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.
You may be an ambassador to England or France
You may like to gamble, you might like to dance
You may be the heavyweight champion of the world
You may be a socialite with a long string of pearls
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You're gonna have to serve somebody
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody
You might be a rock 'n' roll addict prancing on the stage
You might have drugs at your command, women in a cage
You may be a business man or some high-degree thief
They may call you doctor or they may call you chief
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes you are
You're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody
You may be a state trooper, you might be a young Turk
You may be the head of some big TV network
You may be rich or poor, you may be blind or lame
You may be living in another country under another name
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes you are
You're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
You may be a construction worker working on a home
You may be living in a mansion or you might live in a dome
You might own guns and you might even own tanks
You might be somebody's landlord, you might even own banks
But you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Yes, you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
You may be a preacher with your spiritual pride
You may be a city councilman taking bribes on the side
You may be workin' in a barbershop, you may know how to cut hair
You may be somebody's mistress, may be somebody's heir
But you're gonna have to serve somebody
Yes, you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Might like to wear cotton, might like to wear silk
Might like to drink whiskey, might like to drink milk
You might like to eat caviar, you might like to eat bread
You may be sleeping on the floor, sleeping in a king sized bed
But you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody) yes, indeed
You're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody
You may call me Terry, you may call me Timmy
You may call me Bobby, you may call me Zimmy
You may call me R.J., you may call me Ray
You may call me anything but no matter what you say
Still, you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Yes, you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody
Ah, yeah
(Serve somebody)
You may like to gamble, you might like to dance
You may be the heavyweight champion of the world
You may be a socialite with a long string of pearls
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You're gonna have to serve somebody
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody
You might be a rock 'n' roll addict prancing on the stage
You might have drugs at your command, women in a cage
You may be a business man or some high-degree thief
They may call you doctor or they may call you chief
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes you are
You're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody
You may be a state trooper, you might be a young Turk
You may be the head of some big TV network
You may be rich or poor, you may be blind or lame
You may be living in another country under another name
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes you are
You're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
You may be a construction worker working on a home
You may be living in a mansion or you might live in a dome
You might own guns and you might even own tanks
You might be somebody's landlord, you might even own banks
But you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Yes, you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
You may be a preacher with your spiritual pride
You may be a city councilman taking bribes on the side
You may be workin' in a barbershop, you may know how to cut hair
You may be somebody's mistress, may be somebody's heir
But you're gonna have to serve somebody
Yes, you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Might like to wear cotton, might like to wear silk
Might like to drink whiskey, might like to drink milk
You might like to eat caviar, you might like to eat bread
You may be sleeping on the floor, sleeping in a king sized bed
But you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody) yes, indeed
You're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody
You may call me Terry, you may call me Timmy
You may call me Bobby, you may call me Zimmy
You may call me R.J., you may call me Ray
You may call me anything but no matter what you say
Still, you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Yes, you're gonna have to serve somebody (serve somebody)
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody
Ah, yeah
(Serve somebody)
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No Surprises
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Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
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I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
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American Town
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Page
Ed Sheeran
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It's a little extreme, but, when Dylan got into Christianity, he really sunk his teeth in it. A fanatic of the worst kind. Like it or not. He refusted to play the old songs on his shows and interrupted them with neverending preaching. I've read some messed-up speeches about how the end of the world was coming, with the Cold War (but we survived, didn't we?) and that KISS were devilworshipers. I'm Catholic, but that kind of fanatism always embarrasses me
@cavern You may want to reconsider your position