"The working man's day, we just piss it away.
We sit out in the weather.
Familiar," he said, "times do breed contempt.
Wash you hands of it forever."
The violence, it ripped through the old dogwood fence.
See the whole scene unravel.
The drunk brother said he could reason with them...
While they lie tonight, they lie tonight, while they lie. 2x
The picture was left on the front porch. The back said,
"I love him, don't you ever think of me.
If my body goes, then to Hell with my soul.
We don't even know the difference."
The dead folks in the clouds are crying out loud...
While they lie tonight, they lie tonight, while they lie. 2x
"And why did we live so long?"
Long 2x
The house, not the same since we left it that day.
Old friends seem to wander.
In our parents' hands, cigarettes, wedding bands...
While they lie tonight, they lie tonight while they lie.
2x
And why did we live so long?
Long 2x
While they lie tonight, they lie tonight, while they lie 3x
Oh...
And now, my analysis. The whole song outlines a marriage that's on the rocks with the parnets probably only staying together because of the kids or for religious reasons.
In the first part, you hear the father speaking, saying that even though life isn't necessarily hard on them he's getting bored with life as it is and he and his wife are growing apart. I believe the husband threatens the wife with divorce when he says, "Wash your hands of it forever." (Husbands out there, never say the D word. It can cause a lot of emotional damage even if you don't mean it.)
This is followed by a fight out in the yard. The violence mentioned in this song isn't necessarily physical but I believe that's what it's speaking of when "it ripped through the old dogwood fence". The kids may have been on the other side of the fence listening to the fight, and it "ripped" emotionally from the kids overheaing the fight. The older (presumably) older brother is drunk, but he tries to break up the fight.
The chorus is cool, because the word, "lie", has a double meaning. They lie while they are lying in bed, basically. A man and woman sleeping together is supposed to be symbolic of love, but the parents don't love eachother.
I believe the next verse is talking about an affair the wife is having. She leaves a picture of the guy she's cheating with, with a note on the back. The wife has gotten to a point of not caring about whatever religious reasons they had for staying together.
While they were together, it was destructive to the kids for them to be arguing all the time, but this is just as bad when one parent suddenly decides to leave on bad terms. this is why "the dead folks in the clouds are crying out loud".
After the split, their lie is that this is somehow better, but the kids are still being hurt by all of their problems.
This is followed by the question, "Why did we live so long?"
This is a powerful song, because even those who haven't these types of isssues at home know what it feels like to think that their life is just dragging on with no hope for a better tomorrow. Somehow a song like this brings some comfort when you realize that there are people who know what you're going through.
Any young people being affected by this, call 1-800-HIT-HOME
I'm so late in responding. Just found this site. But I think you're close as hell. I think this song is just a bit more judgmental on all adults -- wrt to his childhood -- as opposed to one parental event. And I think it's darker. More is happening than one fight. And the violence by the fence is diff from the parental fights, which I agree is happening. It seems to me that it's more like what would happen as a result of multiple-parental neglect -- a fight amongst the kids or something worse.
I'm so late in responding. Just found this site. But I think you're close as hell. I think this song is just a bit more judgmental on all adults -- wrt to his childhood -- as opposed to one parental event. And I think it's darker. More is happening than one fight. And the violence by the fence is diff from the parental fights, which I agree is happening. It seems to me that it's more like what would happen as a result of multiple-parental neglect -- a fight amongst the kids or something worse.
In my opinion, it's "while...
In my opinion, it's "while they lie-dy-died, they lie-dy-died, while they died." And what they died from is .. well, denial of all sorts. The most obvious being cigarette smoking. But we grew up in it, eh? There were whole dimensions of denial one could spread out in at the time. And lots of room for fuckupedness in family relations.
@Nemamiah I finally found you, I had a stupid friend with whom I talked about interpretations and meanings of music. I created an account here to contact you and ask if you have ever heard of a forró band called Desejo de Menina? I admit that, except for this detail, our ideas hit exactly the same points, but my motivation to write to you, was the fact that this friend offended me with a suggestion, when he knows so well that what I hate most in this world are copies.
I just wanted to thank you, after all my ideas seem...
@Nemamiah I finally found you, I had a stupid friend with whom I talked about interpretations and meanings of music. I created an account here to contact you and ask if you have ever heard of a forró band called Desejo de Menina? I admit that, except for this detail, our ideas hit exactly the same points, but my motivation to write to you, was the fact that this friend offended me with a suggestion, when he knows so well that what I hate most in this world are copies.
I just wanted to thank you, after all my ideas seem to make sense now after reading yours. Big hug.
@Anaiza3durval I haven't heard of them, but I'll check them out. I'm surprised by getting a response to this twelve years after the fact, but I hope my take helped you somehow.
@Anaiza3durval I haven't heard of them, but I'll check them out. I'm surprised by getting a response to this twelve years after the fact, but I hope my take helped you somehow.
@Nemamiah Sir, i do not think that this type of music i mentioned is your style rsrsrs Know that your interpretation was important to mature my ideas, in short, i commented on pure impulse and in fact i did not expect you to answer me .-. Obrigada
@Nemamiah Sir, i do not think that this type of music i mentioned is your style rsrsrs Know that your interpretation was important to mature my ideas, in short, i commented on pure impulse and in fact i did not expect you to answer me .-. Obrigada
I think this is how it goes.
"The working man's day, we just piss it away. We sit out in the weather. Familiar," he said, "times do breed contempt. Wash you hands of it forever."
