Took the fireworks and the vanity
The circuit board and the city streets
Shooting star, swaying palm tree
Laid it at the arbiter's feet

If I could change my mind, change the paradigm
Prepare myself for another life
Forgive myself for the many times
I was cruel to something helpless and weak

But here it comes, that heavy love
I'm never going to move it alone
Here it comes, that heavy love
Tag it on a tenement wall
Here it comes, that heavy love
Someone's got to share in the load
Here it comes, that heavy love
I'm never going to move it alone

I was dressed in white, touched by something pure
Death obsessed like a teenager
Sold my tortured youth, piss and vinegar
I'm still angry with no reason to be

At the architect who imagined this
For the everyman, blessed Sisyphus
Slipping steadily into madness
Now that's the only place to be free

But here it comes, that heavy love
You're never going to move it alone
Here it comes, that heavy love
Tattooed on a criminal's arm
Here it comes, that heavy love
Someone got to share in the load
Here it comes, that heavy love
You're never going to move it alone

No, I don't want to play
It's a shell game, it's a shell game

Distorted sounds on oscilloscopes
Distorted facts, I could never cope
My private life is an inside joke
No one will explain it to me

We'll be everything that we ever needed
Everyone, on the count of three!
Everyone, on the count of three!
All together now!

Here it comes, that heavy love
We're never going to move it alone
Here it comes, that heavy love
Playing as the cylinder rolls
Here it comes, that heavy love
I only want to share in the load
Here it comes, that heavy love
I'm never going to move it alone


Lyrics submitted by thecomaboy

Shell Games Lyrics as written by Conor M Oberst

Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Shell Games song meanings
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  • +2
    General Comment

    I see it as a piece of work reflecting a sort of Emersonian transcendentalism, with clear homage being paid to Simon and Garfunkel's "Sound of Silence."

    I think the "heavy love" is a reference to group consciousness - the love for world can't be borne alone, that changes must be made in everyone, everyone has to carry their piece of the world. It's about transcending our isolation, transcending our bodies, moving beyond what we see when we look out our own windows.

    I would imagine that "Shell Game" is a reference to the short sci-fi story by Phillip Dick en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ShellGame%28short_story%29

    Conor has said that the new album is a science fiction album.

    eclipse799on December 26, 2010   Link

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