submissions
| The Verve – Bittersweet Symphony Lyrics
| 1 month ago
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Life is bittersweet, and we want to break free from societal pressure, but we feel too established and stuck in our ways. We want more out of life - more meaning, more spiritual resonance- but we are bound by the slavery of making other people rich. |
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| Phil Collins – Take Me Home Lyrics
| 1 year ago
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I think it means that we are longing for a place to belong.
We all want to go "home" - to innocence, Heaven, God, or our true selves.
The lyrics resonate because they are about everyday existential depression. They tell the listener not to worry -- I won't do anything crazy --- but I've been a prisoner all my life. I don't like to go outside. I'm afraid of taking risks. People underestimate me but I know how corrupt they are.
It's about being disillusioned with life and wanting to escape the emptiness. |
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| The Bangles – If She Knew What She Wants Lyrics
| 1 year ago
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To me, this song has layers. The song seems to be saying that the woman doesn't know what she wants which is why the man doesn't know how to please her. But I think it really means that the man uses that as an excuse for not understanding her.
A man I like who shared his playlist with me (including this song) is a man who seems extremely unemotionally expressive. He's an older bachelor and I suspect has not had much experience with women. But to be honest, I think it's not because the women didn't know what they wanted. It's because he didn't know how to give it. We women don't want to be bossy or tell the guy what to do with emotions, but we need affection in words. We know that. It's not that we don't know that. We just don't want to have to tell you guys. We figure guys would already show affection if they really cared... |
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| Howard Jones – No One Is To Blame Lyrics
| 1 year ago
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This is one of my favorite songs.
What it says to me is that love is always a good thing. Sometimes we fall in love with the wrong person - the "wrong" sex, the person in a relationship, or someone we know it could never work with no matter how much we want it to. Sometimes that person is a lover, a friend, or family member.
This song says to me that love by itself is never wrong, but sometimes we can't let ourselves be happy. There are always reasons why things don't work out. We may feel like we are the perfect person for that special friend, and they feel that way too, but we just can't make it work.
This song also gives permission to just surrender to the love - you love each other, so just admit it and stop feeling guilty. Let yourself feel what you feel for once. Instead of always trying to do the right thing and ending up unhappy, realize that you CAN be happy. |
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| The Rolling Stones – Beast Of Burden Lyrics
| 1 year ago
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It seems to me that he's telling her that he's tired of her expectations. He wants to skip all the preliminaries and just get to the main course -sex. A beast of burden is someone who carries all someone's baggage. He's saying he doesn't care about her and her drama. He just wants the image or fantasy of her. Move out of the way with your concerns and requirements - chill out and enjoy the relationship for what it is. |
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| Fastball – Fire Escape Lyrics
| 1 year ago
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I see the man as telling this woman that he'll be her part-time lover, but he's not going to be her soulmate. He doesn't want the pressure of her expectations, especially since he doesn't even really know how he feels about her. He cares about her, but not enough to commit.
He's essentially offering himself to her as long as she can accept the casual nature of their relationship and won't demand more than he is willing to give. |
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| Tom Petty – Free Fallin' Lyrics
| 2 years ago
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I think he's telling the story from the girl's perspective, as if his ex girlfriend is telling everyone that Tom is a bad boy who doesn't care about her. But it's not true. He does care, but wasn't able to the man he felt he should be for her.
The lyrics are the cover story that Tom goes along with because he knows he can't break out of the image he's molded into. The bad boy.
He's free falling because everyone thinks he's so happy to be free, but he's not really. In fact, he's basically saying that guys are always thought of as the bad ones during a break up but love is more complicated than that and many women are naive for assuming guys don't care. Sometimes the guy just doesn't know how to please her. |
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| Fleetwood Mac – Landslide Lyrics
| 2 years ago
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I vaguely remember my once-best friend and I declaring that this was our song (or one of them). I can't recall why we decided that, just that we did.
I still think of her when I hear this song, and if I had to put it into words what this meant for us, I think it has something to do with letting go of our attachment to each other.
Many years ago, in college together, we questioned if we were more than friends. I wasn't sure of her true intentions and she probably doubted mine too, but it just couldn't happen between us.
This song, then, to me, is about understanding that you need to grow up and move on from the nostalgia of a dream you once had. You realize as you get older that your wants and needs are changing, but part of you will always cherish that innocent ideal - that idea of you being together. It was like Romeo and Juliet, never meant to be, but part of you regrets not taking the chance even though you know it's better in the end to refrain.
