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Carol Brown Lyrics
Loretta broke my heart in a letter
She told me she was leaving and her life would better
Joan broke it off over the phone
After the tone, she left me alone
Jen said she'd never, ever see me again
When I saw her again, she said it again
Jan met another man
Lisa got amnesia, just forgot who I am
Felicity, said there was no electricity
Emily, no chemistry
Fran ran, Bruce turned out to be a man
Flo had to go, I couldn't go with the flow
Carol Brown just took a bus out of town
But I'm hoping that you'll stick around
He doesn't cook or clean, he's not good boyfriend material
We can eat cereal!
He loses interest fast, his relationships never last
Shut up, girlfriends from the past!
He says he'll do one thing and then he goes and does another thing
Who organised all of my ex-girlfriends into a choir and got them to sing?
Who, who? Mmm, shut up
Shut up girlfriends from the past
Mimi will no longer see me
Britney, Britney hit me
Paula, Persephone, Stella and Stephanie
There must be fifty ways that lovers have left me
Carol Brown just took a bus out of town
Love is a delicate thing, it could just float away on the breeze
He said the same thing to me!
How can we ever know we've found the right person in this world?
He means he looks at other girls!
Love is a mystery, it does not follow a rule
This guy is a fool!
He'll always be a boy, he's a man who never grew up
I thought I told you to shut up
Mona, you told me you were in a coma
Tiffany, you said that you had an epiphany
Would you like a little cereal?
Who organised this choir of ex-girlfriends?
Was it you Carol Brown?
Was it you Carol Brown?
Carol Brown just took a bus out of town
But I'm hoping that you'll stick around
She told me she was leaving and her life would better
Joan broke it off over the phone
After the tone, she left me alone
Jen said she'd never, ever see me again
When I saw her again, she said it again
Jan met another man
Lisa got amnesia, just forgot who I am
Felicity, said there was no electricity
Emily, no chemistry
Fran ran, Bruce turned out to be a man
Flo had to go, I couldn't go with the flow
Carol Brown just took a bus out of town
But I'm hoping that you'll stick around
We can eat cereal!
He loses interest fast, his relationships never last
Shut up, girlfriends from the past!
He says he'll do one thing and then he goes and does another thing
Who organised all of my ex-girlfriends into a choir and got them to sing?
Who, who? Mmm, shut up
Shut up girlfriends from the past
Britney, Britney hit me
Paula, Persephone, Stella and Stephanie
There must be fifty ways that lovers have left me
Carol Brown just took a bus out of town
He said the same thing to me!
How can we ever know we've found the right person in this world?
He means he looks at other girls!
Love is a mystery, it does not follow a rule
This guy is a fool!
He'll always be a boy, he's a man who never grew up
I thought I told you to shut up
Tiffany, you said that you had an epiphany
Who organised this choir of ex-girlfriends?
Was it you Carol Brown?
Was it you Carol Brown?
But I'm hoping that you'll stick around
Song Info
Copyright
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Hipgnosis Songs Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Writer
Bret Mckenzie, Jemaine Clement
Producer
Bret Mckenzie, Jemaine Clement
Release date
Apr 14, 2009
Sentiment
Positive
Submitted by
mutinyinheaven_x On Feb 21, 2009
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In contrast to the comment about the song being messy, I'd say that behind the cheeky and funny veneer, it's a startlingly mature song with a very consistent theme.
At first, we hear this guy talk about how he's been hurt in the past. He plays the saddest violin and croons the last line of the first verse -- "I'm hoping that you'll stick around" -- and reveals a humorous vulnerability and looks like he's got a new girl hook, line, and sinker. As his ex-girlfriends start to reveal his true self (lazy, immature, non-committal) you hear his other lines like "How can we ever know..." and "Love is a mystery..." and you start to think that maybe the whole "X left me..." is just another part of his childish mishandling of relationships. "Would you like a little cereal?" clenches it and reveals the boy hiding behind the facade.
All of that while still being funny, catchy, and being a soft commentary on the genre of sad men singing for their broken relationships (particularly obvious when taking into account the name-check to Paul Simon's "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover"). A truly well-crafted song.
@eljavi Great comment!
@eljavi Great comment!
Wanna add a bit re the Paul Simon ref: Genius! It's both a charming ref/homage, and very cleverly clears them of a charge of copycatting! And, in fact, it's a funny mirror opposite of Simon's song: Simon sang about how a guy can leave women, and of course the Jemaine's singing about the women leaving him!
