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"
Isn't that a room up there over the shop?
If times are so hard, why don't you rent it out?
That should bring in something
Up there? Oh, no one will go near it
People think it's haunted
You see, years ago, something happened up there, something not very nice
There was a barber and his wife
And he was beautiful
A proper artist with a knife
But they transported him for life
And he was beautiful
Barker, his name was
Benjamin Barker
Transported? What was his crime?
Foolishness
He had this wife, you see
Pretty little thing
Silly little nit
Had her chance for the moon on a string
Poor thing
Poor thing
There were these two, you see
Wanted her like mad
One of 'em a Judge
T'other one his Beadle!
Every day they'd nudge
And they'd wheedle!
But she wouldn't budge
From her needle
Too bad
Pure thing
So they merely shipped the poor blighter off south, they did
Leaving her with nothing but grief and a year-old kid
Did she use her head even then? Oh no, God forbid!
Poor fool
Ah, but there was worse yet to come
Poor thing
Johanna, that was the baby's name
Pretty little Johanna
Go on
My, you do like a good story, don't you?
Well, Beadle calls on her, all polite
Poor thing
Poor thing
The Judge, he tells her, is all contrite
He blames himself for her dreadful plight
She must come straight to his house tonight!
Poor thing
Poor thing
Of course when she goes there
Poor thing, poor thing
They're having this ball all in masks
There's no one she knows there
Poor dear, poor thing
She wanders tormented and drinks
Poor thing
The Judge has repented, she thinks
Poor thing
"Oh, where is Judge Turpin?" she asks
He was there, all right
Only not so contrite!
She wasn't no match for such craft, you see
And everyone thought it so droll
They figured she had to be daft, you see
So all of them stood there and laughed, you see
Poor soul!
Poor thing!
No! Would no one have mercy on her?
So it is you, Benjamin Barker!
If times are so hard, why don't you rent it out?
That should bring in something
Up there? Oh, no one will go near it
People think it's haunted
You see, years ago, something happened up there, something not very nice
There was a barber and his wife
And he was beautiful
A proper artist with a knife
But they transported him for life
And he was beautiful
Barker, his name was
Benjamin Barker
Transported? What was his crime?
Foolishness
He had this wife, you see
Pretty little thing
Silly little nit
Had her chance for the moon on a string
Poor thing
Poor thing
There were these two, you see
Wanted her like mad
One of 'em a Judge
T'other one his Beadle!
Every day they'd nudge
And they'd wheedle!
But she wouldn't budge
From her needle
Too bad
Pure thing
So they merely shipped the poor blighter off south, they did
Leaving her with nothing but grief and a year-old kid
Did she use her head even then? Oh no, God forbid!
Poor fool
Ah, but there was worse yet to come
Poor thing
Johanna, that was the baby's name
Pretty little Johanna
Go on
My, you do like a good story, don't you?
Well, Beadle calls on her, all polite
Poor thing
Poor thing
The Judge, he tells her, is all contrite
He blames himself for her dreadful plight
She must come straight to his house tonight!
Poor thing
Poor thing
Of course when she goes there
Poor thing, poor thing
They're having this ball all in masks
There's no one she knows there
Poor dear, poor thing
She wanders tormented and drinks
Poor thing
The Judge has repented, she thinks
Poor thing
"Oh, where is Judge Turpin?" she asks
He was there, all right
Only not so contrite!
She wasn't no match for such craft, you see
And everyone thought it so droll
They figured she had to be daft, you see
So all of them stood there and laughed, you see
Poor soul!
Poor thing!
No! Would no one have mercy on her?
So it is you, Benjamin Barker!
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Great version of a great song,
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i thought it was "silly little nymph" not nit
I really like this song (despite the obvious misery of it).
I just thought i should tell you, roshiene, that Kiyyt didn't post the wrong lyrics, just the lyrics from the stage performance, you posted the ones from the movie. Anyway, both of them are great. : )
the correct lyrics are :
there was a barber and his wife and he was beautiful a proper artist with a knife but they transported him for life and he was beautiful barker his name was benjamin barker
what was his crime? foolishness..
he had this wife ya see pretty little thing silly little nit had her chance for the moon on a string poor thing poor thing
there was this judge ya see wanted her like mad everyday he'd send her a flower but did she come down from her tower? sat up there and sulked by the hour poor fool oh but there was worse yet to come poor thing
??? the judge he tells her hes all contrite he blames himself for her dreadful plight she must come straight to his house tonight poor thing poor thing
of course when she goes there poor thing poor thing theyre having this ball all in masks theres no one she knows there poor dear poor thing she wonders tormented and drinks poor thing the judge has repented she thinks poor thing oh where is judge turpin she asks
he was there alright only not so contrite she wasnt no match for such craft ya see and everyone thought it so drull they figured she had to be daft ya see so all of them stood there and laughed ya see poor soul poor thing
NO! would no one have mercy on her? so it is you, benjamin barker? no! no barker that man is dead its todd now sweeney todd and he will have his revenge