I've always kind of assumed this was an ode to the short-lived bliss that filling a gambling addiction (slots in particular) gives, and how that was reminiscent of the thrill of meeting a girl at a carnival when he was younger. The most obvious lyric is the one about grabbing the lever, letting it rock n roll, he had the one-armed bandit fever.
But it goes on. The big wheel turning can be both a ferris wheel and the reels of a slot. The neon lights burning are the sirens that go off when you win, which is where the "high on the world" comes in, the "low ride" is what you experience as you constantly lose quarters to the insert slot.
Finally at the end of the song he is told to go away. She left a single quarter in the prize tray (the keepsake in the pocket), which he manages to not spend despite wanting desperately to run back and do. He remembers how excited he was as a kid going to the carnival and riding the ride with a girl, but now he only finds such joy as the anonymous addicted loser planted in front of a slot machine.
Probably not what the singer intended the song to mean, but you gotta admit the similarities are uncanny.
@wasabi51989 I thought the exact same thing! Been searching for someone with the same theory. Then I saw the above comments about how Mark said it was about a girl he met. However so pleased I found this comment as I believe that’s what the song is about. The girl he refers to in the song being a slot machine of sorts. Great minds!
@wasabi51989 I thought the exact same thing! Been searching for someone with the same theory. Then I saw the above comments about how Mark said it was about a girl he met. However so pleased I found this comment as I believe that’s what the song is about. The girl he refers to in the song being a slot machine of sorts. Great minds!
@wasabi51989 I thought the exact same thing! Been searching for someone with the same theory. Then I saw the above comments about how Mark said it was about a girl he met. However so pleased I found this comment as I believe that’s what the song is about. The girl he refers to in the song being a slot machine of sorts. Great minds!
@wasabi51989 I thought the exact same thing! Been searching for someone with the same theory. Then I saw the above comments about how Mark said it was about a girl he met. However so pleased I found this comment as I believe that’s what the song is about. The girl he refers to in the song being a slot machine of sorts. Great minds!
I've always kind of assumed this was an ode to the short-lived bliss that filling a gambling addiction (slots in particular) gives, and how that was reminiscent of the thrill of meeting a girl at a carnival when he was younger. The most obvious lyric is the one about grabbing the lever, letting it rock n roll, he had the one-armed bandit fever.
But it goes on. The big wheel turning can be both a ferris wheel and the reels of a slot. The neon lights burning are the sirens that go off when you win, which is where the "high on the world" comes in, the "low ride" is what you experience as you constantly lose quarters to the insert slot.
Finally at the end of the song he is told to go away. She left a single quarter in the prize tray (the keepsake in the pocket), which he manages to not spend despite wanting desperately to run back and do. He remembers how excited he was as a kid going to the carnival and riding the ride with a girl, but now he only finds such joy as the anonymous addicted loser planted in front of a slot machine.
Probably not what the singer intended the song to mean, but you gotta admit the similarities are uncanny.
@wasabi51989 I thought the exact same thing! Been searching for someone with the same theory. Then I saw the above comments about how Mark said it was about a girl he met. However so pleased I found this comment as I believe that’s what the song is about. The girl he refers to in the song being a slot machine of sorts. Great minds!
@wasabi51989 I thought the exact same thing! Been searching for someone with the same theory. Then I saw the above comments about how Mark said it was about a girl he met. However so pleased I found this comment as I believe that’s what the song is about. The girl he refers to in the song being a slot machine of sorts. Great minds!
@wasabi51989 I thought the exact same thing! Been searching for someone with the same theory. Then I saw the above comments about how Mark said it was about a girl he met. However so pleased I found this comment as I believe that’s what the song is about. The girl he refers to in the song being a slot machine of sorts. Great minds!
@wasabi51989 I thought the exact same thing! Been searching for someone with the same theory. Then I saw the above comments about how Mark said it was about a girl he met. However so pleased I found this comment as I believe that’s what the song is about. The girl he refers to in the song being a slot machine of sorts. Great minds!