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.
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
Dad found me on the steps of the video arcade
Oprhan baby in a basket, seven pounds is all I weighed
And before I learned to walk well I'd mastered Donkey Kong
Q'bert, Final Fight, Master Blaster and Pong
Blindfolded, okay, yeah, I know it sounds adorable
But dollars signs in pop's eyes grew creepy and deplorable
He said, "Play by the noises, follow the ding boing"
But can I walk the dog and do my homework?
First, collect coins
Kid, didn't I find you with a controller in hand?
Now why do you got to go and bring shame to your old man?
Same to your old fans, you were a child prodigy
Up on a milk crate at the cabinet, making cottage cheese
Out of anybody'd put a quarter on screen
My pride in you, extended like the limbs of Dhalsim
All green money motives must a back seat take
Put the textbooks down, I'm trying to make you great
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
Locked in the attic I was trained from my crib to the stroller
While dad beat me senseless with the NES controller
Kid, listen, I promise, it's for your own good
Wits that you've shown, should you level up? It's understood
I hadn't been out since '98 like Sega Saturn
I've been learning ten-hit combos and the speed run patterns
More play, less chatter, you're a champion, kid
Under your mattress there had better be some cartridges hid
Up up down down left right left right B A, mad scary
It's like Clockwork Orange meets Ray Bradbury
It's unnecessary to struggle, you're fated to win
But till you beat Bowser you stay strapped in
I wanna live a fun life, I've only seen the sun twice
I want real friends, dad, Nintendogs won't suffice
Why do you ask for nothing when the world could be yours?
Flesh and blood, fun's fleeting seek eternal high scores
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
I wanna go to school and clean my room
I don't wanna sit here playing Doom
Three, can't you see I need to go out and play, yo
Real sports like baseball, I'm sick of Halo
Then you're sick of the meaning of life at your age
Better try a little harder, you want to clear that stage
And step into the middle of an existence examined
Do it or you're grounded, make you play backgammon
Here's a list of things that I'd rather do
Than sitting home playing Super Smash Brothers with you
Eat peas, do the dishes, walk the dog, mow the lawn
Take your wii and shove it, I'm off pops, I'm gone, peace
Don't Joust with me, kid, I'll go Berzerk
After all of your talent, all of my hard work
All the winnings that you earn, you're celebrity too
You wanna put us on the streets like the TV movies do
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
Dad found me on the steps of the video arcade
Oprhan baby in a basket, seven pounds is all I weighed
And before I learned to walk well I'd mastered Donkey Kong
Q'bert, Final Fight, Master Blaster and Pong
Blindfolded, okay, yeah, I know it sounds adorable
But dollars signs in pop's eyes grew creepy and deplorable
He said, "Play by the noises, follow the ding boing"
But can I walk the dog and do my homework?
First, collect coins
Kid, didn't I find you with a controller in hand?
Now why do you got to go and bring shame to your old man?
Same to your old fans, you were a child prodigy
Up on a milk crate at the cabinet, making cottage cheese
Out of anybody'd put a quarter on screen
My pride in you, extended like the limbs of Dhalsim
All green money motives must a back seat take
Put the textbooks down, I'm trying to make you great
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
Locked in the attic I was trained from my crib to the stroller
While dad beat me senseless with the NES controller
Kid, listen, I promise, it's for your own good
Wits that you've shown, should you level up? It's understood
I hadn't been out since '98 like Sega Saturn
I've been learning ten-hit combos and the speed run patterns
More play, less chatter, you're a champion, kid
Under your mattress there had better be some cartridges hid
Up up down down left right left right B A, mad scary
It's like Clockwork Orange meets Ray Bradbury
It's unnecessary to struggle, you're fated to win
But till you beat Bowser you stay strapped in
I wanna live a fun life, I've only seen the sun twice
I want real friends, dad, Nintendogs won't suffice
Why do you ask for nothing when the world could be yours?
Flesh and blood, fun's fleeting seek eternal high scores
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
I wanna go to school and clean my room
I don't wanna sit here playing Doom
Three, can't you see I need to go out and play, yo
Real sports like baseball, I'm sick of Halo
Then you're sick of the meaning of life at your age
Better try a little harder, you want to clear that stage
And step into the middle of an existence examined
Do it or you're grounded, make you play backgammon
Here's a list of things that I'd rather do
Than sitting home playing Super Smash Brothers with you
Eat peas, do the dishes, walk the dog, mow the lawn
Take your wii and shove it, I'm off pops, I'm gone, peace
Don't Joust with me, kid, I'll go Berzerk
After all of your talent, all of my hard work
All the winnings that you earn, you're celebrity too
You wanna put us on the streets like the TV movies do
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
OG original gamer
Sad as "Face of a Stranger"
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
Standing On The Edge Of Summer
Thursday
Thursday
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
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,
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.
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.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.