Amity

well heres his answer in an interview: elliott: it’s a really unguarded song - i made up the lyrics in a couple of minutes and didn’t change them. i like the way it feels, although it’s not an especially deep song at all.

pc: no, not at all. but i love the feel of it. i was dancing around my basement a la uma thurman in “pulp fiction”. elliott: [laughs] it’s, i don’t know... just a big rock song. it’s a pretty simple song. it’s not so much about the words themselves, but more about how the whole thing sounds. some friends of mine said it sounded like i was trying to get something romantic going with someone, and that’s not what it was supposed to be about. it was supposed to be, “you’re really fun to be with and i really like you a lot because of that, but i am really, really depressed.” but i don’t know if that came across. when i said, “ready to go,” it was supposed to mean tired of living.

pc: oh?! like, ready to check out of this world? elliott: yeah. sorry to make the song depressing for you now. [both laugh]

pc: that’s ok, i’ll still listen. i, too, had thought there was a romantic element to that song. i wondered if the word “amity” was a play on the french word “amite.” elliott: actually, it’s a person i know.

pc: my favorite part of the song is where you sing, “’cause you laugh and talk/and ‘cause you make my world rock!” it’s such a departure from your usual style of writing, i liked the carefree aspect of it. i remember thinking that most songwriters couldn’t write those lyrics and get way with it. if anyone else had written that, i would have thought, “what a moron!” elliott: yeah. [laughs] yeah.

pc: but you’re intelligent and your lyrics are so clever that i got the feeling you were purposely letting loose and having fun with the song. elliott: it was very simple. i was saying, “i really like you and it’s really great to hang out with someone who is happy and easy-going, but i don’t feel like that and i can’t be with you.

also, when the arrangement shifts quickly from the second chorus into a cycle of sweeping chords accented by short drum fills he sings,

"amity, amity, God don't make junk but it's plain to see that he still made me he told me so: i'm good to go i'm ready to go."

though this may seem like an extremely positive sentiment, Elliott holds firm to his more dour instincts as he explains, "i was saying, 'i really like you and it's really great to hang out with someone who is so happy and easygoing, but i don't feel like that and i can't be with you.' but i don't know if that came across. when i said, 'ready to go,' it is supposed to mean tired of living."

it's about a girl named Amity who Elliott knew and loved but didn't want to be in a relationship with because he was too depressed. if this sounds wrong to you, don't doubt it cause it's the truth.

it's pretty.

That it is

this line makes me so sad: "god don't make no junk but it's plain to see he still made me he told me so"

it makes me sad that elliott's self-esteem was so low. :( i love you, elliott!!!

If I have a daughter, her first or middle name will be Amity.

amity isn't a name... it means peaceful relations. I think it is about someone (himself, or a girl) who just isn't satisfied and can't be peaceful.

what do you mean, amity isn't a name? anything can be a name. cases in point: rivers cuomo; river phoenix; faith hill; chastity bono. lots of people name children after characteristics and virtues and items. think about some other names that are somewhat common. fern is a plant or a girl's name. forest is a group of trees or a boy's name.

I guess that came across as being rude, but what I guess I ment was I wouldn't have ever thought of it in the song as being a name. NishFets can name their kid whatever they want, and it's pretty and all, but I was reffering to Noyes thinking it was the name of the girl the song was about. I just never would have thought amity was a name.