Start Without Me

I always thought this song was about a race car driver who was convinced to have a big car crash for a huge amount of money.

Roll me over I wanna wave at the kids- roll the car over? If it's once I've got it, if it's twice I don't- how many times the car rolls?

Definitely a bad dad.

I love the way this song starts. It is probably my favorite song on the CD, even though I don't think I understand the meaning of the song at all. I'm sure there is more to it than just a gambling husband being left by his wife because of his bad habits.

To take a stab at it, I think this song is about a negligent husband. He clearly has a gambling problem and travels a lot but excuses it by saying it's "all for you", his wife and family. There seems to be some cynicism like maybe he really is doing what he wants instead of what he should, but passing it off as him being "misunderstood". Just a guess.

I like this song alot too, but I am puzzled over the first line - roll me over so i can wave at the kids - is he morbidly obese or otherwise incapacitated? in a wheelchair? At any rate, I really like the line, and I'm nearly certain imagery like this hasn't appeared before in music.

TW Walsh also does an amazing version of this song--- check it outo n his website sometime.

this song has a really nice warm feel to it, i think his vocals sound very similiar to Evan Dando, great stuff!

Another song about fatherhood. This poor ignorant, lazy father has a gambling problem and tries to play it off as himself being misunderstood or for the family.

I feel like the "start without me" reference is to his wife having an affair while he's off at the races, but he keeps her happy with the money he gets.

I love Bazan but he makes me feel so depressed when I hear his songs and realize just how greedy and ignorant we all are.

i think he means the human race when he refers to he's on his way to the next race. and anyways, this song was written by tw walsh, not bazan and he just wants bazan to say his name if he starts without him. you know, cause everything walsh does is misunderstood--from shark to ape.

I started thinking about how it would make some kind of sense if the guy in this song is the same guy as the one in Transcontinental. Just because he left himself to bleed to death doesn't mean that someone doesn't find him and call the ambulance anyway. Since he no longer has legs, that's why he needs them to roll him over to wave at the kids, why does he want to wave at the kids? Maybe he's loopy for pain killers. Maybe he's got a new found interest in life since he's been saved. He can't say he prescribes because he doesn't know what it is could be when a doctor is asking a person what sort of medications he's on. He's down at the tracks (where his legs were severed) and he checks in And even though he's somewhere getting medical attention, he doesn't know if he'll make it so he's telling his wife where he hid all the money. It's an interesting interpretation at least, right? EVen though it is totally wrong.

Whoa whoa whoa, a negligent husband with a gambling problem? I don't get that at all... I think it's a man committing suicide out of feelings of inadequacy or failure. He's asking to be rolled over due to an inability to do it himself, but waving to his kids is obviously important. Consider that in this situation, acknowledging his children takes priority over figuring out why he can't move. To me, I took that as him being comfortable or maybe even expecting an inability to move. Mentioning that he doesn't know if he prescribes, makes me think the character reached for any and all pills in the cabinet, and when paramedics suspect an overdose, they usually ask if you are on any prescriptions.

In the verse where he mentions being "at the track" where most people seem to think it's the first mention of a gambling problem, I kind of took it as him calling to check up on his wife to see what she's doing. I very much so took this as a suspicious call, being nosy, etc... "if you start without me" could be dinner with the children while he's away, or it could be a hotel romp, not sure it matters, it just seemed like he's longing for acknowledgment of his attempts, if not any successes at being a good partner.

"Take a message..." seemed to be suggesting that he's only got one chance to say his piece, because he wont be around to clarify or rebut. He wanted this message to survive close scrutiny and have an impact, maybe because it was something he could never speak out loud. As you can guess, I do think he's talking about a suicide note.

The next stanza mentioning money behind the pictures seems to be blending the idea that he'll miss the memories and all the good times they had, and a "don't worry, I'll still provide for you the only thing that you ever really needed me for, you're just going to have to get through all the things I loved in life to get it"

"If it's once I got it..." this line is probably the most (for me) stirring and amazing example of Bazan's ability to say so much by hiding it in something that should be mundane. I think he's talking about being there to answer the phone. Kind of like an "I'll be in the office, so I'll get the phone" but if it rings more than once, he either does not intend to answer, or he is not able to. A stunning example of anti-climacticism where he seems to be saying that she'll know he's gone, and she'll have to get the phone. Not so much a "you'll have to do the little things I used to do for you" statement so much as a "this is how you'll know I'm gone, but don't forget to answer the phone before you bother to care"

He feels worthless, incapable, unlovable, unremarkable, and unmemorable. A loaded song, and heartbreaking to say the least.