sitting with my empty glass
my four walls
follow me through my past
i was on a paris train
i emerged in london rain
and you were waiting there
swimming through apologies
i was hoping you might change your mind
i remember a soldier sleeping next to me
riding on the metro
smiling as you took my hand
so removed
we spoke of wintertime in france
minutes passed with shallow words
years have passed and still the hurt
i can see you now
smiling as you pulled away
"i'll love you always" filled my eyes
i remember a night we walked along the seine
riding on the metro
the soldier turned, then looked away
i remember hating you for loving me
riding on the metro
OK, Kids. The site is Song Meanings, and I'm a little disappointed in all the banter about covers and how the song rocks. Bottom line is that I've come to expect more from this group, and I don't see much insight on the song in the discussion so far. So, let's try this.
Has anyone wondered why it's "The Metro"? I think it's an analogy for the relationship. The ride's exciting, but in the end, the train follows the track. It has a fixed destination, and it will arrive there, no matter what...much as the writer sees how this relationship played out. And why The Metro specifically, and not some other train? Well, The Metro runs underground, and I believe our hero is trying to use that as a metaphor, as he is trying to "bury" his feelings.
I did see someone ask about the soldier, which might have been just a random memory of the train ride, except he re-appears later in the lyrics, which makes him significant. My take on that is that the soldier, who battles for life and death, is not moved or affected by the heartbreak the writer (Crawford) feels. The soldier sleeps through it, and he looks away from it. He has more important things to do than wallow in pity. The soldier may be one of two things - he may be an attempt to remind the author that no matter how bad the break-up feels, it's really just not that significant in the scheme of things - or more likely the soldier is an "alter-ego" of the writer. It's himself looking at the whole situation and starting to move on ("the soldier turned and looked away").
Lastly, let me say I enjoy the choice of musical accompaniment for the song. It's a synth loop that always ends up right back where it started. Kind of another metaphor for the lyrics - much as the train only takes him to a destination he's not happy with, the music, while upbeat and exciting as well, doesn't ever lead anywhere.
Perhaps it's all of this that makes the song so great, and is why so many acts have covered it.
27 meaning interpretations, all wrong. Its a about a woman that commits a murder and is now in jail, remembering how and why she murdered her ex boyfriend. Anyone even watched the video for this song? You people read lyrics backwards or?
I would say she got dumped by her boyfriend and then he sent her packing on a train...
awesome covers of this song. haven't heard a bad one yet. so far I've heard covers of this song by the following:
alkaline trio system of a down cruxshadows
rock on.
Hmm, the original is much better than the covers though
The system of a down version is an amazing version if u havent heard it then go listen 2 it
the bouns track of no use for a name's "leche con carne" is a medley of several covers. They play a part of this song, too.
I'd have to agree, the System of a Down cover is very nice.
alk3's cover = whoa better then systems cover. but the original owns them all.
thats just me.
Berlin bass player John Crawford wrote this. It's about a man riding to Paris to visit his girlfriend. The Metro is the underground transportation system in Paris. The line "thank you for loving me" is often misheard as "f--k you for loving me."