Overall, it's a bittersweet song about letting go against your wishes because it's the best thing for you to do. |
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| Joe Jackson – Steppin Out Lyrics
| 2 years ago
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@[whoeverunomeaz:48096] I'm not sure if this was the song's intended meaning, but even if it not, this is a very good interpretation, IMO. The lyrics really fit your analysis. I love this as a spiritual song. |
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| Phil Collins – Do You Remember? Lyrics
| 2 years ago
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She blames him for their relationship ending, but that's just an excuse for not caring about him anymore. He realizes this when he says that she could have tried to talk to him and bridge the gap if she really wanted to, but she didn't want to.
As he's recalling his love for her, he's also recalling the lies, the neglect, the lack of reciprocation. He's asking if she remembers their love but then he's kind of bitter and realizes it may have been in his head.
Finally, he is realizing he's a glutton for punishment because he's saying that regardless of how bad and one-sided things were, he would do it all again because of the nostalgic attachment he has to her. |
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| Tracy Chapman – Give Me One Reason Lyrics
| 2 years ago
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She feels forced to break up with him/her because they aren't meeting her needs/wants. She has done everything she can to save the relationship but believes that she must leave because her partner doesn't care and cannot commit or appreciate her effort. |
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| Tracy Chapman – Fast Car Lyrics
| 2 years ago
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When I first heard this song, and even now, I pictured a teen girl with her alcoholic father. I pictured her dropping out of school to try to work, not realizing that her dad was irresponsible and neglectful.
The song is sad because they're homeless, but the teen girl is naive and hopeful that her daddy really loves her and she thinks it's her responsibility to fix him. She gets her hopes up about moving out of the homeless shelter,thinking of the great life they will have. She will be her dad's hero and save him from himself.
Later, she realizes that her dad is not going to change when he's out at the bar every night instead of with her or her siblings.
It's a song about the naive, misguided hope of a young girl that loves her abusive father. Even the little things like going for a fast ride in her dad's car or an embrace from him is the whole world to her. |
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| Fiona Apple – Sleep to Dream Lyrics
| 2 years ago
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She's tired of playing cat-and-mouse games with this person. In her perception, they're leading her on. First, they express their feelings for her, she's flattered and falls for them back, and then as soon as it's becoming real, they run away in fear.
She's saying that she knows what she wants and it is a practical relationship, not some dreamy idea with no substance. She's insulted that she let this person control her emotions so much only to not make it real.
She doesn't "go to sleep to dream" means that when she's serious about what she wants, she goes after it. In sleep, you regenerate and heal whereas dreaming has no practical value.
She's saying shit or get off the pot. I thought I was falling for you too, and I was willing to make it real but now that I'm all in, you're not sure what you want - screw you. |
submissions
| R.E.M. – Losing My Religion Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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I would have never guessed that this was the meaning.
The funny thing is that several years ago, I told a friend (that I had feelings for) that I liked REM, and the next time I saw him, he played the song for me in his car. I was shocked since he usually played rap. Neither of us said anything at that time. I was touched because he remembered that I said I liked REM. But I just thought it was about actually losing faith in God.
He knew I had feelings for him but we were both with other people (though unhappily). He had denied having mutual feelings for me, but kept wanting to spend time with me and was sending me signs otherwise like standing close, touching, laughing, looking in my eyes, saying cryptic things, etc. So I was confused.
Well, anyway, this song interpretation would make so much sense if he did have feelings. I will never know, though, because things changed, we aren't friends anymore at all, and no one is going to cheat. But wow. I would have never guessed. |
submissions
| Tiny Tim – Tiptoe Through The Tulips Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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I thought this song was about death - like the tulips are on the grave of a dead person, so people are frolicking through the cemetery. Idk though. |
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| Hall and Oates – I Can't Go For That (No Can Do) Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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What he can't "go for" is an emotional investment in this relationship. He can tell her empty words, act in a more pleasant way, and have sex with her, but there's no way he's going to commit. She's pressuring him too much. |
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| Men at Work – Who Can It Be Now? Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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An agoraphobic, anxious man whose mental health is impaired. Aside from struggling with paranoia, he is emotionally underdeveloped and likes childish things, which make him feel safe but want to avoid others' judgment. He's scared to come out of his comfort zone and wishes to avoid things that make him feel unpleasant or scared. He doesn't know what to expect so rather be left alone. Maybe something happened to keep him on edge.
