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,
There's an echo pulling out the meaning
Rescuing a nightmare from a dream
The voices in my head are always screaming
That none of this means anything to me
And it's a long way back from seventeen
The whispers turn into a scream
And I'm, I'm not coming home
Save your breath, I'm nearly
Bored to death and fading fast
Life is too short to last long
Back on earth, I'm broken
Lost and cold and fading fast
Life is too short to last long
There's a stranger staring at the ceiling
Rescuing a tiger from a tree
The pictures in her head are always dreaming
Each of them means everything to me
And it's a long way back from seventeen
The whispers turn into a scream
And I'm, I'm not coming home
Save your breath, I'm nearly
Bored to death and fading fast
Life is too short to last long
Back on earth, I'm broken
Lost and cold and fading fast
Life is too short to last long
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) I think I met her at the minute that the rhythm was set down
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) I said I'm sorry I'm a little bit of a letdown
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) but all my friends are daring me to come over
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) so I come over and over and over
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) so let me buy you a drink and we'll pretend that you think
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) that I'm the man of your dreams come to life in a dive bar
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) and we'll go over and over and over
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) and we'll go over and over and over
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) and we'll go over and over and over
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) and we'll go over and over and over
Save your breath, I'm nearly
Bored to death and fading fast
Life is too short to last long
Back on earth, I'm broken
Lost and cold and fading fast
Life is too short to last long
(Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)
(Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, life is too short to last long)
(Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)
Rescuing a nightmare from a dream
The voices in my head are always screaming
That none of this means anything to me
And it's a long way back from seventeen
The whispers turn into a scream
And I'm, I'm not coming home
Save your breath, I'm nearly
Bored to death and fading fast
Life is too short to last long
Back on earth, I'm broken
Lost and cold and fading fast
Life is too short to last long
There's a stranger staring at the ceiling
Rescuing a tiger from a tree
The pictures in her head are always dreaming
Each of them means everything to me
And it's a long way back from seventeen
The whispers turn into a scream
And I'm, I'm not coming home
Save your breath, I'm nearly
Bored to death and fading fast
Life is too short to last long
Back on earth, I'm broken
Lost and cold and fading fast
Life is too short to last long
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) I think I met her at the minute that the rhythm was set down
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) I said I'm sorry I'm a little bit of a letdown
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) but all my friends are daring me to come over
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) so I come over and over and over
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) so let me buy you a drink and we'll pretend that you think
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) that I'm the man of your dreams come to life in a dive bar
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) and we'll go over and over and over
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) and we'll go over and over and over
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) and we'll go over and over and over
(Oh, oh, oh, oh) and we'll go over and over and over
Save your breath, I'm nearly
Bored to death and fading fast
Life is too short to last long
Back on earth, I'm broken
Lost and cold and fading fast
Life is too short to last long
(Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)
(Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, life is too short to last long)
(Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh)
Lyrics submitted by Skoobasteve24
Bored To Death Lyrics as written by Mark Hoppus John William Feldmann
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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More Featured Meanings
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
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No Surprises
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Blue
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Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
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Ed Sheeran
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Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
Here's my more detailed interpretation of the song:
There's an echo pulling out the meaning Rescuing a nightmare from a dream (I think this line is a metaphor and means that the rational voice in his head is telling him to end the nightmare by ending the relationship.. Originally the relationship started out great (a dream relationship) but over time the relationship has deteriorated and he is no longer happy (a nightmare). So the dream relationship turned into a nightmare relationship which he is now trying to end/rescue).
The voices in my head are always screaming That none of this means anything to me (The rational voice in his head is telling him that the relationship isn't working and that he needs to end it, and that deep down the relationship doesn't mean anything to him).
And it's a long way back from seventeen The whispers turn into a scream And I'm, I'm not coming home (Pretty easy to interpret, they've been together for a long time - since they were 17. The voice in his head that was telling him the relationship needs to end started out as a whisper but is getting louder and louder until eventually he is out by himself or with friends one night and decides he isn't coming home).
Save your breath, I'm nearly Bored to death and fading fast (His girlfriend is arguing with him and he is telling her that she's wasting her time by arguing with him and that the relationship is nearly over).
Life is too short to last long (Life is too short to spend it in a dead-end relationship).
Back on earth, I'm broken Lost and cold and fading fast (Back on earth could be a metaphor that is saying his girlfriend's head is up in the clouds or it's like she's living in a different world by being in denial about their problems). Life is too short to last long
There's a stranger staring at the ceiling Rescuing a tiger from a tree The pictures in her head are always dreaming Each of them means everything to me (I'm not really sure what this verse means other than perhaps talking about a new woman he has met. Perhaps he's talking about her day dreaming and how he cares about this new woman and likes her so much that he even cares about her day dreams).
I think I met her at the minute that the rhythm was set down I said I'm sorry I'm a little bit of a letdown but all my friends are daring me to come over so I come over and over and over (perhaps he is reminiscing about how he met his girlfriend back when they were 17). so let me buy you a drink and we'll pretend that you think that I'm the man of your dreams come to life in a dive bar (he isn't confident so he tells her that he's a let down and isn't the man of her dreams, but he'll buy her a drink and he will pretend that he is the man of her dreams). and we'll go over and over and over and we'll go over and over and over and we'll go over and over and over and we'll go over and over and over