I think this song also relates to Martin (the songwriter) L. Gore's recent divorce...
He's been in some kind of "familiar" pain during this relationship, some kind of pain that he got used to. But somehow, this divorce had put him into a new kind of pain, that bad that he prefers the "good old" pain he got used to.
It could also be from his children's point of view: where their parents where together, things were not good for them... but "all this running around" - moving back and forth between one parent and another, is worse than the (emotional) pain they are used to.
I think this song also relates to Martin (the songwriter) L. Gore's recent divorce... He's been in some kind of "familiar" pain during this relationship, some kind of pain that he got used to. But somehow, this divorce had put him into a new kind of pain, that bad that he prefers the "good old" pain he got used to.
It could also be from his children's point of view: where their parents where together, things were not good for them... but "all this running around" - moving back and forth between one parent and another, is worse than the (emotional) pain they are used to.
What do YOU think?