Both as a standalone and as part of the DSOTS album, you can take this lyric as read. As a matter of public record, Jourgensen's drug intake was legendary even in the 1980s. By the late 90s, in his own words, he was grappling with massive addiction issues and had lost almost everything: friends, spouse, money and had nearly died more than once. "Dark Side of the Spoon" is a both funny & sad title for an album made by a musical genius who was losing the plot; and this song is a message to his fans & friends saying he knows it. It's painful to listen to so I'm glad the "Keith Richards of industrial metals" wised up and cleaned up. Well done sir.
Puts up the closed sign does the man in the corner shop
Serves his last then he says goodbye to him
He knows it is a hard life
But it's nice to be your own boss really
Walks off home does the last customer
He is jealous of the man in the corner shop
He's sick of working at the factory
Says it must be nice to be your own boss, really
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
Sells cigars to the boss from the factory
He is jealous of the man in the corner shop
He is sick of struggling so hard
Says it might be nice to own a factory
Go to church do the people from the area
All shapes and classes sit and pray together
For here they are all one
For God created all men equal
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
Go to church do the people from the area
Go to church do the people from the area
Go to church do the people from the area
For God created all men equal, they know
That God created all men equal, they know
That God created all men equal, they know
That God created all men equal, they know
That God created all men equal, they know
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la...
Serves his last then he says goodbye to him
He knows it is a hard life
But it's nice to be your own boss really
Walks off home does the last customer
He is jealous of the man in the corner shop
He's sick of working at the factory
Says it must be nice to be your own boss, really
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
Sells cigars to the boss from the factory
He is jealous of the man in the corner shop
He is sick of struggling so hard
Says it might be nice to own a factory
Go to church do the people from the area
All shapes and classes sit and pray together
For here they are all one
For God created all men equal
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
Go to church do the people from the area
Go to church do the people from the area
Go to church do the people from the area
For God created all men equal, they know
That God created all men equal, they know
That God created all men equal, they know
That God created all men equal, they know
That God created all men equal, they know
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la
La-la-la-la-la...
Lyrics submitted by planetearth, edited by Jammerwords
Man in the Corner Shop Lyrics as written by Paul John Weller
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
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"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
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Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
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Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
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This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
This is a great Jam song, and one of the highlights off of "sound affects" so im surprised no one has commented. The lyrics are pretty simple, and mostly i think about everybody wanting what someone else has. The only especially interesting thing is probably the turn around of the phrase "god created all mean equal," which in this case doesn't refer to equal rights, but rather to the idea that all sorts of people essentially act the same way. The factory worker wants to be his own boss, while the man in the corner shop wants to work in a factory. Everybody is equal in that they want something that someone else has, regardless of their social status.