Wanna add a bit re the Paul Simon ref: Genius! It's both a charming ref/homage, and very cleverly clears them of a charge of copycatting! And, in fact, it's a funny mirror opposite of Simon's song: Simon sang about how a guy can leave women, and of course the Jemaine's singing about the women leaving him!
my favorite song from the new season.
ahaha classic song :)
Actually this is my favourite Conchords song. Catchy, immature, profound, poignant and funny. Plus the video is fantastic. Wish the show had gone on
Most commenters here get the joke: It's about how guys can even cast their immaturity as a kind of romanticism. Perhaps that's the trap: Once you've decided that your emotional problems are just part of your "local color", fat chance you're going to develop true emotional maturity. Add to this the brilliance of the use of musical idiom to create a striking irony ("romantic" female background vocals telling the awful truth), and you've got a winner!
What would this song look like if sung by a girl, about her serial relationships with guys looking for a mature relationship?
@razajac Wanted to add: I sometimes teach this song in ESL classes here in Taiwan, and I point out the very, very ingenious allusion to Paul Simon.
@razajac Wanted to add: I sometimes teach this song in ESL classes here in Taiwan, and I point out the very, very ingenious allusion to Paul Simon.
It's great because, on one hand, they "had to" refer to it--to clear themselves artistically; prove they weren't being copycats, sort of), and on the other hand, they did it so artistically; slyly/off-handedly.
It's great because, on one hand, they "had to" refer to it--to clear themselves artistically; prove they weren't being copycats, sort of), and on the other hand, they did it so artistically; slyly/off-handedly.
i really like this song, but the lyrical composition kinda bugs me. like, at first it's a song about how all these girls leave him, painting the singer as the victim. but then when the girls start singing, all of a sudden he's the guy who is like a jerk and doesn't give a crap in relationships. like, it switches, somewhat haphazardly. the song is supposed to be about "carol brown," and therefore about the hope that she "sticks around," unlike all the other girls. ("there must be fifty ways that lovers have left me." kinda sounds like he's saying he was an unwilling participant in these break-ups.) but then "he loses interest fast, his relationships never last," and especially "how can we ever know we've found the right person in this world?" suggest that he's the one coming up with lame excuses just to get out. as in, they're not leaving him, he's leaving them. so the song has like an identity crisis.
i know it's a comedy song, but still it should have a steady theme. this just seems like they had a bunch of nonrelated ideas about relationships and decided to put them into one song. the lyrics, by themselves, are clever and witty, but when put together it just sounds forced, even lazy.
i still like the song, and the conchords. i just think they've got other songs that are much more well written. though this tune is pretty catchy.
The theme is the same throughout the song, but seen from two different perspectives. It seems the guy has been involved in a series of relationships that didn't work, possibly for several reasons - one of them being that he is not trying hard enough, which of course the ladies emphasize. And therefore they left him.
The theme is the same throughout the song, but seen from two different perspectives. It seems the guy has been involved in a series of relationships that didn't work, possibly for several reasons - one of them being that he is not trying hard enough, which of course the ladies emphasize. And therefore they left him.
I believe the line "But I'm hoping that you'll stick around" is directed towards the girl after Carol Brown, as Carol has already left him. Actually the music video (or rather the clip from the series) illustrates it better: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cGoDns8wTA...
I believe the line "But I'm hoping that you'll stick around" is directed towards the girl after Carol Brown, as Carol has already left him. Actually the music video (or rather the clip from the series) illustrates it better: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cGoDns8wTA
I do agree that this isn't their best song, but you can hardly blame the the switching perspective.
The theme is the same throughout the song, but seen from two different perspectives. It seems the guy has been involved in a series of relationships that didn't work, possibly for several reasons - one of them being that he is not trying hard enough, which of course the ladies emphasize. And therefore they left him.
The theme is the same throughout the song, but seen from two different perspectives. It seems the guy has been involved in a series of relationships that didn't work, possibly for several reasons - one of them being that he is not trying hard enough, which of course the ladies emphasize. And therefore they left him.
I believe the line "But I'm hoping that you'll stick around" is directed towards the girl after Carol Brown, as Carol has already left him. Actually the music video (or rather the clip from the series) illustrates it better: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cGoDns8wTA...
I believe the line "But I'm hoping that you'll stick around" is directed towards the girl after Carol Brown, as Carol has already left him. Actually the music video (or rather the clip from the series) illustrates it better: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cGoDns8wTA
I do agree that this isn't their best song, but you can hardly blame the the switching perspective.
@tinto1123 I see these contrary theme as an interplay, and a very playful one.
@tinto1123 I see these contrary theme as an interplay, and a very playful one.
Strange to think, I'm reminded of how Paul Simon (whom this song refs) could write a song with multiple voices speaking thru the lyrics (Hazy Shade of Winter).
Strange to think, I'm reminded of how Paul Simon (whom this song refs) could write a song with multiple voices speaking thru the lyrics (Hazy Shade of Winter).