I relate very much to this song. |
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| Icehouse – Electric Blue Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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He's mesmerized by her and completely at her mercy. She knows she has him wrapped around her finger and he's no fool either, but he can't stop until he gets with her. |
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| The Wallflowers – One Headlight Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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His best female friend died, but he can try to carry on with less, even though it will be hard. She probably committed suicide or died in another tragic way for a young person. They were probably friends because they were both depressed.
Bringing Down the Horse was my first CD. |
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| Matchbox Twenty – 3 A.M. Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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He's desperate. He doesn't know what he's doing with this weird, dumb girl who annoys him, but "she's got a little bit o' something, it's better than nothing." The thing is, she actually feels the same way because she says she must be lonely to be with him. He doesn't know if he really wants to lose her or not because he wonders if he'd miss her and his investment in their relationship. |
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| 'Til Tuesday – Voices Carry Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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He's emotionally abusive. She wants to be her own person, but he laughs at her and tries to keep her under his thumb so she doesn't leave him. On the other hand, he thinks she's pathetic and doesn't want her getting all emotionally invested in him. He's got other girls on the side and/or a reputation to uphold, and doesn't want her blasting their affair to the masses. She didn't realize he was so ashamed of her/wanting to keep her a secret. He's afraid their business is going to turn to gossip, and he'd rather keep their situation casual and/or private. |
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| The Human League – Human Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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He's upset that he cheated on her while they were broken up, but she's not too upset because she cheated on him too. It's forgiveable because it happens. |
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| Lisa Loeb – Stay (I Missed You) Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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Without analyzing each part, my overall impression has always been that this song is about a naive girl who doesn't know much about relationships. Her man is telling her that she's insecure, and that the problems between them are brought on by her pushing him away, not by his rejection of her. The girl "only hears what she wants to" which is that he doesn't care about her. But she's wrong. He wants her to stay. He told her so. Now she feels more secure. |
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| The Rolling Stones – Beast Of Burden Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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He doesn't want to be involved with her emotionally. He just wants to keep it simple and sex-based. She dumps her problems and expectations on him and it doesn't suit him. |
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| Cake – Let Me Go Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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I take it to mean that the guy has been patiently waiting to have sex and/or take things to the next level in his relationship, but his girlfriend is kind of prudish, egotistical, and naive; she's trying to keep him from pressuring her for sex by telling him he will be more appealing if he's less sex-crazed.
He has been waiting for her for so long to let loose and show her wild side, but it looks like she's not going to budge and he wonders if he can wait anymore or if he should move on to a less wholesome girl.
When he describes her odd mannerisms, it seems like he's showing how he accepts her weirdness even though most guys wouldn't, like he's been putting up with her quirks for too long yet she's turning him down for sex which doesn't seem fair, and he's thinking of leaving her knowing how weird she is now. She's self-centered in wanting the sun which is better than the moon.
In other words, she wants the best from him yet she's weird and withholding and not worth it, he realizes. |
submissions
| Dire Straits – So Far Away Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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To me, this song is about having different visions for a relationship, not necessarily being physically apart (although it could be).
He feels like he's not at a good point in his life at the moment while she's living it up (in the sun). They're on different pages in life, and he's sad that they don't seem to be connecting. Maybe she's missing his signals or effort and he's getting tired of "being in love all alone" and not getting his needs met for all his grief and effort.
I've been here, in unrequited love. The tone of the song is definitely lonely, but also soothing. |
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| Supertramp – The Logical Song Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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There's a conflict between who we're expected to be and how we naturally are. Eventually, we don't even know who we are anymore because we know how we feel, but it's in conflict with what others perceive and desire. |
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| Everclear – White Men In Black Suits Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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Ok, so this is not what the song is about, but I want to share my reaction to the song.
When my best friend and I were 20 (both female), we were questioning what we meant to each other. She put this song on a mix tape for me and I couldn't stop analyzing the hell out of it. She may have put it on there because we saw Everclear in concert together, but...
"I think it's getting better for the both of us, I think it's getting better in the worst way" meant to me that we were realizing that we had feelings for each other which was both good and bad. Then...
"All the words make her feel so soft and pretty but never seem to fit." She had a boyfriend (fiance) but seemed to have no problem breaking it off with him when he suspected there was something between she and me.
