"Medicine Bottle" as written by and Mark Edward Kozelek....
Giving into love and sharing my time
Letting someone into my misery
I told it all step by step
How I landed on the island
And how I swam across the sea
And it crosses my mind
That I may wake to a knife in me
No more breath in my hair
Or ladies' underwear
Tossed up over the alarm clock
Blood dripping from the bed
To a neatly written poem
A heartfelt last line reading
There is no more mystery
It it going to happen my love
It's all in your head she said
Morning after nightmare
You're building a wall she said
Higher than the both of us
So try living life
Instead of hiding in the bedroom
Show me a smile
And I'll promise not to leave you
It happened under a rainy cloud
Passing through the dark south
We went into a big house
And slept in a small bed
I didn't know you then
As well as you of me
We talked of our sad lives
And we went off separately
I found your overseas souvenirs
Holiday greeting cards
And some long forgotten high school fears
It's all in my head I said
Banging a piano
I've not been so alone I thought
Since kicking in the womb
I drank so much tea
I wrote my letters in kanji
Around the block I walked and walked
Pretending you were with me
Not wanting to die out here
Without you
The hurting never ends
Like birthdays and old friends
We forget what is flesh blood and bone is human
Turning phone lines to airlines
Unwilling to face
The love is found on the inside not the outside
And like a medicine bottle
In the cabinet I'll keep you
And like a medicine bottle
In my hand I will hold you
And swallow you slowly
As to last me a lifetime
Without holding too tight
I do not want to lose
The thrill that it gives me
To look out from my window
And scowl at the houses
From my world in the bedroom
It's all in my head she read
In her girlfriend's self-help book
It's all his own making
A war with himself
Like two sides of a wall
That separates two countries
He shuts out the world
And wants only to love you
Not wanting to die out here
Without you
Letting someone into my misery
I told it all step by step
How I landed on the island
And how I swam across the sea
And it crosses my mind
That I may wake to a knife in me
No more breath in my hair
Or ladies' underwear
Tossed up over the alarm clock
Blood dripping from the bed
To a neatly written poem
A heartfelt last line reading
There is no more mystery
It it going to happen my love
It's all in your head she said
Morning after nightmare
You're building a wall she said
Higher than the both of us
So try living life
Instead of hiding in the bedroom
Show me a smile
And I'll promise not to leave you
It happened under a rainy cloud
Passing through the dark south
We went into a big house
And slept in a small bed
I didn't know you then
As well as you of me
We talked of our sad lives
And we went off separately
I found your overseas souvenirs
Holiday greeting cards
And some long forgotten high school fears
It's all in my head I said
Banging a piano
I've not been so alone I thought
Since kicking in the womb
I drank so much tea
I wrote my letters in kanji
Around the block I walked and walked
Pretending you were with me
Not wanting to die out here
Without you
The hurting never ends
Like birthdays and old friends
We forget what is flesh blood and bone is human
Turning phone lines to airlines
Unwilling to face
The love is found on the inside not the outside
And like a medicine bottle
In the cabinet I'll keep you
And like a medicine bottle
In my hand I will hold you
And swallow you slowly
As to last me a lifetime
Without holding too tight
I do not want to lose
The thrill that it gives me
To look out from my window
And scowl at the houses
From my world in the bedroom
It's all in my head she read
In her girlfriend's self-help book
It's all his own making
A war with himself
Like two sides of a wall
That separates two countries
He shuts out the world
And wants only to love you
Not wanting to die out here
Without you
Lyrics submitted by ThreeMilesDown, edited by siwamies, punstress
"Medicine Bottle" as written by Mark Edward Kozelek
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!
morning after nightmare
you're building a wall she said
higher than the both of us
so try living life
instead of hiding in the bedroom
show me a smile
and i'll promise not to leave you
they seperate for the last time in the second verse "it's all in my head i said
banging a piano
i've not been so alone i thought
since kicking in the womb
i drank so much tea
i wrote my letters in kanji
around the block i walked and walked
pretending you were with me
not wanting to die out here
without you"
He misses her alot. The part about the medicine bottle, he's going to hold onto her memory and "swallow her you slowly" or in other take it all in. at the same time, he wants her back so much and he doesn't care about anything else "it's all his own making
a war with himself
like two sides of a wall
that separates two countries
he shuts out the world
and wants only to love you"
Oh yeah, and instead of him being depressed, he could also be struggling with a drug addiction.
I also don't think this song is written as a narrative. It's more of a stream of thoughts, feelings and reflections, maybe memories, that are all connected. Brilliant song writing really. What makes it so great is that it's not all there. The song is like a still from a movie or a page from a diary. It leaves so much to the imagination but at the same time it's very direct and clear, not to mention powerful.
and im aware this post is 11 years old, it was just a prompt to me
Down Colorful Hill (1992)
Red House Painters aka Rollercoaster (1993)
Red House Painters aka Bridge (1993)
Ocean Beach (1995)
Songs for a Blue Guitar (1996)
Old Ramon (2001)[1]
From the very little I know about the lyricist's life, he struggled with pill popping from a young age...though I don't think it's ever been specified what exactly he took. I've also read somewhere there was a period of his life he almost never left his room. It would not surprise me if parts of this song were taken directly from Mark Kozelek's own life.
"It's all in your head she said," -->She's trying to get him to 'lighten up' for lack of better words. She doesn't want him to be so miserable all the time.
"It's all in my head I said" --> He's trying to convince himself he doesn't need to be miserable all the time.
"It's all in his head she read from the girlfriend's self help book" --> His girlfriend is trying to cope with an extremely intense sadness he possesses.
I heard this song performed live. It's pretty obvious how personal it is to him' and also obvious why he refuses to perform it live anymore.