be a man and is frustrated that he can't seem to find success in the all the ways he's tried. He has made bad decisions and at times she tried to help him see the light. He is trying to established himself as a grown man it's why he is telling her and others to not tell him how to live his life he will find out himself and find his place in this world meaning his "space in life". He is also tired of feeling people think he can't measure up or won't amount to anything.. so he is rebellious and sets out as a proud man. It shouldn't matter how he lives his life to anyone but himself, other shouldn't be judging him. He had a comfortable home and people that loved him but he didn't feel confident in who he was yet and needed to go out and find that person. He didn't like the stable way of life and wanted freedom and adventure. Too many people too close to him that would know what he was doing and he didn't want that. Even after all the decisions he's made and some that really haven't worked out he still doesn't want to admit that some were tight and he should just come back home. In other words he left as a proud man but can he return as a man that's been humbled by life!? They probably do break up or at least go their separate ways because he doesn't like the feeling of being controlled (or constricted to how society views him therefore affecting her opinion of him), but he misunderstands her help as that and so he wants to get away from her (maybe he also didn't like the thoughts that other people had about him as if he wasn't good enough for the girl, he had to be something more.. so he also needed to get away from their disapproval.. because he didn't feel good enough for her as he was and he - believed he needed to be something more first) prove to himself that he doesn't need her. Ultimately he wants his freedom and to explore and cannot believe that she was right about a lot of things. The guy is a very very proud man ... and very confused . She trys To give him advice that he should give some things longer and not make such hasty decisions. So she asks him questions in hopes that he will think for himself. In the end she really isn't telling him what to do in fact, she wants him to be a man and find himself first before he ever be with her. Because she sees he's not confident and the man he is and therefore it will affect the trust in their relationship. He doesn't like being proven wrong and he still is very proud and doesn't want to admit that the woman was right all along. And yet he knows that he was wrong and he doesn't really want to be without her. So the chorus has a lot to do with reverse psychology. It's almost like he's having a conversation in his own mind.. going over the conversation they had and he was too stubborn to take her advice. And there's some frustration if not anger there. "He's angry at himself that's why he saying "I never said you had to give me a second chance and I never said I was a victim of my own circumstances" it the way he does) so for sure disappointment and he has regrets because after it all is said and done (can't change what's already happened) he is realizing he doesn't really want to be alone and doesn't want her to not worry about him. He is in complete denial that's why he tells himself I never said" and tries to tell himself that he's all right without her and he doesn't need her or her help when really he's just lying to himself . He can still hear her voice and realizes that she was right about a lot of things and it drives him mad so he has this conversation in his own mind again and again! Everything has to do with reverse psychology because in the second chorus he's actually saying I really wish you would give me a second chance and I know I'm saying go ahead and leave me alone but he really doesn't want for her to leave him alone, but he's too proud to ask outright and to apologize. And he still doesn't want to admit that he created his circumstances on his own. Hence the reason he says he's not a victim. The trickey line to me is where he says I still belong don't get me wrong. I mean is he saying that he still belongs in The Game of Life so don't dismiss him and he'll pick himself up after having been a victim of his own circumstances..ie FOOLISH Choices?. Or another way I look at that is meaning that he still May belong with (he lost her and now he's trying to make himself believe he still belongs..Like she still holds a place in her heart for him. He is trying to tell himself he's not wrong ..he cam't be wrong ..right * he's questioning himself that he hopes he is right about this that he still does belong with her) her since he is wanting a second chance.. but don't get him wrong he still is his own man. And she isn't right about everything.. because if she was then she would have realized he would want to come back home. Because he knows what he needs to do it's just come back home with his tail wagging behind him, to humble himselg and just admit he was wrong.. . And she can say what she wants to but just don't say it to him in a way that says I told you so. Because he won't hear it in his life.. Ever!.. so she and others can believe what they want about it, but it won't change how he feels about it.

    alicia1148on March 25, 2016   Link

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

Album art
Standing On The Edge Of Summer
Thursday
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.
Album art
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve. The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future. Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere" The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
Album art
Holiday
Bee Gees
@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday". I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
Album art
No Surprises
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.
Album art
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.