This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
[Verse 1]
It’s coming to pass, my countries coming apart
The whole thing’s becoming such a bumbling farce
Was that a pivotal historical moment we just went stumbling past?
Well, here we are, dancing in the rumbling dark
So come a little closer, give me something to grasp
Give me your beautiful, crumbling heart
Another disaster, catharsis
Another half-discarded mirage
Another mask slips
I face off with the physical
My head’s ringing from the love of the stars
There is too much pretense here
Too much depends on the fragile wages
And extortionate rents here
We’re working every dread day that is given us
Feeling like the person people meet really isn’t us
Like we’re gonna buckle underneath the trouble
Like any minute now, the struggle’s going to finish us
And then we smile at all our friends
[Refrain]
It’s hard, we got our heads down and our hackles up
Our backs against the wall, I can feel you aching
None of this was written in stone
There is nothing we’re forbidden to know
And I can feel things changing
Even when I’m weak and I’m breaking
I’ll stand weeping at the train station
‘Cause I can see your faces
There is so much peace to be found in people’s faces
[Verse 2]
I saw it roaring
I felt it clawing at my clothes like a grieving friend
It said there are no new beginnings
Until everybody sees that the old ways need to end
But it’s hard to accept that we’re all one and the same flesh
Given the rampant divisions between oppressor and oppressed
But we are, though
More empathy, less greed, more respect
All I’ve got to say has already been said
I mean, you heard it from yourself
When you were lying in your bed and couldn’t sleep
Thinking, "Couldn’t we be doing this differently?"
I’m listening to every little whisper in the distance singing hymns
And I can, I can feel things changing
[Refrain]
But it’s so hard, we got our heads down and our hackles up
Our backs against the wall, I can feel your heart racing
None of this was written in stone
The currents fast, but the river moves slow
And I can feel things changing
Even when I’m weak and I’m breakin'
I stand weeping at the train station
‘Cause I can see your faces
There is so much peace to be found in people’s faces
[Verse 3]
It’s not enough
To imagine we’ll be happy when we’ve got enough stuff
All this stuff is blocking us
I’m neat with no chaser
I’m all spirit, but I’m sinking
'Cause the days are not days but strange symptoms
And this age is our age
But our age is rage sinking to beige
And yes, our children are brave
But their mission is vague
Now I don’t have the answers
But there are still things to say
I stare out at my city on another difficult day
And I scream inwardly, "When will this change?"
I’m beginning to fade
But my sanity’s saved ‘cause I can see your faces
My sanity’s saved ‘cause I can see your faces
[Refrain]
It’s hard, we got our heads down and our hackles up
Our backs against the wall, I can feel your heart racing
None of this was written in stone
The current’s fast but the river moves slow
And I can feel things changing
Even when I’m weak and I’m breaking
I stand weeping at the train station
‘Cause I can see your faces
I love people’s faces
It’s coming to pass, my countries coming apart
The whole thing’s becoming such a bumbling farce
Was that a pivotal historical moment we just went stumbling past?
Well, here we are, dancing in the rumbling dark
So come a little closer, give me something to grasp
Give me your beautiful, crumbling heart
Another disaster, catharsis
Another half-discarded mirage
Another mask slips
I face off with the physical
My head’s ringing from the love of the stars
There is too much pretense here
Too much depends on the fragile wages
And extortionate rents here
We’re working every dread day that is given us
Feeling like the person people meet really isn’t us
Like we’re gonna buckle underneath the trouble
Like any minute now, the struggle’s going to finish us
And then we smile at all our friends
[Refrain]
It’s hard, we got our heads down and our hackles up
Our backs against the wall, I can feel you aching
None of this was written in stone
There is nothing we’re forbidden to know
And I can feel things changing
Even when I’m weak and I’m breaking
I’ll stand weeping at the train station
‘Cause I can see your faces
There is so much peace to be found in people’s faces
[Verse 2]
I saw it roaring
I felt it clawing at my clothes like a grieving friend
It said there are no new beginnings
Until everybody sees that the old ways need to end
But it’s hard to accept that we’re all one and the same flesh
Given the rampant divisions between oppressor and oppressed
But we are, though
More empathy, less greed, more respect
All I’ve got to say has already been said
I mean, you heard it from yourself
When you were lying in your bed and couldn’t sleep
Thinking, "Couldn’t we be doing this differently?"
I’m listening to every little whisper in the distance singing hymns
And I can, I can feel things changing
[Refrain]
But it’s so hard, we got our heads down and our hackles up
Our backs against the wall, I can feel your heart racing
None of this was written in stone
The currents fast, but the river moves slow
And I can feel things changing
Even when I’m weak and I’m breakin'
I stand weeping at the train station
‘Cause I can see your faces
There is so much peace to be found in people’s faces
[Verse 3]
It’s not enough
To imagine we’ll be happy when we’ve got enough stuff
All this stuff is blocking us
I’m neat with no chaser
I’m all spirit, but I’m sinking
'Cause the days are not days but strange symptoms
And this age is our age
But our age is rage sinking to beige
And yes, our children are brave
But their mission is vague
Now I don’t have the answers
But there are still things to say
I stare out at my city on another difficult day
And I scream inwardly, "When will this change?"
I’m beginning to fade
But my sanity’s saved ‘cause I can see your faces
My sanity’s saved ‘cause I can see your faces
[Refrain]
It’s hard, we got our heads down and our hackles up
Our backs against the wall, I can feel your heart racing
None of this was written in stone
The current’s fast but the river moves slow
And I can feel things changing
Even when I’m weak and I’m breaking
I stand weeping at the train station
‘Cause I can see your faces
I love people’s faces
Lyrics submitted by voltian
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
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
Magical
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
How would you describe the feeling of being in love? For Ed Sheeran, the word is “Magical.” in HIS three-minute album opener, he makes an attempt to capture the beauty and delicacy of true love with words. He describes the magic of it all over a bright Pop song produced by Aaron Dessner.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
During this pandemic, people’s faces are symbolic of our oneness. We each have a story to tell, a gift to share. There’s some semblance of inner connection regardless of cultural differences, language constraints. Our hearts yearn for something we all sense but cannot grasp. We reach out, we retreat inward, our hope clings loosely to a dream of what could be, despite the despair clouding our vision. It is often shouting and infecting our wounds. We need all people’s faces with us in our hearts to truly change this world.