"Let's live the way we want to live and hope they go away" meant to me that she and I should take a chance at being more than friends even though being with the same sex was totally taboo and our families would look down on us.
So yeah, I am probably being delusional and jumping to conclusions (it wouldn't be the first time), but that's what the song has always meant to me! |
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| Bruce Springsteen – Human Touch Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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This song is about sex, but not just hot, dirty sex. It's about the naturalness of wanting to be physically intimate (sexual or not). It's questioning why it's so wrong just to want physical/sexual affection.Bruce is saying, "Stop thinking about all the reasons why it won't work or why it's wrong. You know you want it, I want it. Don't overanalyze it. Let's just enjoy it." |
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| The Doobie Brothers – It Keeps You Runnin' Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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Sometimes, in order to keep your sanity, you have to keep yourself busy or on the move in order to avoid heartache. Being vulnerable and feeling your emotions can be extremely painful, and the more you dwell, the more it hurts. |
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| Pet Shop Boys – West End Girls Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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This song has associations for me that have nothing to do with the lyrics; notably, it reminds me of my parents' divorce in 1987. I still tear up when I listen to it. Beyond that, the melody of the song is sad/tender to me and it slightly bothers me that the lyhrics don't seem to match the tone/mood. I feel like the lyrics should be about death or loss or lonliness. There's a sort of morose/empty feeling that I strangely enjoy when I hear the song. The tune helps me emote a bit. Yet the lyrics seem to be about high class girls and lower class guys in London. Such as it is. |
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| Fleetwood Mac – Gypsy Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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I don't want to analyze the whole song, but my overall feeling or impression is a sense of bittersweetness. "And a memory is all that is left for you now. And it all comes down to you."
Basically, this song reminds me of a woman who lost someone special in her life - maybe a partner or friend - who is now going back to her old wandering ways. Maybe she has problems with commitment, and the one time she really found herself attached to someone (lightning in the sky maybe once, maybe twice), they left her. Now, she is back to her undisciplined, searching lifestyle, but there's a sense of freedom in it. She can indulge in her passionate nature, which may have been off-putting for the one she sought.
She's coming to a sense of self-acceptance as a wild woman. She's saying that while she would prefer to have finally settled down with her person, it's really up to them, and if she's going to not be accepted, she may as well embrace what she was rejected for - her eccentricities. |
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| The Human League – Mirror Man Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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It's about a person's disdain for being a people pleaser. They are realizing that they (or maybe the other person) is codependent and regretting how they (or the other) lose(s) their identity when they're together. They are ashamed of going along all this time without speaking up, and now they don't even know their own identify because they lost it in someone else. |
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| The Psychedelic Furs – The Ghost In You Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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To me, it's about "the one that got away" - a girl who is no longer in his life. She will never be forgotten and still exists as a ghost in his mind.
It's a nostalgic reminiscence about her - she never changes in his memories; she's timeless.
"Love is only Heaven away" can mean the girl died and he only has to think of her for her to exist. Or it can mean that she represents Heaven itself, and when he thinks about her (his angel), she is present; his thoughts manifest her ghost (not literally). |
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| The Sundays – Here's Where The Story Ends Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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To me, this song is about holding onto a personal secret. The narrator is embarrassed or ashamed of a certain time in her life that she can't forget. She walks around feeling different than others, knowing they don't really know her. No matter how much she tries to move on, there's always a "little souvenier" that takes her back to the uncomfortable relationship. She tells herself that she only liked the person because of his/her intelligence or sweet talk, because "the only thing she ever really wanted to say was wrong" (probably "I love you."). Now she's done feeling ashamed and denying it to herself. She's owning that she loved him/her and is moving on! |
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| Matthew Wilder – Break My Stride Lyrics
| 4 years ago
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His girl dumped him because she thought she was moving up in society and too good for a loser like him.
At first, he tried to get her back, but she doesn't want to associate with him anymore because he's "holding her back."
Later, he realizes, "You know what? You were holding me back too! I don't want no bitch like you!" He sings her words back to him. |
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| Dire Straits – Romeo And Juliet Lyrics
| 5 years ago
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I can't listen to this song without feeling stabbed in the heart and unable to breathe. 20 years ago, my best friend put it on a mix tape for me, which is when we were questioning our feelings about each other. As soon as I heard it, I think I cried, because it expressed my feelings. We saw Mark in concert around that time too. The song is beautiful but still makes me heartsick when I hear it. |
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| Heart – These Dreams Lyrics
| 5 years ago
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This is one of the most beautiful songs.
