36 Meanings
Add Yours
Follow
Share
Q&A
Rag & Bone Lyrics
(Rag and bone) rag and bone
(Rag and bone) rag and bone
Meg look at this place (What? Ooh!)
Well, this place is like a mansion, it's like a mansion
Look at all this stuff (I don't know)
Look, I see something over there, woo, man
Can't you hear me selling rag and bone
Bring out your junk and we'll give it a home
A broken trumpet or a telephone
Come on, come on, come on
Come on and give it to me, yeah
Come on, come on, come on
Come on and give it to me
Rag and bone, rag and bone
Come on, come on, come on
Come on and give it to me
All of your pretty, pretty little rags and bones
Well, man, look at all this, you don't want it? (What is that?)
You sure you don't want it?
I can do it, take it
It's just things you don't want
I can use them, Meg can use them
We can do something with them
We'll make something out of them
Make some money out of them at least
(This fits me perfect, give it to me)
Hey if you ain't gonna use it, just give it to us
We'll give it a home
Have you got something shiny for me?
Anybody got a Christmas tree?
Can you part with a toilet seat?
Jump up, jump up, jump up
Come on and give it to me
Rag and one
We want to give you candy while it's hot
You think it's trash-candy but it's not
We'll be shaking whatever you got
Give up, give up, give up
Come on and give it to me, woo
All of your pretty, pretty little rags and bones
(I saw some stuff in your yard
Are you going to give it to us?)
Ah, Meg don't be rude (or not?)
They might need it, if you don't want it we'll take it
If you don't want to give it to us, we'll keep walking by
We'll keep going, we're not tired but
We've got plenty of places to go
lot's of homes we ain't been to yet on
the west side
the south west side
middle east, rich house, dog house, outhouse
old folks house, house for unwed mothers
Halfway homes, catacombs, twilight zones
Looking for techniques, turntables to gramophones
So take a last lick of your ice cream cone
And lock up what you still want to own
But please be kind (have a good time)
And don't rewind (that's fine)
All of your pretty, your pretty little rags and bones
Your pretty little rags and bones
Jump up, jump up, jump up
Come on and give it to me
Your pretty little rags and bones
Come on, come on, come on
Come on and give it to us
(Rag and bone) rag and bone
Meg look at this place (What? Ooh!)
Well, this place is like a mansion, it's like a mansion
Look at all this stuff (I don't know)
Look, I see something over there, woo, man
Bring out your junk and we'll give it a home
A broken trumpet or a telephone
Come on, come on, come on
Come on and give it to me, yeah
Come on, come on, come on
Come on and give it to me
Rag and bone, rag and bone
Come on, come on, come on
Come on and give it to me
All of your pretty, pretty little rags and bones
You sure you don't want it?
I can do it, take it
It's just things you don't want
I can use them, Meg can use them
We can do something with them
We'll make something out of them
Make some money out of them at least
(This fits me perfect, give it to me)
Hey if you ain't gonna use it, just give it to us
We'll give it a home
Anybody got a Christmas tree?
Can you part with a toilet seat?
Jump up, jump up, jump up
Come on and give it to me
Rag and one
You think it's trash-candy but it's not
We'll be shaking whatever you got
Give up, give up, give up
Come on and give it to me, woo
All of your pretty, pretty little rags and bones
Are you going to give it to us?)
Ah, Meg don't be rude (or not?)
They might need it, if you don't want it we'll take it
If you don't want to give it to us, we'll keep walking by
We'll keep going, we're not tired but
lot's of homes we ain't been to yet on
the west side
the south west side
middle east, rich house, dog house, outhouse
old folks house, house for unwed mothers
Looking for techniques, turntables to gramophones
So take a last lick of your ice cream cone
And lock up what you still want to own
But please be kind (have a good time)
And don't rewind (that's fine)
All of your pretty, your pretty little rags and bones
Your pretty little rags and bones
Jump up, jump up, jump up
Come on and give it to me
Your pretty little rags and bones
Come on, come on, come on
Come on and give it to us
Song Info
Submitted by
inthissilentvoid On Jun 08, 2007
More The White Stripes
Seven Nation Army
Fell In Love With A Girl
Blue Orchid
Icky Thump
Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground
Add your song meanings, interpretations, facts, memories & more to the community.
