In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
She woke me up with a bang, bang
Looking' over cross eyed had a big
Hunch that the world was a big lie
When I got up all the blood to my head
I got so dizzy fell back into my bed
I went over to the way side
Looking for the high tide
What will I find will I find will I find
All I saw was a man that had a hat
That had a pom-pom he's been there for
Years can someone tell me how long
Wake up to tell me
Wake up to show me what I could not find
Wake up to tell me
Wake up to show me what I could not find
You see this woman woke me up at a quarter to three
And I didn't know it then
But she put a spell on me
Said I had to go down to where the cliffs meet the sea
And meet an old man to present my plea
So I headed way down to the big pier
To await and confront my big fear
I wheeled around behind to my blindside
To find an old man with a lime and a kind eye
Said mister, mister with your beard so long
Won't you be a saint and tell me
Just where I'm going
He pointed to a conk shell and then to the lime
And said this is all I really need to get by
Wake up to tell me
Wake up to show me what I could not find
Wake up to tell me
Wake up to show me what I could not find
Hey mister man
I know you don't know who you think I think I am
But I can safely say
That I should've been sleeping, been sleeping, been sleeping , been sleeping
The day away
Hey hey
I said scuse me, have you got the time
He shrugged his shoulders said get a spine
Coconut hit me on the head jonesin' for a fig
I got booked last night, I need another fix, dick
Yeah, just then I see a twinkle twinkle
In the old man's eye and a wave
Tossed bottle is thrown to the sky
I caught it on the rebound
It landed with a soft sound
I took out the message and put the bottle down
Inside was the antidote to the spell
And I read it to the man 'cause he couldn't read so well
Said don't worry about a thing you know you path is true
Just ease your mind have a banana or two
Well goodness, goodness, woe is me
The man nearly flipped to learn that he was free
But just before we Left and started kicking it
I picked up the bottle and star sixed it
Kick kick shuffle shuffle back to the beach
With a tune on my lips and my quest in reach
If that woman comes to you with her song so sweet
Say damn, let the poor sucker sleep
Let him sleep
Wake up to tell me
Wake up to show me what I could not find
Wake up to tell me
Wake up to show me what I could not find
Looking' over cross eyed had a big
Hunch that the world was a big lie
When I got up all the blood to my head
I got so dizzy fell back into my bed
I went over to the way side
Looking for the high tide
What will I find will I find will I find
All I saw was a man that had a hat
That had a pom-pom he's been there for
Years can someone tell me how long
Wake up to tell me
Wake up to show me what I could not find
Wake up to tell me
Wake up to show me what I could not find
You see this woman woke me up at a quarter to three
And I didn't know it then
But she put a spell on me
Said I had to go down to where the cliffs meet the sea
And meet an old man to present my plea
So I headed way down to the big pier
To await and confront my big fear
I wheeled around behind to my blindside
To find an old man with a lime and a kind eye
Said mister, mister with your beard so long
Won't you be a saint and tell me
Just where I'm going
He pointed to a conk shell and then to the lime
And said this is all I really need to get by
Wake up to tell me
Wake up to show me what I could not find
Wake up to tell me
Wake up to show me what I could not find
Hey mister man
I know you don't know who you think I think I am
But I can safely say
That I should've been sleeping, been sleeping, been sleeping , been sleeping
The day away
Hey hey
I said scuse me, have you got the time
He shrugged his shoulders said get a spine
Coconut hit me on the head jonesin' for a fig
I got booked last night, I need another fix, dick
Yeah, just then I see a twinkle twinkle
In the old man's eye and a wave
Tossed bottle is thrown to the sky
I caught it on the rebound
It landed with a soft sound
I took out the message and put the bottle down
Inside was the antidote to the spell
And I read it to the man 'cause he couldn't read so well
Said don't worry about a thing you know you path is true
Just ease your mind have a banana or two
Well goodness, goodness, woe is me
The man nearly flipped to learn that he was free
But just before we Left and started kicking it
I picked up the bottle and star sixed it
Kick kick shuffle shuffle back to the beach
With a tune on my lips and my quest in reach
If that woman comes to you with her song so sweet
Say damn, let the poor sucker sleep
Let him sleep
Wake up to tell me
Wake up to show me what I could not find
Wake up to tell me
Wake up to show me what I could not find
Lyrics submitted by dragonflower44, edited by donnyboy
Bang Bang Lyrics as written by Bradley Corrigan Charles Stokes Urmston
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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
Standing On The Edge Of Summer
Thursday
Thursday
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
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.
American Town
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran shares a short story of reconnecting with an old flame on “American Town.” The track is about a holiday Ed Sheeran spends with his countrywoman who resides in America. The two are back together after a long period apart, and get around to enjoying a bunch of fun activities while rekindling the flames of their romance.
this song is amazing. i think this man needs to slow things down & he keeps looking to others for advice but for some reason, he can't live his life the way that the old man does so it's better for him to not even bother w/ asking the old man