I could write so much, but first I'll write the memory I have associated with this song. It has nothing to do with the lyrics.
The first time I heard it was when I was 6 years old. I was on vacation for the last time at our family cabin in Lake Tahoe, being babysat by my dad's friend's daughter and her friend while he and Al gambled. Dawn and Lisa were blasting their loud music and not paying attention to me or my brother. My mom had just called me on the phone from San Leandro to tell me that she and my dad were getting a divorce and that we were moving in with Grandma. I still recall lying in the green wooden crib, upstairs in the cabin, crying my eyes out as I listened to this song being blasted over and over again. Whenever I hear it today, I'm brought back to that pivotal moment.
But other associations are beautiful --- the purity and innocence of dreams. The bliss of that perfect love. The obscurity of the spiritual. Wanting the deepest love we've ever felt...the longing...that mystery. |
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| Everclear – I Will Buy You A New Life Lyrics
| 5 years ago
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I'll do anything for you, even if it involves extreme measures. I may not have much to offer materially, but I will make up for it in my devotion and effort. |
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| Everclear – White Men In Black Suits Lyrics
| 5 years ago
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I think it's about being afraid of society's judgment but feeling rebellious anyway. It's recognizing that you're a minority, but coming to terms with that and even feeling empowered by it. On a personal level, when I was in college it was about me and my best friend against the world. We were taking Women's History and learning about feminism and questioning our feelings and all that stuff, and when I listened to this on the mix tape she had made me, the message I got was "fuck what society thinks - let's take a chance!" (Let's live the way we want to live and hope they go away). Things "getting better in the worst way" means that it's exciting and scary discovering this kind of power in the midst of oppression...or even though the relationship is taboo, it's fun discovering it. |
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| Everclear – Sunflowers Lyrics
| 5 years ago
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It does sound like a father reminiscing about when his grown up daughter was a child, but it also could be about his sister, wife, or childhood friend - remembering the good old days when she was innocent and happy. Now she's becoming cynical and jaded, and he sees himself in her, but sadly. |
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| Lisa Loeb – Fools Like Me Lyrics
| 5 years ago
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This could be my theme song. I love it because the singer has the self awareness to realize how foolish the world would consider her feelings, but she's basically saying "I don't care...kiss my ass. If I'm a 'fool, I'm a fool.'" I love it. This may be a little deeper than the writer intended, but to me it is about owning our shadow selves. Admitting that we're all basically fools with stupid or wrong emotions, but it doesn't matter. It's about accepting our emotions and not letting them affect our self esteem or self perception, and coming to terms with our identity - the good and the bad. |
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| Lisa Loeb – Sandalwood Lyrics
| 5 years ago
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This is a little embarrassing. I remember seeing Lisa in a small concert when she was up and coming. I was young - somewhere around 20 - and there with my best friend. I was enjoying the music when suddenly Lisa plays Sandalwood. I was a late bloomer, sexually, and in basically denied having those type of feelings at that point. But this song comes on and I feel myself blushing soo badly, squirming, trying super hard not to show any kind of reaction. I felt myself "waking up" - something in the lyrics were doing something to me I'd never experienced before. The worst part was that I was at the concert with my best friend who I was starting to fall hopelessly in love. So hearing these words and being with her (and both being female) was almost more than I could handle. I look back now and think it was cute and funny, but oh how I was humiliated at the time... |
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| Madonna – Borderline Lyrics
| 5 years ago
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It's about a woman who is in love but she's tired of being teased by her flakey man. She is also feeling smothered by his love bombing followed by pulling away. She's getting ready to pull the plug unless he settles down. |
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| Queen – Killer Queen Lyrics
| 5 years ago
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My husband said this song reminds him of my (former) friend. I didn't know why, but years later, it makes sense: about a woman who is snooty and judgmental. Definitely not as classy as she thinks she is, abd everyone else can see that, but still looks down on others and cluelessly believes she's cultured. |
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| Linkin Park – New Divide Lyrics
| 5 years ago
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There's a wall between us now because I've been living a lie. I realize you've been trying to confront me but I can't admit it. I know I am guilty and should confess and be real but I can't. |
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