This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Everyone knows I'm the hard workin' peace lovin' type
I walk a thousand miles out of my way
Just to keep from a fight
Poke fun at the way that I talk
Or this hat that I wear
You can say what you want about me
See if I care
But one slip of the tongue 'bout my God Or my mama
Or this flag that I wear on my shirt
You'll see a side of me man
That I don't think you wanna
Cause them there's fightin' words
Now don't get me wrong
I've swapped skin now and then in my youth
I was all for an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth
Now the older I get
The less I wanna stand toe to toe
But before you go runnin' your mouth
I think you oughta know
That one slip of the tongue 'bout my God
Or my mama
Or this flag that I wear on my shirt
You'll see a side of me man
That I don't think you wanna
Cause them there's fightin' words
Chevrolet or Ford
The south or the north
That ain't gonna get me worked up
But I'll draw the line
Every time when it comes to the things that I love
So one slip of the tongue 'bout my dog
Or my woman
Or this country that I proudly serve
You'll see a side of me man
That you damn sure don't wanna
Cause them there's fightin' words
Yeah, them's fightin' words
Ah them's fightin' words, Hoss
Excuse me
First amendment?
Son, the first amendment protects you from the government
Not from me
You can say whatever you want to out there
You come within reach of me
I'll exercise my right to give you a good ol' country ass whoopin'
Is what I'll do for you
By God
I walk a thousand miles out of my way
Just to keep from a fight
Poke fun at the way that I talk
Or this hat that I wear
You can say what you want about me
See if I care
But one slip of the tongue 'bout my God Or my mama
Or this flag that I wear on my shirt
You'll see a side of me man
That I don't think you wanna
Cause them there's fightin' words
Now don't get me wrong
I've swapped skin now and then in my youth
I was all for an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth
Now the older I get
The less I wanna stand toe to toe
But before you go runnin' your mouth
I think you oughta know
That one slip of the tongue 'bout my God
Or my mama
Or this flag that I wear on my shirt
You'll see a side of me man
That I don't think you wanna
Cause them there's fightin' words
Chevrolet or Ford
The south or the north
That ain't gonna get me worked up
But I'll draw the line
Every time when it comes to the things that I love
So one slip of the tongue 'bout my dog
Or my woman
Or this country that I proudly serve
You'll see a side of me man
That you damn sure don't wanna
Cause them there's fightin' words
Yeah, them's fightin' words
Ah them's fightin' words, Hoss
Excuse me
First amendment?
Son, the first amendment protects you from the government
Not from me
You can say whatever you want to out there
You come within reach of me
I'll exercise my right to give you a good ol' country ass whoopin'
Is what I'll do for you
By God
Lyrics submitted by JenniLee2003
Fightin' Words Lyrics as written by Tim James Kendel Marvell
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
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.
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.
No ones commented on this?? Have to say that that last little bit " Uh, excuse me? First ammendment? Son, the first ammendment protects you from the gov'ment, Not from me. Yeah, you can say whatever you want to out there,but you come within reach o' me, I'll excersise my right to give you a good ole country ass woopin right there" is one of my favorite lines ever.
also, anyone notice that this song and "Whoop a Man's Ass" are very similar?