Dear Amy, see you in September
Hope that you remember me next year
Hey Jamie, you've been a great friend to me
I hope that I'll still see you around here

'Cause I'm looking through the yearbook
Then I find that empty space
There's a name without a picture
But I can't forget his face

Tell me, where did he go?
I want to know
Where did Johnny go?
It says "picture unavailable" right here
More than sad
It makes me mad to know somebody knows
There's a lying in your silence
Tell me, where did Johnny go?

Poor Katie, she won't even speak his name
None of us will ever be the same
It's quiet in the halls
But I hear echoing off the walls
The rumors of Johnny's mystery
'Cause I'm looking through the yearbook
Then I find that empty space
No, he never wrote me nothing
But I can't forget his face

Tell me, where did he go?
I want to know
Where did Johnny go?
It says "picture unavailable" right here
More than sad
It makes me mad to know somebody knows
There's a lying in your silence
Tell me, where did Johnny go?

Oh, there's a lying in your silence
Tell me, where did Johnny go?
Oh, there's a lying in your silence
Tell me, where did Johnny go?

Sometimes I think I hear him calling out my name
Sometimes I wonder if maybe we're to blame
It's been a year now and a lot of things have changed
But I keep thinking about Johnny
I keep turning to that page

Where did he go?
I want to know
Where did he go?
I want to know

Oh, there's a lying in your silence
Tell me, where did Johnny go?
Oh, there's a lying in your silence
Tell me, where did Johnny go?


Lyrics submitted by sunnybunnygirl

Yearbook Lyrics as written by Isaac Hanson Ellen Shipley

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Yearbook song meanings
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39 Comments

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  • +3
    General Comment
    Okay, the first thing that came to my mind when I heard this song was the story of Johnny Gosh, a young boy that was kidnapped and never found, his disapperance is still a true mystery JUST like the song says. Google "Johnny Gosh" if you wanna read more about it, cause I know this is a hard song to figure out.. anyways that's my theory, but this song is really amazing <3 YEARBOOK <3 fanson4lyfe
    ILoveHanson22on May 22, 2012   Link
  • +2
    General Comment
    This song has caused me so much stress. WHERE DID JOHNNY REALLY GO?!?! I asked Tay that when i met them, and he said "its the mystery of the song" he never really told me. Then i asked him again the next time i met him and he said the same thing. I got flustered and he laughed at me. THIS SONG IS AMAZING!!!!!!! :) ps. i'm 16 too and i love them, and yes i get made fun of... but i got more ppl listening... "are you listening?" -LWEO
    wheredidjohnnygoon November 09, 2004   Link
  • +2
    General Comment
    I always thought of the song being about someone who has literally gone missing. I just imagine kids having to carry on and go to school but always wondering where he is, what happened to him, if he's alive, if he's coming back. His girlfriend can't even speak his name because she's so upset. Somebody knows, because someone is responsible, and it hurts that the truth is out there but they can't find it. They don't want to cut him totally out of the yearbook so they include his name but of course, he doesn't have a picture...he's missing...it's unavailable. I don't know...that's just how I always thought of it. But either way, it's a powerful song.
    laingerion January 15, 2012   Link
  • +1
    My Interpretation
    Some of you are overthinking it and that's why Hanson are laughing at you. What happened to Johnny isn't important. The song captures the feeling of anger (and even a little hint of madness - listen to the bridge) that hits you when people keep things from you. They don't think you can handle the truth, but you wish they would just tell the truth because it can't be any worse than all the possibilities you imagine in your mind.
    lavenderpixieon June 29, 2011   Link
  • +1
    My Opinion
    I personally have always thought it was about suicide. I thought that Johnny was bullied to the point of suicide. The reason they can't forget his face is because they never did anything, never spoke up to help him. The reason Katie won't speak his name is because she knows the things she said to or about him. Maybe he died before the pictures were taken, that's why there's no picture, but no one will forget him.
    skipperson July 14, 2012   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    Roar! HOT DERN, I can not believe nobody has commented on this song. Yes, it is Hanson who are no longer mainstream, but they still 0wn u f00'z... In all seriousness, I'm about to be 16 and I still heart them. <3
    dementedtissueon May 01, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    I'm 20 and I still "heart" them. I used to skip this song when I was 14, because it scared me. Hahahaha!
    jacintaon November 07, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    i luv this song, its 1 of my favs on the album... its such an awesome song. they were so young, theyd never been 2 an actual school, and... 2 our knowledge neway... they have never experienced what this song is about, so its really amazing that they wrote this song and really captured what its all about... lol... when did u meet them? im almost 16... im 15! i used 2 get made fun of 2, but as the years passed, ppl my age 4got who hanson r, cuz we were all really young when mmmbop was released n all that, n ive been a fan since then and havent 4gotten them at all, but these ppl have so i dont get teased so much nemore cuz they dont kno who they r n they dont remember mmmbop or the long blonde hair, they just kno the 'new' hanson... so thats good!
    LullaBelle834on November 26, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    I'm 23 and I still "heart" them. I saw them in concert this year and they rocked! They covered AcDc!
    joeysontheflooron December 30, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment
    for some reason i thought he was singing "there's a light in your silence"... but anyway. i think the mystery is that its just a mystery. and now that i see that no one else seems to know what it means either, i'm kind of more haunted by it than i originally was. poo.
    afoolishtragedyon January 10, 2005   Link

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