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"
My friend you were the model
A priceless work of art
Boys would fashion their emotions
To the pattern of your heart
And I heard you wrote that record
For a girl you loved but died
I'm here sewing mine together
Just hoping you're alive
And I know you'll never come back now
To the world where people are
Because you never understood
What they loved you for
Now ghosts, they have their secrets
And they'll tell them to a few
So you could never pay attention
When they're whispering to you
There were many talents you possessed
That I wished myself to have
But the way your eyes would gloss over
Well, I never envied that
And I doubt you'll ever come back now
From wherever it is you are
Because you never understood
What we loved you for
I'm sure the TV sets will tell us
When someone reinvents the wheel
Until then I'll have a million conversations
About shit that isn't real
But I've tried to breathe in meaning
Dig deep to every gasp of air
Because I know you did the same thing
For as long as you could bear
I guess everything just circles around
To where it was before
So I hope I see you soon
In some other form
A priceless work of art
Boys would fashion their emotions
To the pattern of your heart
And I heard you wrote that record
For a girl you loved but died
I'm here sewing mine together
Just hoping you're alive
And I know you'll never come back now
To the world where people are
Because you never understood
What they loved you for
Now ghosts, they have their secrets
And they'll tell them to a few
So you could never pay attention
When they're whispering to you
There were many talents you possessed
That I wished myself to have
But the way your eyes would gloss over
Well, I never envied that
And I doubt you'll ever come back now
From wherever it is you are
Because you never understood
What we loved you for
I'm sure the TV sets will tell us
When someone reinvents the wheel
Until then I'll have a million conversations
About shit that isn't real
But I've tried to breathe in meaning
Dig deep to every gasp of air
Because I know you did the same thing
For as long as you could bear
I guess everything just circles around
To where it was before
So I hope I see you soon
In some other form
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More Featured Meanings
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
Son Şansın - Şarkı Sözleri
Hayalperest
Hayalperest
This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
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/
I think this song is about how we can live on after our deaths (not in a religious way though). He is pointing out that what we do on earth influences others, and because of that we have the ability to live forever. I think he is saying that even though his 'friend' who wrote the tragic album is gone, his influence lives on - both in the 'hearts of his fans' and in the next new crop of singer-songwriters who are influenced by the dead musician and therefore 'reinvent the wheel' by making more music inspired by the dead singer. Thus, he also lives on in another form - in the form of other people's music.
So, is this dead singer Elliott Smith? I'd like to think so. Some things fit better than others. Elliott never wrote an album inspired by a real life dead girl, but he did write multiple songs featuring suicidal girlfriends - 'Condor Ave', 'Georgia, Georgia', 'Don't Go Down' are a few. So, it would not be odd that Conor might have heard a rumour that these songs were based on something in Elliott's life (though as far as I know, they were not, and may in fact have been about himself). The other thing that doesn't fit that well with Elliott, is the line about hoping he is alive. Now, from my interpretation of this song, you could read it as hoping that the legacy of the 'friend' is still alive, not the person himself. But I do admit that this is a little problematic.
Everything else fits really well with Elliott as far as I can tell, most of these have been posted here before. One hasn't though and that is the paragraph about the ghosts. Elliott was constantly plagued with the ghosts of his past. His songs are full of references to horrible events from his childhood which kept a reoccurring litany in his dreams, both awake and asleep. The lines: "Now ghosts, they have their secrets, And they'll tell them to a few. So you could never pay attention When they're whispering to you" and then the mention of his 'glazed eyes' could definitely be a reference to Elliott's ghosts and the depression and substance abuse that they caused as he tried not to 'pay attention' and ended up blocking out the whole world, literally and figuratively. All in all, it is probably about Elliott - we loved him and he never understood why, he never saw himself the way that we did, and that's a pity. But he will live on because someday we will be watching 'the late show' or something and some young newcomer will sing a masterpiece that was clearly inspired by Elliott and therefore we will be seeing Elliott in another form.