This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"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:
"I had all and then most of you"
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
"Some and now none of you"
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.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Someone took in these pants
Somebody painted over paint
Painted wood
And where he stood, no one stands
It's been said he's sitting now
In the churning land
Well, I've seen saints, but remember
That I forgot to flag 'em down
When they passed
And in the morning light
You hold that ashtray tight
You could put it out
But I can't put it out
My hands shook, down and out
I've got the blisters of the world
World new
I name the book after you
So look up and watch the camera lens
When the risers fade
Slow it down! Song is sacred!
And brother, you're a hunter
And you're right at home
And in the morning light
I'll hold my ashtray tight
I could take it down
And you can't take it down
La-da-da-da-da-da-da
[Repeat: x7]
Don't expect
Somebody painted over paint
Painted wood
And where he stood, no one stands
It's been said he's sitting now
In the churning land
Well, I've seen saints, but remember
That I forgot to flag 'em down
When they passed
And in the morning light
You hold that ashtray tight
You could put it out
But I can't put it out
My hands shook, down and out
I've got the blisters of the world
World new
I name the book after you
So look up and watch the camera lens
When the risers fade
Slow it down! Song is sacred!
And brother, you're a hunter
And you're right at home
And in the morning light
I'll hold my ashtray tight
I could take it down
And you can't take it down
La-da-da-da-da-da-da
[Repeat: x7]
Don't expect
Lyrics submitted by summerbabe
Shoot the Singer (1 Sick Verse) Lyrics as written by Stephen Malkmus Scott Kannberg
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Hipgnosis Songs Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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The Night We Met
Lord Huron
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@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
Mountain Song
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Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
Gentle Hour
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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,
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:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
Man, this truly was the best band of the nineties.
Random Rules deserves that credit.
oh. I haven't had time to listen again or think over which makes more sense, but I assumed the opening line was "Someone took envy's pants"
@eleventy I believe the same thing.
Best opening line ever.
I always thought he said "tuck", though you never can be too sure with Malkmus.
the saloon cover is amazing. not to say the original isn't my favorite song in the world.
S.M. had something there in that little corner of the world in the nineties.
and i wish it were still then and there.
epic
devastatorjr is spot on. how the fuck a line like 'someone took...in these pants...somebody painted over paint; painted wood' has some sort of profound effect on me i will never know. both verses in fact are perfection. i've never really tried to interpret any of it, but 'so look up and watch the camera lens, when the risers fade' has that weight of meaning about it, just the sound, the way the words sit together, that it sounds like the end of everything in the room. i love the fact that it sounds so fucking jaunty as well.
the salon cover is decent, but i had the fortune to see pavement play it live in either '95 or '96 and it made my evening - i think in the end i saw them play pretty much everything that i love over various shows apart from 'greenlander'.
the line about the ashtray makes me think of hanging out all night then looking out the window and realizing that it's light out. Not always a good feeling.
best pavement song ever. rarely played during the reunion, but the central park recording I heard of it was phenom.
I think the first section is the easiest to interpret.
Someone took a dump in his pants The poo covered the paint on the bench he was sitting on He says the same thing using the word "wood" which he needed for the next rhyme "stood" He got off the bench and the poo moved to the ground and no one would stand there He still sitting in poo. Churning refers to milky agitated poo.
Churning: To make by the agitation of milk or cream: churn butter.
Sun Light