Well, in my opinion this song is about being a young & maybe a little naive &/or introverted girl and finding yourself loving a man who is at first very charming, carefree & outgoing, and seems at first to be without limits, as in
"There was a time
you opened up every doorway
you didn't mind if everything
wasn't your way"
then that man starts to gradually become more introverted & shows their more possessive/obsessive side to you as the relationship progresses, even while they keep up the appearance of being carefree & outgoing to everyone else,
"Don't pull away
that goes against what you told me
I look in your eyes
I realize what you've sold me
is love in a vacuum"
so you confront them about the way they're acting and of course they deny it,
"I think you've changed
but you insist that
that's not true"
quite possibly they are an addict of some sort, my guess would be cocaine, &/or showing very obsessive behavior towards you (early on in the video for this song we see the man hanging a picture up, it is a very large portrait of Aimee & it is prominently displayed in his/their apartment for the duration of the song), thus their "love in a vacuum",
"You look so strange, so distant
that you're hardly you
Now I can see
how you have been acting different
You say it's me
but I know
that it isn't
it's love in a vacuum"
but still you are in love with them and don't want to leave them and you know that they are truly in love with you and they don't want you to leave them either, maybe they are convinced you can save them from themself, maybe they are so broken that the possibility of an overdose &/or suicide attempt is very real and you want to get through to them that their behavior not only dangerous but it is also just pissing you off and if they don't wise up they run the risk of loosing you, as in the lines
"You will be lonely
if you leave me alone", so you want to save them but can't get through to them due to the addiction &/or emotional problems they have,
"Love in a vacuum
and that's not enough
love in a vacuum
You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
You will be lonely
if you leave me alone
You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
it's just not enough"
you want them to understand that the love they are giving you is not enough when it is filtered through the vacuum of their drug addiction &/or emotional impairment,
"You will be lonely
you'll be the only one who feels this way
it's just not enough
and just wait
you will be lonely
Love in a vacuum
Love in a vacuum
and that's not enough
Love in a vacuum".
'Love In A Vacuum' for me is a hauntingly truthful acute argument on the loneliness of obsession and almost inevitable loss of love that follows people who are broken in some way or another; the obsessives, the coke heads, the drunks, addicts or the just-plain-old emotionally broken; a razor sharp, lyrically driven, deceptively poppy, yet ultimately-depressing-in-the-best-way song.
Quintessential Aimee Mann.
All the gold and the guns in the world (couldn't get you off)
All the gold and the guns and the girls (couldn't get you off)
All the boys, all the choices in the world
I remember when we we're gambling to win
Everybody else said better luck next time
I don't wanna bend, let the bad girls bend
I just wanna be your friend
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
All the lace and the skin in the shop (couldn't get you off)
All the toys and the tools in the box (couldn't get you off)
All the noise, all the voices never stop
I remember when we we're gambling to win
Everybody else said better luck next time
I don't wanna bend, let the bad girls bend
I just wanna be your friend
Why you giving me a hard time?
I remember when we we're gambling to win
Everybody else said
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
More and more, more and more, more and more
More and more, more and more, more and more and more and more
More and more, more and more, more and more, more and more and
More and more, more and more, more and more and more and more
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
All the gold and the guns and the girls (couldn't get you off)
All the boys, all the choices in the world
I remember when we we're gambling to win
Everybody else said better luck next time
I don't wanna bend, let the bad girls bend
I just wanna be your friend
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
All the lace and the skin in the shop (couldn't get you off)
All the toys and the tools in the box (couldn't get you off)
All the noise, all the voices never stop
I remember when we we're gambling to win
Everybody else said better luck next time
I don't wanna bend, let the bad girls bend
I just wanna be your friend
Why you giving me a hard time?
I remember when we we're gambling to win
Everybody else said
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
More and more, more and more, more and more
More and more, more and more, more and more and more and more
More and more, more and more, more and more, more and more and
More and more, more and more, more and more and more and more
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Is it ever gonna be enough
Lyrics submitted by dustybreeze, edited by AngBar
Gold Guns Girls Lyrics as written by James Shaw Emily Haines
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Love in a Vacuum
'Til Tuesday
'Til Tuesday
Jesse with the long hair....
Robert Earl Keen, Jr.
Robert Earl Keen, Jr.
Classic love story true to his western tx roots. One of my favorites as a story, but I think there are alot of songs that are amazing not even listed on this site. I guess I should figure out how to add them, because I have about 8 REK cd's.
Show Me a Little Shame
Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals
Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals
He certainly did earn that reputation.
The Spy
Doors, The
Doors, The
Like a lot of the other comments are saying, I think this mainly about voyeurism. If the song was about his girlfriend, then why would he use the word spy. If you are a spy it means you shouldn't be caught, that is kind of the whole point, and if you are a voyeur, the whole point of the pleasure you get from it, is the fact that the other people don't know you are watching them. See a bit of a connection there?
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
One of the radio stations in D/FW is saying the woman who wrote this song has seen Scarface over 200 times and that's what inspired the song. In some ways, it reminds me of my ex-husband. The bastard was never satisfied.
Honey!! That's NOT true! I was totally satisfied...just not by you.