What an absolute fantastic song! I can't help but get off my seat and dance! It's pretty infectious. I think it's about how the artists feel that the world is their oyster when it comes to inspiration (even right down to the toilet seat). However, the biggest inspiration to them is what reaction they get from their fans and non-fans alike ("Ah, Come on and give it to us"). For example, the line:"We'll be shaking whatever you got" shows how inspiration happens in at least in two ways. One is seeing the listener being moved by the music (physically, emotionally, or spiritually). The other conjures an image of the artists shaking a box at your garage sale and trying to figure out what is inside it. There is such a great sense of reciprocity (or at very least, cause and effect) in this song. Musicians and listeners exist in a symbiotic relationship. It is not only an homage to the musicians' muse, but it is an homage to the essence of music: the drumbeat (rag and bone).
I heard a few different lyrics than posted (Thanks 'in this silent void' for doing it!). I got my version from itunes and it may be different from the vinyl one NME put out:
(Rag and Bone) Rag and Bone (Rag and Bone) Rag and Bone Meg look at this place (What? Ooh!) Well, this place is like a mansion, it's like a mansion Look at all this stuff (I don’t’ know) Look, I see something over there, woo, man
Can't you hear me selling rag & bone Bring out your junk and we'll give it a home A broken trumpet or a telephone Come on, come on, come on Come on and give it to me, yeah Come on, come on, come on Come on and give it to me Rag and bone, rag and bone Come on, come on, come on Come on and give it to me All of your pretty, pretty little rags and bones
Well, man, look at all this, you don't want it? (What is that?) You sure you don't want it? I can do it… take it It's just things you don't want I can use them, Meg can use them We can do something with them We’ll make something out of them Make some money out of them at least (This fits me perfect… give it to me) Hey if you ain't gonna use it, just give it to us We'll give it a home
Have you got something shiny for me? Anybody got a Christmas tree? Can you part with a toilet seat? Jump Up, Jump Up, Jump Up Come on and give it to me Rag & Bone
We want to give you candy while it’s hot You think it's trash-candy but it's not We'll be shaking whatever you got Give Up, Give Up, Give Up, Come on and give it to me, Woo All of your pretty, pretty little rags & bones
(I saw some stuff in your yard. Are you going to give it to us?) Ah, Meg don't be rude (Or Not?) They might need it, if you don't want it we'll take it If you don't want to give it to us, we’ll keep walking by, We’ll keep going, we're not tired but we’ve got plenty of places to go, lot's of homes we ain’t been to yet on the west side, the south west side, middle east, rich house, dog house, outhouse, old folks house, house for unwed mothers, halfway homes, catacombs, twilight zones Looking for techniques, turntables to gramophones, So take a last lick of your ice cream cone And lock up what you still want to own But please be kind (have a good time) And don't rewind (that’s fine) All of your pretty, your pretty little rags & bones Your pretty little rags & bones Jump Up, Jump Up, Jump Up Come on and give it to me Your pretty little rags & bones Come on, Come on, Come on, Come on and give it to us … Yeahs-yeahs….
I think it has something to do with Jack being an avid junk collector. Seriously. I was reading an article of him in the paper and he was saying that he has an obsession for junk. Pretty much anything that might arouse particular interest that people throw out. He said that he used to be in the business and would often move collect old couches for re-sale which people threw out. So it has something to do with rediscovering the beauty of things that most people don't find usefull anymore.
"Bring out your junk and we'll give it a home." "It's just things you don't want I can use them, Meg can use them We can do something with them We’ll make something out of them"
This describes what i'm saying perfectly.
I agree, but apparently "garbage-picking" as a hobby is a thing in Detroit, amongst other places, and in England those kind of people are called "rag and bone," according to Jack. From a recent FILTER Mag article Jack White wrote: 'It was a popular pastime for kids growing up in Detroit; scouring through abandoned buildings looking for whatever you could find. I was a born garbage-picker. Raised by garbage-pickers. I even played on a song called “garbage-picker” in a band I was in once. I plan to teach my kids to garbage-pick as well if they know what’s good for them. In...
I agree, but apparently "garbage-picking" as a hobby is a thing in Detroit, amongst other places, and in England those kind of people are called "rag and bone," according to Jack. From a recent FILTER Mag article Jack White wrote: 'It was a popular pastime for kids growing up in Detroit; scouring through abandoned buildings looking for whatever you could find. I was a born garbage-picker. Raised by garbage-pickers. I even played on a song called “garbage-picker” in a band I was in once. I plan to teach my kids to garbage-pick as well if they know what’s good for them. In England they call them “rag and bone” people; “mongo” is another good term I learned from the scrap-metal kind of pickers in Detroit. (...) I found drum sets, lamps, paintings, everything.'
