"After Me" as written by S. Hogarth, Steven Thomas Rothery, Mark Colbert Kelly, Peter John Trewavas and Ian Francesko Mosley....
There's a line on her jeans that a ball-point made
From a careless mistake that she can't wash away
And there's a heart on her sleeve from a spill of red wine
There's a piece of green in the blue of her eyes
She named it after me
There's a stray dog she feeds that she found in the street
And he loves her to hold him, but he won't let her keep him
And he claws at the door to be let out at night
And she makes do without him, and she worries about him
She named him after me
So if you ever decide that you have to escape
And travel the world, and you can't find a place
Well, you could wind up believing
That paradise is nothing more than a feeling
That goes on in your mind
So if ever find out what that is
There's something you could do
'Cause if I ever hold that golden dream again
I want to tell you
I'm gonna name it after you
From a careless mistake that she can't wash away
And there's a heart on her sleeve from a spill of red wine
There's a piece of green in the blue of her eyes
She named it after me
There's a stray dog she feeds that she found in the street
And he loves her to hold him, but he won't let her keep him
And he claws at the door to be let out at night
And she makes do without him, and she worries about him
She named him after me
So if you ever decide that you have to escape
And travel the world, and you can't find a place
Well, you could wind up believing
That paradise is nothing more than a feeling
That goes on in your mind
So if ever find out what that is
There's something you could do
'Cause if I ever hold that golden dream again
I want to tell you
I'm gonna name it after you
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
that a ballpoint made
From a careless mistake
that she can't wash away
And there's a heart on her sleeve
from the spill of red wine
There's a piece of green
in the blue of her eyes
She named it after me...
(these are all physical symbols that would be visible to others)
(note: red, green, and blue (RGB) are the only colors that a tv uses to
build a complete picture)
(she was a bit immature too, when she got drunk and wrote a letter that
frightened him away hence dropping the ballpoint pen and spilling the wine)
(but there's more blue sadness/regret than green inexperience)
(she identifies the green with him not the blue, thinking that maybe he
doesn't have the same regret)
There's a stray dog she feeds
that she found in the street
And he loves her to hold him
But he won't let her keep him
He claws at the door
to be let out at night
And she makes due without him
and she worries about him
She named him after me
She named him after me
She named him af-ter me
...after me...
(the dog and he were both free/stray before they met her - and they still
are)
(she learned from her mistake and lets the dog out when he he needs his
space but she worries that one day he won't come back)
(the only things mentioned outside of her house are the street and the
night - gray and black)
So if you ever decide that you have to escape
and you travel the world but you can't find a place
Well, you could wind up believing that Paradise
is nothing more than a feeling that goes on in your mind
So if you ever find out what that is
You know there's something you can do
'Cause if I ever hold that golden dream again
I want to tell you I'm gonna name it after you
...after you...
gonna name it after you
I'm gonna name it after you...
(travelling the world is a metaphor for searching for a better/perfect
relationship: Paradise)
(he wonders if she believes Paradise is imaginary/impossible like he does -
if she found out what "that" is)
(she probably shares "that" belief, because everyone she loves wants to be
stray)
(there's something she can do - she can name "that" realization that
Paradise is impossible after him)
(now that he's experienced - no longer green - he's given up on his dream of
finding Paradise)
(his golden/mature dream of Paradise is what she represents to him now)
(is the piece of green in her eyes because she hasn't travelled the world
yet?)
the last few lines make me think it's about lost love ?
The second half is more literal - his perspective at the time that he knew her. He ultimately realizes that what he wanted to go off and search for is really what he had with her... but its too late to mend broken hearts.
Ever loved anyone who just wanted to be friends?
SOme one who gave love of one form but refused to aknowledge it as anything else?
Ever felt as a dog begging for love and getting the scarps?
Its very teen love, and gut wrenching at it, had a similar experience and i felt completely identified, still do in fact...15 years after...
- there's a line on her jeans (not there was a line on her jeans)
- there's a heart on her sleeve (not that there was one)
- there's a piece of green in her blue eyes (that wouldn't have changed, of course)
- there a stray dog she fees (not fed)
- he loves her to hold him (not loved)
- he howls at the door (not howled)
etc
While the first verse might not scan so well in the past tense, the second would so we can assume that the present tense has been deliberately used. Obviously the lyric associates the various slips, errors and the stray dog with the author, but because all of these things are in the present, not the past, the relationship itself is also being stated to be in the present.
There is clearly a wistfulness (added to beautifully by the tune) and sense of regret, but that isn't for the end of the relationship but an awareness of the author's shortcomings in not being able to give her the more conventional home-life she clearly wanted. What the song is about is an ongoing relationship in which the author is someone who has to have their own personal space, but still (like the stray dog coming back to be held - and fed, cheeky blighter!) needs to come back to this woman who provides the stability and comfort to which he can retreat. When he's not there, she makes do and she worries about him, but by keeping the relationship clearly in the present it is shown that he does come back every time.
The start of the final section ("So if you ever decide that you have to escape, etc) is a direct address to the listener. The author isn't writing about his own relationship any more, but suggesting that if the listener is also someone who decides that they have to escape and travel the world they may reach the same conclusions as he has, i.e that Paradise is a state of mind (in this case Paradise is implied to be his home life with the woman), not a place you can travel to.
The final verse, in which he notes that he will name the "golden dream" after "you" (no doubt the woman) is ambiguous. It could just be a slip in the writing - a lovely line and an emotional appeal that perhaps has been retained from earlier drafts in which the relationship was expressed to be in the past. Alternatively, perhaps it tells us that the "golden dream" of the relationship has passed, in the way that I am sure that we all know that the initial glory of romantic relationships mature. Whatever, it's sung with glorious emotional impact and depth and brings the song to a suitable climax.
It's a beautiful song, and a crying shame that it was left out of the original vinyl version of the LP, held back as a special for the CD. Unlike many of the other songs on Seasons End (fantastic tunes, but a bit hackneyed and bleedin' obvious in their lyrical themes), this one (along with The Space) does have a poetry that stands compare with the previous recordings with Fish.