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.
on the day that Dennis Brown's
lung collasped
spring rain was misting down on Kingston
and down at the harbor
local cops were intercepting
an inbound shipment
and for a while there it was chaos
as they handcuffed and then ruffed up
some sailors
on the day my lung collapses
it's not gonna be much different
on the day that Dennis Brown's
habbits caught up with him
school children sang in choir
and out behind the Chinese resturants
guys were jumping into dumpsters
and the stench was overbearing
but they were past the point of caring
on the day my habits catch up with me
i'll be down among the jumpers
and when the birds come home in spring
we will fill them up with buckshot
and jets of contaminated blood
will cloud the rivers and the lakes
it took all the coke in town
to bring down Dennis Brown
on the day my lung collapses
we'll see just how much it takes
lung collasped
spring rain was misting down on Kingston
and down at the harbor
local cops were intercepting
an inbound shipment
and for a while there it was chaos
as they handcuffed and then ruffed up
some sailors
on the day my lung collapses
it's not gonna be much different
on the day that Dennis Brown's
habbits caught up with him
school children sang in choir
and out behind the Chinese resturants
guys were jumping into dumpsters
and the stench was overbearing
but they were past the point of caring
on the day my habits catch up with me
i'll be down among the jumpers
and when the birds come home in spring
we will fill them up with buckshot
and jets of contaminated blood
will cloud the rivers and the lakes
it took all the coke in town
to bring down Dennis Brown
on the day my lung collapses
we'll see just how much it takes
Lyrics submitted by fuckedupdog
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I saw it as having to do with the sense of fatalism that comes with addiction. Like, some people will point to the story of a great hero or artist who died of an OD, and use it as an example of a tragedy that could be prevented by saying no to drugs. But if you're addicted or have an addictive personality, you hear the story and think "well, if it killed a great like him, what chance do I have?"
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