Fool enough to almost be it
Cool enough to not quite see it
Doomed
Pick your pocket, full of sorrow
Run away with me tomorrow
June

We'll try and ease the pain
Somehow, we'll feel the same
Well, no one knows
Where our secrets go

I send a heart to all my dearies
When your life is so, so dreary
Dream
I'm rumored to the straight and narrow
While the harlots of my perils
Scream

And I fail
When I can, I will
Try to understand
That when I can, I will

Mother, weep the years I'm missing
All our time can't be given
Back
Shut my mouth and strike the demons
Cursed you and your reasons
Out of hand and out of season
Out of love and out of feeling

So bad
When I can, I will
Words defy the plans
But when I can, I will

Fool enough to almost be it
Cool enough to not quite see it
Dull enough to always feel this
Always old, I'll always feel this
No more promise, no more sorrow
No longer will I follow
Can anybody hear me?
I just want to be me

When I can, I will
Try to understand
That when I can, I will


Lyrics submitted by Ice, edited by Lori925

Mayonaise Lyrics as written by James Yoshinobu Iha William Patrick Corgan

Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

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Mayonaise song meanings
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  • +12
    General Comment

    Siamese Dream just proves how much of a musical genius Billy Corgan is. Mayonaise is my favourite song of all time. This song hits me harder than a ton of bricks. When I saw it live, it was the happiest day of my life. Full of passion, sadness, and utter genius. I miss the Pumpkins with all my heart. But soon I will forever have The Smashing Pumpkins etched upon this canvas that I call my body, but they will forever be etched upon my musical soul.

    zekey babyon May 18, 2002   Link
  • +7
    General Comment

    This is my favorite SP song. It's talking about young love that never bloomed. There were stolen kisses and secret glances and loving gestures, and both made each other very happy for a time, but the love never bloomed, it ended with hard feelings, and this song is expressing regret, and wishing it could have changed. Beautiful.

    Lisa18on July 05, 2002   Link
  • +6
    General Comment

    Although Billy admitted in Story-Tellers that the lyrics to Mayonaise were just "bullshit lyrics" to him when he wrote them, I think he manages to somehow subconsciously channel a feeling with this song. The music seems very wistful to me and the lyrics definately compliment that. To me, this song is the sound of adolescence. It captures the uncertainty, boredom, innocence, and dreariness of growing up. It echoes a line in Muzzle, "And I knew the emptiness of youth". That to me is what this song is all about. It's a young Billy trying to break free.

    DeathRockBoyon May 28, 2002   Link
  • +4
    General Comment

    My personal fav. I believe this is widely considered the best Pumpkins song. Why it never was made a single I will never know, but I thought it was at least 10x better than Rocket.

    Crocon May 07, 2002   Link
  • +3
    General Comment

    Billy Corgan is often brilliant with his lyrics of describing feelings of emotion...in his case it's often (failure, disappointment, disillusion etc.)

    I think these lyrics are autobiographical. The first couple of lines refer to his reputation as a famous musician (cool). the minute you start thinking of yourself as cool -- then you're doomed. Cool enough (famous musician) to almost be it -- again, cool (successful, confident etc.)...but actually, Doomed.

    The public thinks of him as successful and cool. He's rumored to the straight and narrow...(public image successful musician)... while the harlots of his perils scream... (in reality, his failed relationships, all his faults ...scream their reality.

    jeffreygtcon May 07, 2014   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    Absolutely gorgeous song... the height of Billy's song and lyric writing

    SiameseDreamon December 14, 2001   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    This song always hits me right here oh-so perfectly. It's probably one of my favorite SP songs off of one of my favorite albums ever, and it's also on my lil' imaginary dream acoustic set list, for whenever I master the art of playing guitar and singing at the same time and finally hit the local coffeehouse :)

    girliecoreon January 27, 2002   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    This song is simply the best!!!!!!! It is my favorite song EVER!

    j15r15on February 18, 2002   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    First off, I'd like to say this is one of my favorite songs ever, and some of the most beautiful music I've ever heard. It's a wall of guitar noise, but it's gorgeous. How does that work?

    Anyway, I think it's about trying drug addiction myself. "Pick your pockets full of sorrow, and run away with me tomorrow" sounds to me like something a dealer would tell a new user (though I've never used drugs and have never had any contact with a dealer). "And I fail, but when I can, I will" says to me "I can't kick it now, but as soon as I work up the courage, I will". The "Mother weep for years I'm missing" verse starts off as remorse about addiction, but at the end of it the narrator realizes he or she can't get over their addiction. I do think the song ends on a happy note, though... the narrator realizes the drug is making him something he isn't, that he just wants to be himself and not be controlled by the drug, and plans to kick his habit. I don't know, just a few thoughts, because as we all know Corgan's lyrics are ambiguous. And always amazing, too. I also think the song structure represents drug use. The quiet introduction is shooting up, the loud bit is the drug screwing with your mind, and so forth.

    finulanuon December 28, 2007   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    I read somewhere online that it is about his grandmother, who was Polish or German or something, and in whatever language it was, mayonnaise is spelled as mayonaise. If you havent heard the acoustic version of this song, go to the new smashing pumpkins audio archive website(if it is up) and listen to it in the earphoria section. it is just beautiful. i love this song.

    Ryan W=BarkleyXCoreon June 10, 2002   Link

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