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'm watching all the time pass
Watching all the grass grow long
Seeing the same old girl
Singing the same old song
With the same old trees
Growing the same gold leaves
'Cause it's a brand new you
Is it the same old me?
So I'll just follow the seams
'Cause it's the same ol' same
I heard it's all my fault
I'm taking all of the blame
The bullshit's been bought
And now we're feeling the pain
But fuck it, right?
'Cause, hey, these are the days
These are the days that we know we won't remember
Who we are
It's about damn time that I got on my way
Yeah
These are the beautiful people who stayed in us
It's who we are
But it's not who we want to be
Not who we want to be
(You are doing the best you can to recall what happened on this particular day)
Too far from home, and I've lost my track
It's one last straw on this camel's back
I wonder where my friends went
'Cause my pocket's empty, and my money's spent
And if we ever wanna go back, we could smoke a pack
And pray for a heart attack
We all relapse, clear our minds
Float in space and ride the ride (c'mon!)
These are the days that we know we won't remember
Who we are
It's about damn time that I got on my way
Yeah
These are the beautiful people who stayed in us
It's who we are
But it's not who we want to be
Not who we want to be
I wanna know, I wanna fall
I wanna feel something real
I wanna try to come alive
Instead of walking in my sleep
I'd like to think I have a friend
Just say it again
I wanna dream, I wanna float
I wanna fly all the time
I wanna make ties, wanna socialize
Sit, just sit, and watch the ocean rise
These are the days that we know we won't remember
Who we are
It's about damn time that I got on my way
Yeah
These are the beautiful people who stayed in us (but who the hell are they?)
It's who we are
But it's not who we want to be
Not who we want to be (you know it's not who we wanna be)
Not who we want to be (you know it's not who we wanna be)
Not who we want to be (it's not who we wanna be)
These are the days that we know we won't remember
Who we are
It's about damn time that I got on my way
Yeah
These are the beautiful people who stayed in us
It's who we are
But it's not who we want to be
Not who we want to be
Watching all the grass grow long
Seeing the same old girl
Singing the same old song
With the same old trees
Growing the same gold leaves
'Cause it's a brand new you
Is it the same old me?
So I'll just follow the seams
'Cause it's the same ol' same
I heard it's all my fault
I'm taking all of the blame
The bullshit's been bought
And now we're feeling the pain
But fuck it, right?
'Cause, hey, these are the days
These are the days that we know we won't remember
Who we are
It's about damn time that I got on my way
Yeah
These are the beautiful people who stayed in us
It's who we are
But it's not who we want to be
Not who we want to be
(You are doing the best you can to recall what happened on this particular day)
Too far from home, and I've lost my track
It's one last straw on this camel's back
I wonder where my friends went
'Cause my pocket's empty, and my money's spent
And if we ever wanna go back, we could smoke a pack
And pray for a heart attack
We all relapse, clear our minds
Float in space and ride the ride (c'mon!)
These are the days that we know we won't remember
Who we are
It's about damn time that I got on my way
Yeah
These are the beautiful people who stayed in us
It's who we are
But it's not who we want to be
Not who we want to be
I wanna know, I wanna fall
I wanna feel something real
I wanna try to come alive
Instead of walking in my sleep
I'd like to think I have a friend
Just say it again
I wanna dream, I wanna float
I wanna fly all the time
I wanna make ties, wanna socialize
Sit, just sit, and watch the ocean rise
These are the days that we know we won't remember
Who we are
It's about damn time that I got on my way
Yeah
These are the beautiful people who stayed in us (but who the hell are they?)
It's who we are
But it's not who we want to be
Not who we want to be (you know it's not who we wanna be)
Not who we want to be (you know it's not who we wanna be)
Not who we want to be (it's not who we wanna be)
These are the days that we know we won't remember
Who we are
It's about damn time that I got on my way
Yeah
These are the beautiful people who stayed in us
It's who we are
But it's not who we want to be
Not who we want to be
Lyrics submitted by gabyrox712
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
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.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
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.