This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
I've got my eye on top shelf liquor,
With taste so smooth it
Hits you quicker.
But you've only got the well.
And I've got an eye for top tier women
With legs so long they go straight to heaven,
But this old bunch looks like hell.
But tonight I'll take what I can get.
I'd like to hear a great musician
With strange ideas and grand ambition,
But this guy, he's got trouble with chords.
And I'd like to leave this game a winner
Head held high, the luck of beginners
But this old losers crawling out on all fours.
But tonight I'll take what I can get.
Well this drink will do,
And girl you look all right,
And this band is playing like hell tonight.
These dice are loaded
And man I am too
I might be losing but I'm leaving soon.
With the prettiest girl
To enter this dump,
She drank all of the whiskey but she left me the rum
And tonight I'll take what I can get
I've got my sights on brand new beginnings
Brand new starts make saints of sinners
But I'm doomed to live in my past
Live nude girls says the sign out front,
But old dead dreams are dancing in front,
Of old dead dreamers with washed up luck,
Selling love for cash
Well tonight I'll take what I can get.
This old story gets stale and dry,
No matter how I try and try
To spin this fable
Fresh and new
You strung me along
Like a tease on prom night
Getting me loose but
Leaving me uptight
Please tell me that
Some of that love was true.
Tonight I'll take what I can get
Well this drink will do,
And girl you look all right,
And this band is playing like hell tonight.
These dice are loaded
And man I am too
I might be losing but I'm leaving soon.
With the prettiest girl
To enter this dump,
She drank all of the whiskey but she left me the rum
And tonight I'll take what I can get.
With taste so smooth it
Hits you quicker.
But you've only got the well.
And I've got an eye for top tier women
With legs so long they go straight to heaven,
But this old bunch looks like hell.
But tonight I'll take what I can get.
I'd like to hear a great musician
With strange ideas and grand ambition,
But this guy, he's got trouble with chords.
And I'd like to leave this game a winner
Head held high, the luck of beginners
But this old losers crawling out on all fours.
But tonight I'll take what I can get.
Well this drink will do,
And girl you look all right,
And this band is playing like hell tonight.
These dice are loaded
And man I am too
I might be losing but I'm leaving soon.
With the prettiest girl
To enter this dump,
She drank all of the whiskey but she left me the rum
And tonight I'll take what I can get
I've got my sights on brand new beginnings
Brand new starts make saints of sinners
But I'm doomed to live in my past
Live nude girls says the sign out front,
But old dead dreams are dancing in front,
Of old dead dreamers with washed up luck,
Selling love for cash
Well tonight I'll take what I can get.
This old story gets stale and dry,
No matter how I try and try
To spin this fable
Fresh and new
You strung me along
Like a tease on prom night
Getting me loose but
Leaving me uptight
Please tell me that
Some of that love was true.
Tonight I'll take what I can get
Well this drink will do,
And girl you look all right,
And this band is playing like hell tonight.
These dice are loaded
And man I am too
I might be losing but I'm leaving soon.
With the prettiest girl
To enter this dump,
She drank all of the whiskey but she left me the rum
And tonight I'll take what I can get.
Lyrics submitted by JustNEmoKid
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!
More Featured Meanings
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
Blue
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Punchline
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran sings about missing his former partner and learning important life lessons in the process on “Punchline.” This track tells a story of battling to get rid of emotions for a former lover, whom he now realized might not have loved him the same way. He’s now caught between accepting that fact and learning life lessons from it and going back to beg her for another chance.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
i like the acoustic version better. the one with the band sounds like a country round up or something.