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.
Yo Yvette, there's a lot of rumors goin' around
They're so bad, baby you might have to skip town
See something's smellin' fishy and they say it's you
All I know is that you made it with the whole damn crew
They say you're a man-eater during the full moon
Mascot of the senior boys' locker room
They said Yvette walked in, there wasn't too much rap
Her reputation got bigger, and so did her gap
'Cause girl your momma should of taught you better
I'ma sit down and write you a long letter
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
I'm glad you ain't my sister, then again if you was
I'd have to treat you like you was my distant 'cause
I'm not a news reporter, I don't mean to assume
What should I think? I seen ya comin' out the men's bathroom
You wasn't in there alone, wasn't usin' the phone
The door was locked for twenty minutes, all I heard was moan
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
I don't really know if the story is so
I can either ask Curly, or Larry or Moe
Or Earl, Shabazz, Lou, Mookie or Joe
Like Santa Claus said, you're a ho-ho-ho
In every disco you say hello
Like you're a little angel, but we all know
Since you was eleven you been actin' this way
You always got in bed when you wanted to play
You're a freak, you think you're Lady Godiva
Some freaks are live, but Yvette you're liver
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
You're a back-seat queen, a elevator pro
A high-powered body makes your Levis grow
See the stories I've heard, they could amaze
I heard she did it on a motorcycle back in the days
So calm down freak, get a G.E.D.
That's a General Education on Decency
One day you'll see, and agree with me
Unless you're gonna be a freak until you're ninety three
For you there's no fee, everything is free
This is from me to you, not you to me
Every night is your night, your leather pants are tight
You try to shake your butt with all your might
I don't really wanna dis nobody
You might think I had a little too much Bacardi
But that's not the problem, the problem's Yvette
How bad can a girl's reputation get?
See she's the kinda girl all the homeboys met
If you're desperate ask Yvette, 'cause she'll say bet
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
B-Boys are hard on the boulevard
The Reverend at the church said you was barred
Homeboys on the block loved you a lot
You're a real famous freak whether you like it or not
So before you start walking and your beak starts squawkin'
Let me explain to you who is talkin'
I'm L.L. Cool J from around the way
You boogie down to my records almost every day
Go a hundred miles an hour when you're standin' still
You're faster than my Caddy when it's goin' downhill
Won't forget that day in the Y.M.C.A.
The guy at the desk said it was OK
For you to come inside 'cause he knew you'd stay
Greg G. And Garfield yelled "Hooray"
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
They're so bad, baby you might have to skip town
See something's smellin' fishy and they say it's you
All I know is that you made it with the whole damn crew
They say you're a man-eater during the full moon
Mascot of the senior boys' locker room
They said Yvette walked in, there wasn't too much rap
Her reputation got bigger, and so did her gap
'Cause girl your momma should of taught you better
I'ma sit down and write you a long letter
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
I'm glad you ain't my sister, then again if you was
I'd have to treat you like you was my distant 'cause
I'm not a news reporter, I don't mean to assume
What should I think? I seen ya comin' out the men's bathroom
You wasn't in there alone, wasn't usin' the phone
The door was locked for twenty minutes, all I heard was moan
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
I don't really know if the story is so
I can either ask Curly, or Larry or Moe
Or Earl, Shabazz, Lou, Mookie or Joe
Like Santa Claus said, you're a ho-ho-ho
In every disco you say hello
Like you're a little angel, but we all know
Since you was eleven you been actin' this way
You always got in bed when you wanted to play
You're a freak, you think you're Lady Godiva
Some freaks are live, but Yvette you're liver
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
You're a back-seat queen, a elevator pro
A high-powered body makes your Levis grow
See the stories I've heard, they could amaze
I heard she did it on a motorcycle back in the days
So calm down freak, get a G.E.D.
That's a General Education on Decency
One day you'll see, and agree with me
Unless you're gonna be a freak until you're ninety three
For you there's no fee, everything is free
This is from me to you, not you to me
Every night is your night, your leather pants are tight
You try to shake your butt with all your might
I don't really wanna dis nobody
You might think I had a little too much Bacardi
But that's not the problem, the problem's Yvette
How bad can a girl's reputation get?
See she's the kinda girl all the homeboys met
If you're desperate ask Yvette, 'cause she'll say bet
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
B-Boys are hard on the boulevard
The Reverend at the church said you was barred
Homeboys on the block loved you a lot
You're a real famous freak whether you like it or not
So before you start walking and your beak starts squawkin'
Let me explain to you who is talkin'
I'm L.L. Cool J from around the way
You boogie down to my records almost every day
Go a hundred miles an hour when you're standin' still
You're faster than my Caddy when it's goin' downhill
Won't forget that day in the Y.M.C.A.
The guy at the desk said it was OK
For you to come inside 'cause he knew you'd stay
Greg G. And Garfield yelled "Hooray"
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
Dear Yvette
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Standing On The Edge Of Summer
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The Night We Met
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This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
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.
It's pretty obvious...yet I find this song to be unique. Rap culture usually embraces hodom, rather than chiding it. LL obviously thinks badly of this girl. The song is amusing. I love LL Cool J's old work. OLD. His ratio of wack material to good is about same, unfortunately. Thanks to his more recent stuff. But Radio, which this is on, is a great album.