I'm surprised there are so many replies. It hasn't occurred to any of you that we have no knowledge of what Meat Puppets meant writing it? The lyrics are pretty straight forward in that they don't make logical sense. So it's surprising to see a lot of you posting answers as if you have the be all end all meaning of it. Songs like this are relevant because they can be deeply intimate for anyone but almost never for the same reasons. Generosity in art is the most important thing, it's easy for an artist to make a song so complex and intricate that only themselves can understand it. It's a lot harder to take that same sentiment and place it within a context where it will be understood and felt by all. And that's what great art is, that's what this song is and that's what people should take from it.
I'm surprised there are so many replies. It hasn't occurred to any of you that we have no knowledge of what Meat Puppets meant writing it? The lyrics are pretty straight forward in that they don't make logical sense. So it's surprising to see a lot of you posting answers as if you have the be all end all meaning of it. Songs like this are relevant because they can be deeply intimate for anyone but almost never for the same reasons. Generosity in art is the most important thing, it's easy for an artist to make a song so complex and intricate that only themselves can understand it. It's a lot harder to take that same sentiment and place it within a context where it will be understood and felt by all. And that's what great art is, that's what this song is and that's what people should take from it.