Something's beating on the wall on the other side
Strange lovers moan
Each other's names on by sheets
For the very first time
One of them's James
The other's some name she changes every time she lies across his bed
But the light of the moon leads the way towards the morning
And the sun, the sun's well on its way too soon to know
And, oh my God, whatever, etcetera
If I could I'd fold myself away like a card table
A concertina or a Murphy bed
I would but I wasn't made that way so you know instead
I'm open all night and the customers come to stay
And everybody tips but not enough to knock me over
I'm so tired
I just worked two shifts
But the light of the moon leads the way towards the morning
And the sun, the sun's well on its way too soon, to know
Oh, my God
Oh, my God, whatever, etcetera
Etcetera
Strange lovers moan
Each other's names on by sheets
For the very first time
One of them's James
The other's some name she changes every time she lies across his bed
But the light of the moon leads the way towards the morning
And the sun, the sun's well on its way too soon to know
And, oh my God, whatever, etcetera
If I could I'd fold myself away like a card table
A concertina or a Murphy bed
I would but I wasn't made that way so you know instead
I'm open all night and the customers come to stay
And everybody tips but not enough to knock me over
I'm so tired
I just worked two shifts
But the light of the moon leads the way towards the morning
And the sun, the sun's well on its way too soon, to know
Oh, my God
Oh, my God, whatever, etcetera
Etcetera
Lyrics submitted by matches malone
Oh My God, Whatever, Etc. Lyrics as written by Ryan Adams Bradley Smith Pemberton
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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"And, oh my god, whatever, et cetera"
He wishes that he could conserve what left of him. Hideaway and not allow for his heart to get broken anymore.
"If I could I'd fold myself away like a card table
A concertina or a Murphy bed"
People aren't born to live as loners. We're social beings that NEED love. Need that sense of fulfillment.
"I would but I wasn't made that way so you know instead"
Here he allows to be used. He's tired but he still hasn't found that love that he is searching for.
"I'm open all night and the customers come to stay
And everybody tips but not enough to knock me over
I'm so tired
I just worked two shifts"
Strange lovers moan
Each other's names on by ? sheets? (the lyric is Each other's name on by the hour sheets)
I think that's one of the most important words (hour), because it makes me feel as if the song is about a "working woman" or prostitute.
I agree with Gabriel, i think it's a beautifully written song about someone who chose a career (prostitution) and she is unhappy with it.
"Strange lovers moan
Each other's names on by ? sheets?
For the very first time
One of them's James
The other's some name he changes every time she lies across his bed"
"The other's some name SHE changes..." James happens to be her customer's name, but she has an alias. She changes her name when she's with customers. She wants to change, but i get the feeling that she's stuck.
I think it's written from the perspective of the front desk clerk at one of those seedy motels where sketchy folk grab a room by the hour (** "on by the hour sheets" **), for themselves and their escort.
He's hearing everything going on through the paper thin walls in the room adjacent to his front check in desk, all while working the night shift (two shifts in fact), noticing the sun coming up and how tired he is.
The tenants tip due to the nature of whats going on, but considering the shady individuals that show up, probably not much.
The escort changes her name every time, giving an alias. James happens to be the guy in this narration.
Also an amazing personification (or whatever the grammatical term is??) in saying considering the awkward situation he is in, he wishes he could be something that allowed him to hide and not be noticed. Fold himself away.
And finally, the last line of the chorus, ties it all together, is what he emphasizes this escort goes through every time after so many times. Faked pleasure, followed by the reality of apathy - whatever, etc. It's all the same.
This just makes sense to me given that it was a song writing exercise in coming up with the hardest phrase to craft a song around.