In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Gold teeth and a curse for this town
Were all in my mouth
Only I don't know how they got out, dear
Turn me back into the pet
I was when we met
I was happier then with no mindset
And if you took to me like a
Gull takes to the wind
Well, I'd've jumped from my trees
And I'd've danced like the king of the eyesores
And the rest of our lives would've fared well
New slang when you notice the stripes
The dirt in your fries
Hope it's right when you die, old and bony
Dawn breaks like a bull through the hall
Never should have called
But my head's to the wall and I'm lonely
And if you took to me like a
Gull takes to the wind
Well, I'd've jumped from my trees
And I'd've danced like the king of the eyesores
And the rest of our lives would've fared well
Godspeed, all the bakers at dawn
May they all cut their thumbs
And bleed into their buns 'til they melt away
I'm looking in on the good life
I might be doomed never to find
Without a trust, a flaming field
Am I too dumb to refine?
And if you took to me like
Well, I'd've danced like the queen of the eyesores
And the rest of our lives would've fared well
Were all in my mouth
Only I don't know how they got out, dear
Turn me back into the pet
I was when we met
I was happier then with no mindset
And if you took to me like a
Gull takes to the wind
Well, I'd've jumped from my trees
And I'd've danced like the king of the eyesores
And the rest of our lives would've fared well
New slang when you notice the stripes
The dirt in your fries
Hope it's right when you die, old and bony
Dawn breaks like a bull through the hall
Never should have called
But my head's to the wall and I'm lonely
And if you took to me like a
Gull takes to the wind
Well, I'd've jumped from my trees
And I'd've danced like the king of the eyesores
And the rest of our lives would've fared well
Godspeed, all the bakers at dawn
May they all cut their thumbs
And bleed into their buns 'til they melt away
I'm looking in on the good life
I might be doomed never to find
Without a trust, a flaming field
Am I too dumb to refine?
And if you took to me like
Well, I'd've danced like the queen of the eyesores
And the rest of our lives would've fared well
Lyrics submitted by rudegirl, edited by frenzydiamonds
New Slang Lyrics as written by James Mercer
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Songs with this many levels are always fun to listen to.. Lots of interpretations people have come up with.. here's my take, line by line.. sorry if it's a bit wordy.
When you are a kid, you drop fries on the ground, you pick the fries up off the ground and eat them anyway, but when you get older, you notice the dirt.. and the stripes.. as in prison stripes that we all wear, enslaved in whatever life we are leading.. along with thousands of other little wonders life has in store for us as we get older.
As for why the last king is queen, who knows.. could be spiritual, could be just to mess with us... :)
-- Pat
I think that it's a queen in the last stanza because she too is expressing regrets for the loss of the relationship.
@pfarabee , Thanks for the well thought out line-by-line interpretation.