Shed some skin for the fear within
Is starting to hurt me with everything

Freed from the memory
Escape from our history, history

And I just hope that you can forgive us
But everything must go

And if you need an explanation
Then everything must go

I look to the future it makes me cry
But it seems too real to tell you why

Freed from the century
With nothing but memory, memory

And I just hope that you can forgive us
But everything must go

And if you need an explanation
Then everything must go

Freed us eventually just need to be happy, happy

And I just hope that you can forgive us
But everything must go

And if you need an explanation
Then everything must go

And I just hope that you can forgive us
But everything must go

And if you need an explanation, nation
Then everything must go


Lyrics submitted by Ice

Everything Must Go Lyrics as written by James Dean Bradfield James Bradfield

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management

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Everything Must Go song meanings
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18 Comments

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  • +4
    General Comment

    Always thought this was written to Richey too, moreso than to the fans. Reads like an apology to him for the guilt they must have felt carrying on without him.

    How his disappearance actually freed them from the dark times the band seemed to be spiraling into because of his inner demons. Like how, despite all the grief, there is always a small sense of relief (freedom) that comes when someone you love passes away after suffering in pain. He freed them eventually, now they just need to be happy, which of course you never can be after losing someone you love.

    So everything must go, like burning old love letters in rage and sorrow in order to move on. If you need an explanation as to why we're carrying on, then we need to do this before we can explain. Genius lyrics. A genius song to go with them, and one of my favourite videos they did too.. the cherry blossoms falling from the tree leaving it barren.. What an amazing way to symbolise dying at the height of your beauty - not suggesting Richey is dead, no one knows that, but a beautiful metaphor for loss nonetheless. Just my interpretation.

    BloodRunsRedon June 16, 2014   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    Yeah, basically saying to all manics fans of the time that without richey they won't be the same band

    ShakerMaker1994on March 10, 2009   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    It's sad but uplifting at the same time. It is like an apology that "it's the end of an era, but we've just got to move on".

    staybeautifulon May 21, 2004   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    This song is underrated, in my opinion. I mean, A Design For Life and If You Tolerate This... are both great, but music channels should play this just as much.

    frozen_in_fireon August 17, 2005   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    I thought that it was about bailiffs, and how they are uncaring, as long as they get paid. "i'm sorry, but its all gotta go, since you havent paid" "Why?" "It's gotta go"

    countcube69on May 20, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    A lot of younger fans don't realize how much the Manics changed after Ritchie's death.

    Their musical style, lyrics, attitude, public personas all changed, remarkably.

    The Ritchie era Manics played very dark, arty, disturbing, punk music, with extremely poetic, complicated lyrics.

    And they sold themselves as almost doom-rock, EMO, anarchists.

    After he died, they changed to a much more melodic, anthetic, positive band, with much simpler and easier-to-understand lyrics. And they had great success.

    So much of this song is about that change, and the feelings of guilt that are associated with it. Abandoning Ritchie's vision of the band, essentially . Because they simply couldn't do it without him. He was the driving force of that era, both in the songs, and on the stage, and in the media.

    So the song is saying:

    "We're sorry we can't continue as we were, but it's impossible. We have to try something new."

    cj11477193on July 05, 2016   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    This song is written to richie (guitarist/songwriter who dissapeared, possibly suicide since he was depressed), saying that changes must be made or the band would follow him down wherever he went. Thats my opinion :)

    Scaremongeringon April 17, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Each of us is what he/she is (at least) partly because of recent history. What would each individual be if he/she could be FREED FROM THE MEMORY/CENTURY/HISTORY? we'll never know, but the impression is that history heavily weighs upon everybody's conscience and HURTS from whatever point of view you come to look at it (I'm just thinking of the Nazis, Stalin, the Holocaust, Cambodjan Red Khmers, Vietnam war, Hiroshima. pollution, starving children and fat western ladies...) The future is just an anticipation of what history has been, so why should we trust in the future? should we somehow get rid of the past, we would inevitably fall down again into the memory as soon as we look for any EXPLANATION about anything. Sooner or later you'll need an explanation about anything, but explanations need history, so once again, like in a nightmare, we are calling back history. Everything must go, you can't help it. We have been made of history, but history is mostly horrible and noone can escape that. A very realistic and pessimistic lyric with a theme not for everybody to understand or appreciate.

    thestampon May 22, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Not a post everyone will understand mate cos you're talking pseudo-intellectual b*llcks IMHO.

    Yes, Everything Must Go is the Manics' plea to break free from their past, a straight jacket they kind of constructed for themselves. A simple, heartfelt plea for forgiveness.

    Smart Alexon August 17, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Yeah, basically saying to all manics fans of the time that without richey they won't be the same band

    ShakerMaker1994on March 10, 2009   Link

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