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.
Stand up
We shall not be moved
Except by a child with no socks and shoes
If you've got more to give than you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Stand up
We shall not be moved
Except by a woman dying from a loss of food
If you've got more to give than you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
We still don't understand thunder and lightning
Flashback to when we didn't fund the dam
Didn't fund the damn levee
No wonder man
Now our whole damn cities torn us under man
Underwater but we still don't understand
We see hurricane spills overrun the land
Through gaps you couldn't fill with a hundred tons of sand
No we still don't understand
We've seen planes in the windows of buildings
Crumbled in
We've seen flames sending chills through London
And we've sent planes to kill them
And some of them are children
But still we crumble under buildin'
Underfunded but we still don't understand
Under God but we kill like the son of Sam
But if you feel like I feel about the son of man
We will overcome
Stand up
We shall not be moved
Except by a child with no socks and shoes
If you've got more to give than you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
I said put your hands up and I'll copy you
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
If you've got more to give than you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
We shall not be moved
Except by a child with no socks and shoes
Except by a woman dying from a loss of food
Except by a freedom fighter bleeding on the cross for you
We shall not be moved
Except by a system that's rotting through
Neglecting the victims and ordering the cops to shoot
High treason now we need to prosecute
So stand up (Stand up)
We shall not be moved
And we wont fight a war over fossil fuel
Times like this that you want to plot a coup
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Stand up (Stand up)
We shall not be moved
Unless we are taking a route we have not pursued
So if you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
I said put your hands up and I'll copy you
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
If you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up
Now shake, shake a Polaroid dream
Nightmare negatives develop on the screen
We sit back and wait on the government team
Criticize they but who the f**k are we
The people want peace
But the leaders want war
Neighbors don't speak peak through the front door
House representatives preach stay the course
Its time for a leap of faith
Once more
Put your hands up high if you haven't imagined
Hope that the pen strokes higher than the cannon
Balls to the wall nose to the grindstone
My interrogation techniques leave ya mind blown
Places your bets lets peak to the enemy
Don't let them pretend that we seek blood
And whose we anyway kimosabai
Mighty warlord want to be street thug
A threat for a threat leaves the whole world terrified
Blow for blow never settles the score
Word for word its time to be clarified
We the people did not want war!
So stand up (Stand up)
We shall not be moved
Except by a child with no socks and shoes
If you've got more to give than you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Stand up (Stand up)
We shall not be moved
Unless we are taking a route we have not pursued
So if you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
I said put your hands up and I'll copy you
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
If you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up
We shall not be moved
Except by a child with no socks and shoes
If you've got more to give than you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Stand up
We shall not be moved
Except by a woman dying from a loss of food
If you've got more to give than you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
We still don't understand thunder and lightning
Flashback to when we didn't fund the dam
Didn't fund the damn levee
No wonder man
Now our whole damn cities torn us under man
Underwater but we still don't understand
We see hurricane spills overrun the land
Through gaps you couldn't fill with a hundred tons of sand
No we still don't understand
We've seen planes in the windows of buildings
Crumbled in
We've seen flames sending chills through London
And we've sent planes to kill them
And some of them are children
But still we crumble under buildin'
Underfunded but we still don't understand
Under God but we kill like the son of Sam
But if you feel like I feel about the son of man
We will overcome
Stand up
We shall not be moved
Except by a child with no socks and shoes
If you've got more to give than you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
I said put your hands up and I'll copy you
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
If you've got more to give than you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
We shall not be moved
Except by a child with no socks and shoes
Except by a woman dying from a loss of food
Except by a freedom fighter bleeding on the cross for you
We shall not be moved
Except by a system that's rotting through
Neglecting the victims and ordering the cops to shoot
High treason now we need to prosecute
So stand up (Stand up)
We shall not be moved
And we wont fight a war over fossil fuel
Times like this that you want to plot a coup
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Stand up (Stand up)
We shall not be moved
Unless we are taking a route we have not pursued
So if you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
I said put your hands up and I'll copy you
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
If you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up
Now shake, shake a Polaroid dream
Nightmare negatives develop on the screen
We sit back and wait on the government team
Criticize they but who the f**k are we
The people want peace
But the leaders want war
Neighbors don't speak peak through the front door
House representatives preach stay the course
Its time for a leap of faith
Once more
Put your hands up high if you haven't imagined
Hope that the pen strokes higher than the cannon
Balls to the wall nose to the grindstone
My interrogation techniques leave ya mind blown
Places your bets lets peak to the enemy
Don't let them pretend that we seek blood
And whose we anyway kimosabai
Mighty warlord want to be street thug
A threat for a threat leaves the whole world terrified
Blow for blow never settles the score
Word for word its time to be clarified
We the people did not want war!
So stand up (Stand up)
We shall not be moved
Except by a child with no socks and shoes
If you've got more to give than you've got to prove
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
Stand up (Stand up)
We shall not be moved
Unless we are taking a route we have not pursued
So if you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
I said put your hands up and I'll copy you
Put your hands up and I'll copy you
If you've got a dream and a lot to do
Put your hands up
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