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.
oh billy come on, cause i've heard your hundreth song
and though i liked the tale of the millionares that constructed the fine bolts and put the buildings in the air
billy come on, oh come and sing your hundreth song.
precautionary tales to reactionary table, ha-ha
granted your songs have been living in this world
have been eating in this world
have been breathing in this world
rain on rain on
i find it unacceptable
i've made concessions to the world
to the running of the world
to the turning of the world
can beneath me burn
billy was a girl, but he couldn't tie his curls
but the proxis breaks, the angry bed
the lover and the wood lives on common care
billy come on in the echoing morning calm
try to find your breath and breathe the air for the troupe of sellers and millionaries
billy come on like a population bursts from your songs
for the birdies and the babies and the downtown pushers, please billy
granted your lungs have been sucking in this world
have been breathing in this world
have been lying in the sand
rain on rain on
i find it unacceptable that you keep singing to the world
and keep lying in the world
and keep crushing everybody's heads .. (?)
and though i liked the tale of the millionares that constructed the fine bolts and put the buildings in the air
billy come on, oh come and sing your hundreth song.
precautionary tales to reactionary table, ha-ha
granted your songs have been living in this world
have been eating in this world
have been breathing in this world
rain on rain on
i find it unacceptable
i've made concessions to the world
to the running of the world
to the turning of the world
can beneath me burn
billy was a girl, but he couldn't tie his curls
but the proxis breaks, the angry bed
the lover and the wood lives on common care
billy come on in the echoing morning calm
try to find your breath and breathe the air for the troupe of sellers and millionaries
billy come on like a population bursts from your songs
for the birdies and the babies and the downtown pushers, please billy
granted your lungs have been sucking in this world
have been breathing in this world
have been lying in the sand
rain on rain on
i find it unacceptable that you keep singing to the world
and keep lying in the world
and keep crushing everybody's heads .. (?)
Lyrics submitted by scarybears
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here's what i've got to try to fill in the rest of the song.
oh billy come on, oh cause i've heard your hundredth song and though i liked the tale of the millionaires that constructed the fine bolts and put the buildings in the air billy come on, oh come and sing your hundredth song. bring cautionary tales to the reactionary table, ha-ha!
granted your songs have been living in this world have been eating in this world have been breathing in this world rain on, rain on, rain on
i find it unacceptable i've made concessions to the world to the running of the world to the turning of the world can beneath me burn
billy was a girl, but he couldn't tie his curls but the praxis breaks the angry bear the lover in the wood lives on common care billy come on, oh in the echoing morning calm try to find your breath and breathe the air for the troupe of sellers and millionaries
billy come on, oh like a population bursts from your songs for the birdies and the babies and the downtown pushers please billy, ha-ha!
granted your lungs have been sucking in this world have been breathing in this world have been lying in this world rain on, rain on, rain on
i find it unacceptable that you keep singing to the world and keep lying in the world and keep crushing everybody's heads and what everybody (oh) thinks about rain on, rain on, rain on
keep ringing on the rail, the wrong, the wrong keep singing to the wrong, to the wrong, to the song singers singing bring it fucking on and on and on
this set of millionaires that burst the tale and ripped the hair the final fate of lies, dear the final fare and sail
as far as i can tell, this song is about modern industrial society ("millionaires who constructed the fine bolts and put the buildings in the air"), themes also found elsewhere on the golden river, like in "one in six children will flee in boats."
the plight of the millionaires may make a good story, and they may have made seemingly great accomplishments, but it serves as a cautionary tale, as it was always destined to fail. no one does or can do anything about it; even people who are passionately opposed lose heart ("the praxis breaks the angry bear"), and some live their lives within the system, not necessarily agreeing with it, but doing nothing to change it ("the lover in the wood lives on common care"). billy goes around glorifying this system and spreading his propaganda, preventing people from thinking on their own.
it may be frustrating, but in the end it all has to break down, and at the very least it can serve as a warning.
to me it's clearly about another songwriter. named billy. given mercer clearly wishes this billy would shut up, and given the song is full of references to hair and millionaires, is there any doubt that it's billy corgan? who hasn't wished for billy corgan to just stop, already.