Things That Stop You Dreaming Lyrics
won't get to space cos I haven't got a rocket
but I've air in my lungs
eyes in my sockets
and a heart that beats
like a tap that leaks
in the night when you haven't got a plummer who can stop it
jack-in-a-box without a key to lock it
well this boat may sink but I'm not gonna rock it
cos the sea doesn't know my name
yeah the boat may sink but I'm not gonna rock it
cos the sea doesn't know my name
you learn to love the things you've got
if you can't be what you want
you learn to be the things you're not
if you can't get what you need
you learn to need the things that stop you dreaming
all the things that stop you dreaming
not a lot to show but this book full of sonnets
and my liver may be fucked but my heart is honest
and my word is true
like the sky is blue
in the summer time when everybody gets on it
warm our skin and get sunburnt from it
and our eyes shine bright like a sky full of comets that shoot like silver trains
yhea our eyes shine bright like a sky full of comets that shoot like silver trains
you learn to love the things you've got
if you can't be what you want
you learn to be the things you're not
if you can't get what you need
you learn to need the things that stop you dreaming
oh oh all the things that stop you dreaming
oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
you learn to love the things you've got
if you can't be what you want
you learn to be the things you're not
if you can't get what you need
you learn to need the things that stop you dreaming
oh oh all the things that stop you dreaming
all the things that stop you dreaming
"if you can't get what you need you learn to need the things that stop you dreaming"
What stops you dreaming? I think that this song is a representation of hope in a bleak situation, much like several other songs of his. Each verse starts with the things he doesn't have (money, rocket, word, promise) and he shows that things could be worse (air in my lungs, eyes in my sockets/ heart is honest, word is true) and revels for a bit in the good things.
The chorus comes around like a mantra, something that someone down on their luck might repeat to themselves to make them feel better, give them strength, etc. "If you can't get what you love, you learn to love the things you've got". You Settle. "And if you can't be what you want, you learn to be the thing's you're not" You adapt. "And if you can't get what you need, you learn to need the things that stop you dreaming" You take a crutch, be it alcohol, gambling, tobacco, drugs, etc.
Ultimately, I feel like the things that stop you dreaming refers to alcohol, as passing out drunk doesn't result in dreams, but also it keeps him in a position that he cannot realize his dreams of bettering his life.
@mattdemanche To me the key is that last paragraph in your interpretation. The song is, in essence, the first step towards addiction and one of the most hidden aspects of it that those who never been on that slope sees. We drink, we take drugs, we do things we aren't supposed because it feels good - and when the rest of your life feels bad, it's nice ot have that escape. You give up your future - but that's okay, you have what makes you feel good now. So you end up needing these things ......
@mattdemanche To me the key is that last paragraph in your interpretation. The song is, in essence, the first step towards addiction and one of the most hidden aspects of it that those who never been on that slope sees. We drink, we take drugs, we do things we aren't supposed because it feels good - and when the rest of your life feels bad, it's nice ot have that escape. You give up your future - but that's okay, you have what makes you feel good now. So you end up needing these things ... the things that stop your dreaming.
soo good!
Rosenberg explained to VH1: "It's a song about how difficult it is to remain positive and keep on pursuing what you love. You have to be grateful for what you have, and not always striving towards what's over there."