The violence, it ripped through the old dogwood fence. See the whole scene unravel. The drunk brother said he could reason with them...
While they lie tonight, they lie tonight, while they lie. 2x
The picture was left on the front porch. The back said, "I love him, don't you ever think of me. If my body goes, then to Hell with my soul. We don't even know the difference."
The dead folks in the clouds are crying out loud...
While they lie tonight, they lie tonight, while they lie. 2x
"And why did we live so long?"
Long 2x
The house, not the same since we left it that day. Old friends seem to wander. In our parents' hands, cigarettes, wedding bands...
While they lie tonight, they lie tonight while they lie. 2x
And why did we live so long?
Long 2x
While they lie tonight, they lie tonight, while they lie 3x
Oh...
And now, my analysis. The whole song outlines a marriage that's on the rocks with the parnets probably only staying together because of the kids or for religious reasons.
In the first part, you hear the father speaking, saying that even though life isn't necessarily hard on them he's getting bored with life as it is and he and his wife are growing apart. I believe the husband threatens the wife with divorce when he says, "Wash your hands of it forever." (Husbands out there, never say the D word. It can cause a lot of emotional damage even if you don't mean it.)
This is followed by a fight out in the yard. The violence mentioned in this song isn't necessarily physical but I believe that's what it's speaking of when "it ripped through the old dogwood fence". The kids may have been on the other side of the fence listening to the fight, and it "ripped" emotionally from the kids overheaing the fight. The older (presumably) older brother is drunk, but he tries to break up the fight.
The chorus is cool, because the word, "lie", has a double meaning. They lie while they are lying in bed, basically. A man and woman sleeping together is supposed to be symbolic of love, but the parents don't love eachother.
I believe the next verse is talking about an affair the wife is having. She leaves a picture of the guy she's cheating with, with a note on the back. The wife has gotten to a point of not caring about whatever religious reasons they had for staying together.
While they were together, it was destructive to the kids for them to be arguing all the time, but this is just as bad when one parent suddenly decides to leave on bad terms. this is why "the dead folks in the clouds are crying out loud".
After the split, their lie is that this is somehow better, but the kids are still being hurt by all of their problems.
This is followed by the question, "Why did we live so long?"
This is a powerful song, because even those who haven't these types of isssues at home know what it feels like to think that their life is just dragging on with no hope for a better tomorrow. Somehow a song like this brings some comfort when you realize that there are people who know what you're going through.
Any young people being affected by this, call 1-800-HIT-HOME
God bless, Nemamiah
thanks Nemamiah, your post made the song a lot more clear to me. it's prob my fav BoH song now =)
thanks Nemamiah, your post made the song a lot more clear to me. it's prob my fav BoH song now =)
I'm so late in responding. Just found this site. But I think you're close as hell. I think this song is just a bit more judgmental on all adults -- wrt to his childhood -- as opposed to one parental event. And I think it's darker. More is happening than one fight. And the violence by the fence is diff from the parental fights, which I agree is happening. It seems to me that it's more like what would happen as a result of multiple-parental neglect -- a fight amongst the kids or something worse.
I'm so late in responding. Just found this site. But I think you're close as hell. I think this song is just a bit more judgmental on all adults -- wrt to his childhood -- as opposed to one parental event. And I think it's darker. More is happening than one fight. And the violence by the fence is diff from the parental fights, which I agree is happening. It seems to me that it's more like what would happen as a result of multiple-parental neglect -- a fight amongst the kids or something worse.
In my opinion, it's "while...
In my opinion, it's "while they lie-dy-died, they lie-dy-died, while they died." And what they died from is .. well, denial of all sorts. The most obvious being cigarette smoking. But we grew up in it, eh? There were whole dimensions of denial one could spread out in at the time. And lots of room for fuckupedness in family relations.
@Nemamiah I finally found you, I had a stupid friend with whom I talked about interpretations and meanings of music. I created an account here to contact you and ask if you have ever heard of a forró band called Desejo de Menina? I admit that, except for this detail, our ideas hit exactly the same points, but my motivation to write to you, was the fact that this friend offended me with a suggestion, when he knows so well that what I hate most in this world are copies. I just wanted to thank you, after all my ideas seem...
@Nemamiah I finally found you, I had a stupid friend with whom I talked about interpretations and meanings of music. I created an account here to contact you and ask if you have ever heard of a forró band called Desejo de Menina? I admit that, except for this detail, our ideas hit exactly the same points, but my motivation to write to you, was the fact that this friend offended me with a suggestion, when he knows so well that what I hate most in this world are copies. I just wanted to thank you, after all my ideas seem to make sense now after reading yours. Big hug.
@Anaiza3durval I haven't heard of them, but I'll check them out. I'm surprised by getting a response to this twelve years after the fact, but I hope my take helped you somehow.
@Anaiza3durval I haven't heard of them, but I'll check them out. I'm surprised by getting a response to this twelve years after the fact, but I hope my take helped you somehow.
@Nemamiah Sir, i do not think that this type of music i mentioned is your style rsrsrs Know that your interpretation was important to mature my ideas, in short, i commented on pure impulse and in fact i did not expect you to answer me .-. Obrigada
@Nemamiah Sir, i do not think that this type of music i mentioned is your style rsrsrs Know that your interpretation was important to mature my ideas, in short, i commented on pure impulse and in fact i did not expect you to answer me .-. Obrigada