its amazing how far music can come.. 24 years after it released and its one of the most heartfelt songs ive heard
Throwing candy out to the crowd
Dragging down the main
The helpless little thing with the dirty mouth
Who's always got something to say
You're sitting around at home now
Waiting for your brother to call
I saw him down in the alley
Having had enough of it all
Said, "You can do what you want to
Whenever you want to
You can do what you want to
There's no one to stop you"
All spit and spite, you're up all night
And down every day
A tired man with only hours to go
Just waiting to be taken away
Getting into the back of a car
For candy from some stranger
Watching the parade with pinpoint eyes
Full of smoldering anger
You can do what you want to
Whenever you want to
You can do what you want to
There's no one to stop you
Now, you can do what you want to
Whenever you want to (oh, yeah)
Do what you want to
Whenever you want to (oh, yeah)
Do what you want to
Whenever you want to
Though it doesn't mean a thing
Big nothing
Dragging down the main
The helpless little thing with the dirty mouth
Who's always got something to say
You're sitting around at home now
Waiting for your brother to call
I saw him down in the alley
Having had enough of it all
Said, "You can do what you want to
Whenever you want to
You can do what you want to
There's no one to stop you"
All spit and spite, you're up all night
And down every day
A tired man with only hours to go
Just waiting to be taken away
Getting into the back of a car
For candy from some stranger
Watching the parade with pinpoint eyes
Full of smoldering anger
You can do what you want to
Whenever you want to
You can do what you want to
There's no one to stop you
Now, you can do what you want to
Whenever you want to (oh, yeah)
Do what you want to
Whenever you want to (oh, yeah)
Do what you want to
Whenever you want to
Though it doesn't mean a thing
Big nothing
Lyrics submitted by EnjOy IncUbus, edited by Jate
Ballad of Big Nothing Lyrics as written by Steven Paul Smith
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
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
Siberian Kiss
Glassjaw
Glassjaw
when rules change
Life in Your Way
Life in Your Way
High life
Fortnight
Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift
The song 'Fortnight' by Taylor Swift and Post Malone tells a story about strong feelings, complicated relationships, and secret wishes. It talks about love, betrayal, and wanting someone who doesn't feel the same. The word 'fortnight' shows short-lived happiness and guilty pleasures, leading to sadness. It shows how messy relationships can be and the results of hiding emotions. “I was supposed to be sent away / But they forgot to come and get me,” she kickstarts the song in the first verse with lines suggesting an admission to a hospital for people with mental illnesses. She goes in the verse admitting her lover is the reason why she is like this. In the chorus, she sings about their time in love and reflects on how he has now settled with someone else. “I took the miracle move-on drug, the effects were temporary / And I love you, it’s ruining my life,” on the second verse she details her struggles to forget about him and the negative effects of her failure. “Thought of callin’ ya, but you won’t pick up / ‘Nother fortnight lost in America,” Post Malone sings in the outro.
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.
Son Şansın - Şarkı Sözleri
Hayalperest
Hayalperest
This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
This is going to get a little academic, but Elliott Smith was a genius and so you must view his work through this lens.
This was actually Elliott Smith's response to Kierkegaard's great work, "Continuum," published in 1892. He says "you can do what you want to whenever you want to" as a nod to Soren's nihilist ideologie(s). The "helpless little thing with the dirty mouth / who's always got something to say" refers to a lesser character in the aforementioned Great Work, whose name was Pinchin. Pinchin was a "straw man" who would constantly repeat the refrain "you can do what you want to" in response to the obvious fact that human options are sorely limited by other concerns.
When Elliott Smith refers to the "alley," he means a metaphorical alley, of course, the alley of the human conscious AND conscience. Anything can walk down that alley, but few things can come back. It is like crossing the heroin needle riddled Rubicon of sorts. The man with "smoldering anger" refers to Americans and their subsequent loss of innocence and idealism in the late 20th century. Pinpoint eyes, of course, pinpoint the issue.
There is much more to be said about this great Ballad, but if you want to know more shoot me an email at esmithRULZ22@mailinator.com.
can you say "OVER-ANALYZE?"
After googling in vain for a couple minutes, I'm pretty sure you made this up.