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.
And I don't want you and I don't need you
Don't bother to resist, or I'll beat you
It's not your fault that you're always wrong
The weak ones are there to justify the strong
The beautiful people, the beautiful people
It's all relative to the size of your steeple
You can't see the forest for the trees
You can't smell your own shit on your knees
There's no time to discriminate
Hate every motherfucker
That's in your way
Hey you, what do you see?
Something beautiful or something free?
Hey, you, are you trying to be mean?
If you live with apes man, it's hard to be clean
The worms will live in every host
It's hard to pick which one they eat the most
The horrible people, the horrible people
It's as anatomic as the size of your steeple
Capitalism has made it this way
Old-fashioned fascism will take it away
Hey you, what do you see?
Something beautiful or something free?
Hey, you, are you trying to be mean?
If you live with apes man, it's hard to be clean
There's no time to discriminate
Hate every motherfucker
That's in your way
The beautiful people
The beautiful people (aahh)
The beautiful people
The beautiful people (aahh)
The beautiful people
The beautiful people (aahh)
The beautiful people
The beautiful people (aahh)
Hey you, what do you see?
Something beautiful or something free?
Hey, you, are you trying to be mean?
If you live with apes man, it's hard to be clean
Hey you, what do you see?
Something beautiful or something free?
Hey, you, are you trying to be mean?
If you live with apes man, it's hard to be clean
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
Don't bother to resist, or I'll beat you
It's not your fault that you're always wrong
The weak ones are there to justify the strong
The beautiful people, the beautiful people
It's all relative to the size of your steeple
You can't see the forest for the trees
You can't smell your own shit on your knees
There's no time to discriminate
Hate every motherfucker
That's in your way
Hey you, what do you see?
Something beautiful or something free?
Hey, you, are you trying to be mean?
If you live with apes man, it's hard to be clean
The worms will live in every host
It's hard to pick which one they eat the most
The horrible people, the horrible people
It's as anatomic as the size of your steeple
Capitalism has made it this way
Old-fashioned fascism will take it away
Hey you, what do you see?
Something beautiful or something free?
Hey, you, are you trying to be mean?
If you live with apes man, it's hard to be clean
There's no time to discriminate
Hate every motherfucker
That's in your way
The beautiful people
The beautiful people (aahh)
The beautiful people
The beautiful people (aahh)
The beautiful people
The beautiful people (aahh)
The beautiful people
The beautiful people (aahh)
Hey you, what do you see?
Something beautiful or something free?
Hey, you, are you trying to be mean?
If you live with apes man, it's hard to be clean
Hey you, what do you see?
Something beautiful or something free?
Hey, you, are you trying to be mean?
If you live with apes man, it's hard to be clean
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
The beautiful people
Lyrics submitted by piesupreme, edited by spider8utt, calruss, Dragon19, ramon10332
The Beautiful People Lyrics as written by Esther Dean Brian Warner
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Songtrust Ave
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.
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
i agree with you guys but i think the beautiful people also refers to christians. as in how christians (the fundamentalist kinds) are so judgemental, think that they lead good lives etc. anyway the "its all relative to the size of your steeple" made me think that.