He elaborates a little more in the article, which you can find here: http://filtermagazine.com/index.php/exclusives/entry/jack_white_instant_manipulation#sthash.dvpVPOZ7.dpuf
Mikemat5150 noticed the parallels between Tom Petty's "Last Dance with Mary Jane" and "A Martyr for My Love for You" by the White Stripes. I totally agree. This prompted me to post some strong similarities I see with songs on Icky Thump and other songs:
First, "Icky Thump" guitar riffs sound an awful lot like "Black Dog" by Led Zeppelin (and they share similar tales of tables being turned, too). I instantly thought this the first time I heard Icky Thump.
Second, "Rag and Bone" reminds me of "Cheap Sunglasses" by ZZ top.
Third, it sounds like Jack ripped off his own stuff (if that is possible) in "300 mph Torrential Outpour Blues". The guitar riff is almost identical to one in "Portland" by Loretta Lynn (and its music definitely worth repeating).
Fourth, "Effect and Cause" by the White Stripes and "Summertime Blues" by the Who are similar in the melody for the lines "You can't take the Effect and make it the Cause" and "But there ain't no cure for the Summertime Blues"
There are others but I would like to hear what other people think. Do you think the White Stripes purposely ripped off other artists' melodies/ideas/riffs? ...They are junk collectors in "Rag and Bone" and love to be a part of a traditional of passing along great music!
I definitely agree about Effect and Cause/Summertime Blues (orig. by Eddie Cochran), but the rest of your comparisons are way off.
I definitely agree about Effect and Cause/Summertime Blues (orig. by Eddie Cochran), but the rest of your comparisons are way off.
While I can see and appreciate that those songs and artists have had an influence on the White Stripes in general, none of the specific Stripes songs could be called a rip off or reworking of the same melodies of those songs, because they aren't.
While I can see and appreciate that those songs and artists have had an influence on the White Stripes in general, none of the specific Stripes songs could be called a rip off or reworking of the same melodies of those songs, because they aren't.
On a side note, Tom Petty's "Last Dance" is more similar to Neil Young's "Ohio" than the Stripes' "Martyr for My Love" is to either of them. (Of course they might have been...
On a side note, Tom Petty's "Last Dance" is more similar to Neil Young's "Ohio" than the Stripes' "Martyr for My Love" is to either of them. (Of course they might have been an inspiration, but neither of us could possibly know since the similarity is rudimentary at best).
I definitely agree about Effect and Cause/Summertime Blues (orig. by Eddie Cochran), but the rest of your comparisons are way off.
I definitely agree about Effect and Cause/Summertime Blues (orig. by Eddie Cochran), but the rest of your comparisons are way off.
While I can see and appreciate that those songs and artists have had an influence on the White Stripes in general, none of the specific Stripes songs could be called a rip off or reworking of the same melodies of the songs you mentioned. I'm not saying Jack didn't nick a riff or two from elsewhere for his songs, but the similarities between your mentions is rudimentary at best and not really worthy of comparison.
While I can see and appreciate that those songs and artists have had an influence on the White Stripes in general, none of the specific Stripes songs could be called a rip off or reworking of the same melodies of the songs you mentioned. I'm not saying Jack didn't nick a riff or two from elsewhere for his songs, but the similarities between your mentions is rudimentary at best and not really worthy of comparison.
On a side...
On a side note, Tom Petty's "Last Dance" is more similar to Neil Young's "Ohio" than the Stripes' "Martyr for My Love" is to either of them.
Having said that, folk and blues does have a tradition of re-using melodies, phrases, imagery and whatnot (something the White Stripes and Jack have obviously continued doing) so I think your interpretation of Rag and Bone as being about that does indeed sound valid.
Definitely about recycling old riffs and songs. Bringing new life to something that someone else once enjoyed and loved so that someone else can enjoy it too. One's man trash is another's treasure; I don't think he's talking about literal objects.
"C'mon and get it granny while it's hot You think it's trash granny but it's not" Probably refering to new music and how older generations just don't have the ear for it.
they're the rock n roll wombles I LOVE this song
can i just say, to the people who keep posting the similarities between the white stripe's songs and other people's.. there are only a certain number of ways notes can be arranged, so obviously, with the billions of songs there are out there, that there's bound to be similarities between some. and, i have listened to these songs that jack apparently "ripped off" and i must say that, i can hear some things are the same, but really, it's just the general tone of the song that i think is similar. especially with "a martyr for my love for you" and "last dance with mary jane". it's not necessarily the notes, but the tone/mood the song has. just something to consider! :)
This song is great... I love the British idea of a rag and bone man being sung by such a classic american rock and roll band. I got this on vinyl from the NME, best magazine giveaway ever.
I always lose when he says, "Meg can use em". This song is hysterical.
@wonderfulpeople Yeah
@wonderfulpeople Yeah
its about junk collecters and its fantastic
great song on an awesome album