Go By

First of all, these lyrics are very wrong. I've meticulously listened to this song to find the real lyrics and they are so much more beautiful than these. Elliott is a master songwriter. Elliott has said in interviews that when he writes a song, he's usually writing about a feeling, rather than a story. This song does have a bit of a story though. It's sad.

"Go in parade and fade Hit the scene in slow Spending all your time With some girl You'll never get to know"

I'll be honest and say I don't know what the first two lines mean, or even exactly what he's saying. If someone could shed some light on it, if they have some ideas, please do so :). But the lines after that, it's just a sad idea. When you fall in love with a girl you know, but she doesn't like you that way so you'll never get to know her (in the way you want). Aka friend zone. My best guess for the first lines is it's saying how he acts around that girl "parade and fade", so he goes in and tries his best to get her attention (parades are very attention grabbing), but the minute he leaves he fades from her mind.

"Welled up tide Dressed all in white Some torn mainsail Blowing out to drift Leave you even if"

I have no idea how they got these lyrics wrong. Once again he paints a picture of loneliness. A mainsail is the main mast of a ship. I really really like the way he describes the foaming sea "dressed all in white". It blows my mind how creative he is. It's sort of a metaphor for his relationship with the girl; no hopeless shipwreck.

"You live up in your head Scared of every noise Someone's always breaking in accidentally Using nothing but their voice"

When you're depressed you get lost in thought and lose battle with your emotions, so you "live up in your head". "Scared of every little noise", the anxiety that's served as a side with depression. They go hand in hand. When people come and talk to you, they wake you from your trance using their voice. Not on purpose, maybe they just wanted to know where to find the bathroom, but accidentally. It builds up on the metaphor of your head being your house that you live in. Elliott's lyrics blow up my house.

"Shrill and small Echo down the hall Repeating pet names Seeing it in your eyes You're only passing by

Go by, go by Go by, go by"

Shrill=unpleasant and high-pitched. He's saying the echo is shrill and small. And it's coming from down the hall. What hall? The house he lives in (his head). "Repeating pet names", not actual pet names. The sort of pet names you call your lover (sweetheart, baby, etc). So he's basically describing the fantasies he's having in the back of his mind (down the hall) over this girl that he is hopelessly in love with, who has friendzoned him. "Seeing it in your eyes you're only passing by, go by" he's saying how he can tell that she's not there to stay, she's just visiting his little house. She's not interested in a romantic relationship. Now that he knows this, he wants her to leave (go by). He doesn't want her to be around him because he loves her.

"Someone's in the way Pretty words and inside slurs All the things they have to say To perform the work that they've rehearsed."

Another guy is pursuing his girl, (so he's in the way). Most likely this guy is much better with women and knows what to say and how to act (pretty words and inside slurs). Maybe he's almost insulting the superficialty of it all. He's also commenting on the fact that most guys have "routines" they've rehearsed to pursue a girl, while Elliott doesn't. It all feels pointless to him.

"It's a waste of time I'd put it behind me Once and for all And let the hype decline If the problem wasn't mine, go by"

Pursuing the relationship with her is a waste of time because the other guy is going to get her. He would put it behind him, and forget about it, (I'd put it behind me once and for all, and let the hype decline) but it's always somewhere in his mind. As everyone who's experienced this knows, it takes a while to get over her. He wants her to just leave, so he can forget about it. If the problem was somebody else's, it'd be easy to just say "get over it".

And that's the entire song. I prefer not to over analyze lyrics, but with Elliott it's different. I feel like this is what he was trying to say. It's all just an expression of a feeling: hopelessness. Very typical of Elliott. My favorite song right now. Beautiful in so many ways.