Charlie Brown

Since the album is a concept album this would be one of the characters talking about their failed dreams. Since 'Paradise' is about the female character's loss of innocence and disillusionment with the world I would venture a guess that the male character's feeling of failure. Its towards the beginning of the album so setting up would seem right since its a story.

Well, since their album follows a love story, here is what I think. Hurts like Heaven was the beggining, and then it flashes back to Paradise and Charlie Brown. Paradise was about the girl leaving her home to discover herself, but all her dreams were never happening because the world is a cruel place.

Charlie Brown is about the guy trying to make it through life before meeting her. IT starts in the beginning with him stealing a car and going downtown to do drugs with the "lost boys". The lights going down at the end of the scene are cop cars coming. They show up and he gets busted. It is like his "scarecrow dreams", bad dreams of people destroying everything he ever wanted (drugs are the scarecrows that destroyed his life). The rose part is probably either the girl encouraging him to got back up again, or some other form of moral support. Then the moral support goes on to say (no that i listen to it, it probably is the girl) to him that he should be a cartoon heart. Be like Charlie Brown, who is always getting picked on and nothing really works out for him. Always get back up again. Finally, the glow in the dark is for both of them to always be a positive light to all the boys and girls with all their problems. They went through all their troubles and they want to glow, be a light and show them how to get through it.

This is one of my favorite songs on their album.

Since this is a concept album about love in a dystopia, I think (given the flow of the album), this is where the guy and girl first meet. See my full (over-)analysis of the meaning & storyline here: http://www.smrvl.com/blog/?p=976

What an amazing riff this song has!

I think it's a continuation of Paradise- the girl from the previous song escapes her life, "flies away" as she desired to, and meets up with a group of guys and hangs out with them. That's just going by the story of the album, though- taken out of context it could be about anyone who's traveling... I get the feeling it's sung from a male perspective, though I wouldn't know.

This song is amazing. Even if it's about a stolen scooter for me it's much more. It's about happiness, freedom, a good feeling... that smile that nobody can wipe away from your face; positive vibes. "We'll be glowing in the dark": Us being the light (good things) glowing (fighting) in the dark (bad things, evil). For me, it's the perfect song when I'm feeling down. I listen to it to forget about problems, to smile. It's one of my Coldplay's Top 5!

To me this song is about a dream that can't seem to come true; the music itself is a sense of desire. Think about the song title: Charlie Brown. If you've ever watched the old Charlie Brown shows then you know how Charlie Brown always had to settle for the short end of the stick, whether it was getting a rock for Halloween instead of candy or being tricked into kicking a football only to have it jerked away from him at the last second. To me this song symbolizes just those attributes. But this song is also very hopeful as Chris Martin encourages to "Be the cartoon heart". When I hear that line I think of the episode of Charlie Brown when all they had was a tiny Christmas tree and everyone was still happy - Cartoon heart. "We'll be glowing in the dark", this again provides the same message of having a hopeful heart. I love this song, when something goes wrong or I feel as though I'm on the short end of the stick in any situation, this is the perfect song. Music, lyrics, everything.

Would love to know what this song means. I'm guessing (and probably wrong) that someone's dreams are not coming to fruition so he's going to live life in the fast lane without a care in the world.

awesome song! i love it :)

I think it's:

Light a fire, oh, find a spark! Light a fire, flame in my heart!

"stole a key took a car downtown where the lost boys meet..." Went downtown to see a concert ("lost boys" could mean Coldplay themselves because of their song "Lost")

"took a car downtown to see what they offered me to set me free" the person going to see the concert was so bummed about things and was hoping that the music would set him free.

"I saw the lights go down at the end of the scene saw the lights go down and standing in front of me" He had a front row seat for the concert and the musicicans were standing in front of him

"In my scarecrow dreams when they smashed my heart into smithereens" he's thinking about what bummed him out and how he had nighmares and people hurt him.

"Light a fire light a spark" people at the concert with their lighters lit

"we'll be glowing in the dark" at concerts there are things fans wear that glow in the dark

"All the girls all the boys all the madness in the world" all the people enjoying the concert

"as the room is spinning" the wildness of the concert the room is spinning.

"We'll run wild, we'll be glowing in the dark" well be wild at the concert and we'll all be glowing in the dark

"