submissions

Switchfoot – The Blues Lyrics	19 years ago
I recognize "when the world caves in" to mean that materialism collapses and faith in Christ supplants it: "it'll be a day like this one [...] when the hungry and poor and deserted are found".

submissions

Switchfoot – Happy Is A Yuppie Word Lyrics	19 years ago
Yeah, jakkyl's spot on. I recently read Ecclesiastes and then listened to the Nothing is Sound album again. This sound is heavily inspired by it -- several phrases are pulled straight from it.

submissions

Switchfoot – Ammunition Lyrics

19 years ago

I agree with PyroPenguin, but I also feel it is addressed to all of us, not just the youth. The chorus, "we've been blowing up / we're the issue", says that it's not other problems that have been blowing up, not other problems that are the issue: it's humanity that is the issue. We are ammunition with a short fuse. So long as we keep trying to find other reasons (such as religion, politics, current trends, etc.) for the state of the world, and ignore that we are the root of it all, we will remain ammunition for further destruction. The bridge ("look what a mess we've made of love") reminds me of the movie The Green Mile (didn't read the book, sorry), when John Coffey says "He killed them with their love for each other. That's how it is, every day, all over the world." We abuse love, we corrupt it, we use other people's love as leverage to control them.

submissions

Jars of Clay – Five Candles (You Were There) Lyrics	23 years ago
This sounds like a song about a five-year-old's birthday with parents that are separated ("You were there when I needed you" but "You were never here"). The empty boxes, the things he didn't ask for, closing the eyes, making a wish... all of this sounds like a birthday. The child turns to God to pray that the problems (the excuses and what-not) will be fixed somehow.

submissions

Jars of Clay – Crazy Times Lyrics	23 years ago
This song is about having your faith tried, being tested. When things are difficult for you, it's easy to cry about it and give up. "Saline eyes" refers to crying, and it's saying you have to do more than just sit there and mope about; one thing to do is pray, another thing to do is act.

submissions

Jars of Clay – Tea And Sympathy Lyrics

23 years ago

The "tea" in this song refers to things said between two people who love each other. Some of the words are harsh and misunderstood, and "fall to the floor and break like china cups", whereas some of them are calmly and carefully spoken, "slowly dr[u]nk in". The waitress tries to clean up the broken words, and later offers sugar. They taste the "bitterness" of the words spoken, and the waitress offers sugar to sweeten the "tea" -- meaning they need to "sweeten" the words. This all might sound silly, but they've put a lot of analogies into the song. The waitress represents a kind of common sense -- trying to fix the mistake of using harsh words, and trying to find better words to use. The tea represents the words being spoken, and the bag of leaves represents those not yet said (not yet mixed).

submissions

Jars of Clay – Weighed Down Lyrics

23 years ago

This song is questioning whether we're able to appreciate and love Jesus when we are wrapped up in the problems and stresses of our own lives -- even a king can be "weighed down" and lose himself. As we place things in front of Jesus in our lives, we see that he's more important than we think he is. The most important line is the first line of the refrain -- that love (Jesus) is waiting for us to return.

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