My lover left me
She left me too soon
I shouldn't blame her much
But the state of my room
I started stumbling and chasing the bells
The metal straps upon my knees
Made this sound when I fell
And you heard those words from your piers
I was just your volunteer

I loved my Uncle Georgie
Uncle Georgie's my friend
He spent his life fishing
Washing dishes weekends
And I tried to say something sincere
Sign me up I'll volunteer

My father left me
He left me too soon
I thought he'd say something
Before he waltzed from the room
And all I remembered was my hands at my side
The face of a woman who once was his bride
And all I got left with was tears
Seven lonely volunteers

We look for Sister Mary
Sister Mary's the pale
She holds her head sometimes
And walks close to the rail
She sings on a Sunday
And stands on the stairs
She haunts me at night time
When I've forgotten my prayers
And we don't see much of her here
A winter weary volunteer

The captains need order
It helps them stay sane
The plumbers hate slaughter
It fucks up the drains
And hard-hats must be worn at all time on the site
It don't make no difference if you're lost in the light
The men here make last their career
They don't talk to volunteers

Oh how your life cuts me
And rips through my bones
We pretend that it's nothing
When we're on the way home
And I wish you'd abandoned me here
So I can be a volunteer

I thought you were dreaming
Been listening for days
The crime wave it hurts
Even though it still pays
And Babyface Mendoza and the Bruiser Mandrake
Had a plan for re-election using an old Jedi mind trick
The Tappan Zee Bridge has grown ears
To hear the drowning volunteers

Yeah the Tappan Zee Bridge has grown ears
I hear the drowning volunteers


Lyrics submitted by JordyWordy

Volunteer Lyrics as written by Mark Geary

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Volunteer song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

0 Comments

sort form View by:
  • No Comments

Add your thoughts

Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.

Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!

More Featured Meanings

Album art
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him. There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Album art
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
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"
Album art
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
Album art
Blue
Ed Sheeran
“Blue” is a song about a love that is persisting in the discomfort of the person experiencing the emotion. Ed Sheeran reflects on love lost, and although he wishes his former partner find happiness, he cannot but admit his feelings are still very much there. He expresses the realization that he might never find another on this stringed instrumental by Aaron Dessner.
Album art
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.