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.
This is the story of Gad-About-Garth
He was the kind of man you see in every bar
An old school bling bling guy, shades on in the dark
"I'm here for the ladies" he'd say, "light up my smoke"
Workin' the dancefloor, he'd shake it about
Chains and jewellery shimmering, bling-a-ling, glimmering
Workin' the females, not a butt he didn't slap
Dropping one-liners, some chauvinist crap:
Hey Ba-by! Have you ever been south of the border?
Yo Shugah! What would you like for breakfast in the morning?
Garth's fellow-workers at the office were fed-up
"I swear if he tries som'n with me I'll smack his ass all the way back to gooberville!"
Especially the ladies who felt they had enough
"Damn straight" "Uh-huh!"
They had arranged for him a neat little surprise
The yearly party at the office was the night
They hired some really beautiful drag queens
To jump out of a cake and tease around the crowd "Ta-dah!"
Everyone was in on it but Garth who was quite drunk
He did his usual act, obnoxious and loud
He was workin' the dancefloor, he'd shake it about
Chains and jewellery shimmering, bling-a-ling, glimmering
Workin' the queens, not a crotch he did not tap
Dropping one-liners, some chauvinist crap:
Hey Ba-by! Have you ever been south of the border?
Yo Shugah! What would you like for breakfast in the morning?
In the morning Garth woke up next to a beefy lady
with no hair and bad breath
He was angry, but then at the same time he could not
make himself leave just yet
All these feelings, what are these?
Have I been Gad-About-Garth just to hide something that I am?
He remembered everything and felt a rush go through him as he
realised he'd made love to a man!
In a sense he felt fulfilled as he looked back on gettin' high with
Amanda last night (A man – duh!)
How could something he had always thought was filthy
growing up, suddenly seem so right?
‘CAUSE HE WAS GAY!
This was the story of the Gay-Man-Garth
He is the kind of man you don't see in a bar
A truly pleasant guy who listens, understands
All women wants him, but he saves it for the gents
He was the kind of man you see in every bar
An old school bling bling guy, shades on in the dark
"I'm here for the ladies" he'd say, "light up my smoke"
Workin' the dancefloor, he'd shake it about
Chains and jewellery shimmering, bling-a-ling, glimmering
Workin' the females, not a butt he didn't slap
Dropping one-liners, some chauvinist crap:
Hey Ba-by! Have you ever been south of the border?
Yo Shugah! What would you like for breakfast in the morning?
Garth's fellow-workers at the office were fed-up
"I swear if he tries som'n with me I'll smack his ass all the way back to gooberville!"
Especially the ladies who felt they had enough
"Damn straight" "Uh-huh!"
They had arranged for him a neat little surprise
The yearly party at the office was the night
They hired some really beautiful drag queens
To jump out of a cake and tease around the crowd "Ta-dah!"
Everyone was in on it but Garth who was quite drunk
He did his usual act, obnoxious and loud
He was workin' the dancefloor, he'd shake it about
Chains and jewellery shimmering, bling-a-ling, glimmering
Workin' the queens, not a crotch he did not tap
Dropping one-liners, some chauvinist crap:
Hey Ba-by! Have you ever been south of the border?
Yo Shugah! What would you like for breakfast in the morning?
In the morning Garth woke up next to a beefy lady
with no hair and bad breath
He was angry, but then at the same time he could not
make himself leave just yet
All these feelings, what are these?
Have I been Gad-About-Garth just to hide something that I am?
He remembered everything and felt a rush go through him as he
realised he'd made love to a man!
In a sense he felt fulfilled as he looked back on gettin' high with
Amanda last night (A man – duh!)
How could something he had always thought was filthy
growing up, suddenly seem so right?
‘CAUSE HE WAS GAY!
This was the story of the Gay-Man-Garth
He is the kind of man you don't see in a bar
A truly pleasant guy who listens, understands
All women wants him, but he saves it for the gents
Lyrics submitted by Fadefury
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
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
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,
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.
I think this song is hilarious. cool album