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,
Every new day is a gift, it's a song of redemption
Any expression of love is the way to return
To that place that I think of so often, but now never mention
The one the voice in the back of my head says that I don't deserve
Come fire, come water, come karma
We're all in transition
The wheel I'm becoming erases the physical mind
Until all that remains is a staircase of misinformation
And the code we inherit, the basis, the essence of life
So I go, umbrella under my arm
Into the green of the radar
How'd it get so dark in the day?
It's just so bizarre
Is it true what we're made of?
Why do I hide from the rain?
Inside's so cloudy, nostalgia
But there are no features
Look at ourselves through a porthole
The passage of time
See that sunny day that we snuck out, hid under the bleachers
Kissed as the band marched
Everything fell into line
So I go, umbrella under my arm
Into the green of the radar
How'd I get so lost? I'm amazed
It's just so bizarre
All the things I'm afraid of
Why do I hide from the rain?
Sure I have my doubts
But I know it now
We are Jejune stars
So it starts again
At our childhood's end
I'll die young at heart, heart
So I go, umbrella under my arm
Into the green of the radar
How'd it get so dark in the day?
It's just so bizarre
Is it true, what we're made of?
Why do I hide from the rain?
Any expression of love is the way to return
To that place that I think of so often, but now never mention
The one the voice in the back of my head says that I don't deserve
Come fire, come water, come karma
We're all in transition
The wheel I'm becoming erases the physical mind
Until all that remains is a staircase of misinformation
And the code we inherit, the basis, the essence of life
So I go, umbrella under my arm
Into the green of the radar
How'd it get so dark in the day?
It's just so bizarre
Is it true what we're made of?
Why do I hide from the rain?
Inside's so cloudy, nostalgia
But there are no features
Look at ourselves through a porthole
The passage of time
See that sunny day that we snuck out, hid under the bleachers
Kissed as the band marched
Everything fell into line
So I go, umbrella under my arm
Into the green of the radar
How'd I get so lost? I'm amazed
It's just so bizarre
All the things I'm afraid of
Why do I hide from the rain?
Sure I have my doubts
But I know it now
We are Jejune stars
So it starts again
At our childhood's end
I'll die young at heart, heart
So I go, umbrella under my arm
Into the green of the radar
How'd it get so dark in the day?
It's just so bizarre
Is it true, what we're made of?
Why do I hide from the rain?
Lyrics submitted by littlebabykatie
Jejune Stars [Companion Version] Lyrics as written by Conor M Oberst
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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As I interpret it, this song is about FEAR OF DEATH.
The first verse is a reference to christianity and the christian view on death. In order to get to heaven, you should be thankful for every day and love and forgive. "Every new day is a gift, it's a song of redemption, Any expression of love is the way to return" The place he is then talking about is heaven. He feels guilt, and that he has lived his life in a sinful way (not as a christian should).
The next verse is a reference to Buddhism and the buddhist view of death and the meaning of life. This is then tied together with the scientific outlook on the meaning of life and death. "The wheel I'm becoming erases the physical mind" Basically he is talking about how according to science, the mind is only physical, and according to buddhism we have some sort of spirit or immaterial soul. The "staircase of misinformation and the code we inherit" is of course DNA, and how according to science the meaning of life is to reproduce and make sure our genes are passed on, because after we die, our offspring is all that remains. If you're an atheist, DNA really is "the basis, the essence of life."
Then comes the slightly more obscure chorus which is more open to interpretation. Personally I think he is using the forecast of rain ("the green of the radar") as a metaphor for the anticipation of death. We all know it is coming. We can't change the weather, and we can't change the fact that we are going to die. The umbrella symbolizes our futile or jejune attempts to escape death. He then goes on to suggest that it is "bizarre" that we are afraid of death, if it is "true what we're made of". Because if we are no more than atoms and molecules, we really do not have anything to fear. So why do we hide from the rain?
The next verse reflects upon love or perhaps life itself as the meaning of life. "Inside's so cloudy, nostalgia [...] Look at ourselves through a porthole" is about him looking back and remembering his life. Although we live for quite a long time we forget most of it. "Cloudy" has a double meaning since it both means obscure and how the clouds, or the decay of our memory anticipates rain or death. Likewise "sunny" gets a double meaning in the next few lines as it both means that the weather was sunny and that he was young and alive. When we're young love usually seems like the meaning of life and it is what our lives revolve around. ("Kissed as the band marched, Everything fell into line")
In the last verse he finally concludes, based on all of these different perspectives on the meaning of life and death that we are "Jejune stars". Exactly what he Conor means with that I am not sure. As someone already pointed out it is an oxymoron, which I think highlights Conors conflicted view on the meaning of life. At the same time as the human life is jejune; insignificant, naive and oblivious to the great mysteries of the universe, our lives still have the beauty and light associated with stars.
I really love this song.