The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
It's too early for the circus,
It's too late for the bars,
No one's sleepin' but the paperboys,
And no one in this town is makin' any noise,
But the dogs and the milkmen and me.
The girls around here all look like Cadillacs,
No one likes a stranger here,
I'd come home but I'm afraid
That you won't take me back,
But I'd trade off everything just to have you near.
I know I'm irresponsible and I don't behave,
And I ruin everything that I do,
And I'll probably get arrested when I'm in my grave,
But I'll be savin' all my love for you.
I paid fifteen dollars for a prostitute,
With too much makeup and a broken shoe,
But her eyes were just a counterfeit,
She tried to gyp me out of it,
But you know that I'm still in love you.
Don't listen to the rumors that you hear about me,
Cause I ain't as bad as they make me out to be,
Well I may lose my mind but baby can't you see,
That I'll be savin' all my love for you.
It's too late for the bars,
No one's sleepin' but the paperboys,
And no one in this town is makin' any noise,
But the dogs and the milkmen and me.
The girls around here all look like Cadillacs,
No one likes a stranger here,
I'd come home but I'm afraid
That you won't take me back,
But I'd trade off everything just to have you near.
I know I'm irresponsible and I don't behave,
And I ruin everything that I do,
And I'll probably get arrested when I'm in my grave,
But I'll be savin' all my love for you.
I paid fifteen dollars for a prostitute,
With too much makeup and a broken shoe,
But her eyes were just a counterfeit,
She tried to gyp me out of it,
But you know that I'm still in love you.
Don't listen to the rumors that you hear about me,
Cause I ain't as bad as they make me out to be,
Well I may lose my mind but baby can't you see,
That I'll be savin' all my love for you.
Lyrics submitted by yuri_sucupira, edited by Mellow_Harsher
Saving All My Love for You Lyrics as written by Tom Waits
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, JALMA MUSIC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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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,
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This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
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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.
Plastic Bag
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“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 it's a mistake to assume that every song is autobiographical. I always find this one rather funny - he's writing in the persona of the kind of man who constantly screws up but thinks he can get away with it with his boyish charm & aw-shucks honesty. When he's talking about the prostitute I can just see his wife/girlfriend kicking him out of the door. It cracks me up! Waits can be horribly sentimental sometimes, but I think he gets away with it here because of the humour.
Lovely song.
it's too early for the circus, it's too late for the bars, no one's sleepin' but the paperboys, and no one in this town is makin' any noise, but the dogs and the milkmen and me.
I love the beginning of this song. Very Bukowski-ish.
I hate this song with a passion. This is Tom Waits at his most obnoxious. So, he sleeps with some poor hooker and we are supposed to pity HIM? All this sentimental sexism is just unbearable. The music is dreadfully dull as well. Luckily, I am not the only one that dislikes this sappy crap (from a Tom Waits-interview in Mojo):
"TW: Maudlin and schmaltzy. Oh yeah I’m aware of that. My wife [ co-writer Kathleen Brennan] electrocutes me every time I do that.
SS: She has a schmaltzometer ?
TW: She really does. And I have to be careful - ‘ Am I slipping into self parody here ?’ ‘Is this worthwhile or just a lame exercise ?’ The song she really hates is Saving All My Love For You, off Heartattack and Vine. ‘ What is this bullshit ?"
I think meeting Kathleen was the best thing that ever happened to Tom and his music.
Songs like this where he sings with a little bit of a slur or drawl I always imagine as being from the point of view of someone who's really drunk. Here, the narrator's trying desperately to apologize, but due to the inebriation he doesn't really understand that what he's done can't exactly be made up so easily, so the song comes off as "Oh, yeah, that... but I still really love ya, babe, okay?" And to be fair, it is a REALLY corny and schmaltzy and sentimental song, but hey, maybe that's just the alcohol talking.
The song's no masterpiece or anything but it's not entirely accurate to call it sexist. It's more like sexist by proxy.
My interpretation of this song is it illustrates the kind of scenario where a couple are in a sexless marriage/relationship for some reason. the man gets tempted and goes with a prostitute, the encounter goes wrong and she clips him. he confesses to his partner and tries to explain in vain that he really loves her but has needs that are not being fulfilled.
She probably leaves him which is totally understandable because it is nigh on impossible for a relationship with no sexual activity to last. I can't understand why Kathleen Brennan Hated it so much, maybe it touched a raw nerve with her.