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.
Becky was a beauty from south Alabama
Her Daddy had a heart like a nine pound hammer
Think he even did a little time in the slammer
What was I thinkin'?
She snuck out one night
And met me by the front gate
Her Daddy came out wavin' that twelve gauge
We tore out the drive, he peppered my tailgate
What was I thinkin'?
Oh, I knew there'd be hell to pay
But that crossed my mind a little too late
'Cause I was
Thinkin 'bout a little white tank top
Sittin' right there in the middle by me
I was thinkin' 'bout a long kiss
Man, just gotta get goin'
Where the night might lead
I know what I was feelin'
But what was I thinkin'?
What was I thinkin'?
By the county line
The cops were nippn' on our heels
Pulled off the road and kicked it in four wheel
Shut off the lights and tore through a corn field
What was I thinkin'?
Out the other side she was hollerin' faster
Took a dirt road, had the radio blastin'
Hit the honky tonk for a little close dancin'
What was I thinkin'?
Oh, I knew there'd be hell to pay
But that crossed my mind a little too late
'Cause I was
Thinkin 'bout a little white tank top
Sittin' right there in the middle by me
I was thinkin' 'bout a long kiss
Man, just gotta get goin'
Where the night might lead
I know what I was feelin'
But what was I thinkin'?
When a mountain of a man
With a "born to kill" tattoo
Tried to cut in I knocked out his front tooth
We ran outside hood slidin' like Bo Duke
What was I thinkin'?
I finally got her home at a half past, too late
Her Daddy's in a lawn chair
Sittin' on the driveway
Put it in park as he started my way
What was I thinkin'?
Oh, what was I thinkin'?
Oh, what was I thinkin'?
Then she gave a come and get me grin
And like a bullet we were gone again
'Cause I was
Thinkin 'bout a little white tank top
Sittin' right there in the middle by me
I was thinkin' 'bout a long kiss
Man, just gotta get goin'
Where the night might lead
I know what I was feelin'
Yeah, I know what I was feelin'
But what was I thinkin'?
What was I thinkin'?
I know what I was feelin'
But what was I thinkin'?
Guess I was thinking 'bout that tank top
Those cutoffs
Her Daddy had a heart like a nine pound hammer
Think he even did a little time in the slammer
What was I thinkin'?
She snuck out one night
And met me by the front gate
Her Daddy came out wavin' that twelve gauge
We tore out the drive, he peppered my tailgate
What was I thinkin'?
Oh, I knew there'd be hell to pay
But that crossed my mind a little too late
'Cause I was
Thinkin 'bout a little white tank top
Sittin' right there in the middle by me
I was thinkin' 'bout a long kiss
Man, just gotta get goin'
Where the night might lead
I know what I was feelin'
But what was I thinkin'?
What was I thinkin'?
By the county line
The cops were nippn' on our heels
Pulled off the road and kicked it in four wheel
Shut off the lights and tore through a corn field
What was I thinkin'?
Out the other side she was hollerin' faster
Took a dirt road, had the radio blastin'
Hit the honky tonk for a little close dancin'
What was I thinkin'?
Oh, I knew there'd be hell to pay
But that crossed my mind a little too late
'Cause I was
Thinkin 'bout a little white tank top
Sittin' right there in the middle by me
I was thinkin' 'bout a long kiss
Man, just gotta get goin'
Where the night might lead
I know what I was feelin'
But what was I thinkin'?
When a mountain of a man
With a "born to kill" tattoo
Tried to cut in I knocked out his front tooth
We ran outside hood slidin' like Bo Duke
What was I thinkin'?
I finally got her home at a half past, too late
Her Daddy's in a lawn chair
Sittin' on the driveway
Put it in park as he started my way
What was I thinkin'?
Oh, what was I thinkin'?
Oh, what was I thinkin'?
Then she gave a come and get me grin
And like a bullet we were gone again
'Cause I was
Thinkin 'bout a little white tank top
Sittin' right there in the middle by me
I was thinkin' 'bout a long kiss
Man, just gotta get goin'
Where the night might lead
I know what I was feelin'
Yeah, I know what I was feelin'
But what was I thinkin'?
What was I thinkin'?
I know what I was feelin'
But what was I thinkin'?
Guess I was thinking 'bout that tank top
Those cutoffs
Lyrics submitted by iFyoUCjordan2
What Was I Thinkin' Lyrics as written by Deric Ruttan Brett Beavers
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Reservoir Media Management, Inc., Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
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Am I the only person who sees the weird inconsistency in the vehicles in this song? He's obviously in a pick-up (peppered my tailgate), that is a four-wheeler (kicked it in four-wheel). But he refers to "hood-slidin' like Bo Duke". On a PICK-UP? I don't think so! And then he "puts it in drive"? A redneck driving an automatic four-wheeler? I don't think so!