"Hip hip hooray / Talk to me, and I'll be your saint." - Richard is telling her that she can talk to him about anything, and he'll be a loyal and respectful listener/confidant.
"Take off your clothes, / Grave-starved ghost, / And don't be ashamed" - The girl is a "grave-starved ghost" -- she feels empty and dead inside, and yet she feels lost, unable to find comfort. Richard tells her that even though she's been raped, she shouldn't have to feel ashamed of her body when she takes her clothes off anymore, it's okay.
"If I'm watching, / Don't stop talking, / Just start walking" - I think this part connects to the other talking/walking part near the end of the song. Richard tells the girl that he's there watching her and listening to her, and that she can continue to talk to him and vent to him. At the same time, he tells her that she should begin to start mentally "walking away" from what happened to her, leaving the past behind.
"You sat and stared / At your grandmother's chair, / In that favorite room / And he, drunkenly, / Five [fat?] for three, / Pressing on you" - This is the story that the girl told Richard. The incident must have happened when she was young; she's at her grandparents' house. It isn't directly implied that her grandfather is the one who raped her, it could have been any other family member who was there at the time. We know that he was drunk. Everyone seems to hear "five for three" at this part, but I'm not sure what that would mean..? It does sound that way, but it also sort of sounds like he's singing "fat for three," which would make more sense to me -- he's fat enough for three people, he's drunk, and he's "pressing on" her (presumably, he molested her).
"Oh darling, / Stop talking, / And start walking" - I think that here, Richard is telling her to stop talking about and reliving the horrific event that she's experienced, and instead start mentally "walking away" from it, leaving it in the past so that she can continue on with her life and not let it negatively affect her any longer.
"Oh darling, / Stop crying, / And start smiling" - Richard lets the girl know that everything is okay; that she can stop reliving her assault and being depressed, and instead work towards becoming stronger and smiling again.
Well, that's my two cents about this song. It's definitely been one of my absolute favorites by this band ever since I first got into them. it's a bittersweet story that delivers a powerful message overall, and the song in and of itself is simply beautiful.
I think this song is about a girl who was raped.
"Hip hip hooray / Talk to me, and I'll be your saint." - Richard is telling her that she can talk to him about anything, and he'll be a loyal and respectful listener/confidant.
"Take off your clothes, / Grave-starved ghost, / And don't be ashamed" - The girl is a "grave-starved ghost" -- she feels empty and dead inside, and yet she feels lost, unable to find comfort. Richard tells her that even though she's been raped, she shouldn't have to feel ashamed of her body when she takes her clothes off anymore, it's okay.
"If I'm watching, / Don't stop talking, / Just start walking" - I think this part connects to the other talking/walking part near the end of the song. Richard tells the girl that he's there watching her and listening to her, and that she can continue to talk to him and vent to him. At the same time, he tells her that she should begin to start mentally "walking away" from what happened to her, leaving the past behind.
"You sat and stared / At your grandmother's chair, / In that favorite room / And he, drunkenly, / Five [fat?] for three, / Pressing on you" - This is the story that the girl told Richard. The incident must have happened when she was young; she's at her grandparents' house. It isn't directly implied that her grandfather is the one who raped her, it could have been any other family member who was there at the time. We know that he was drunk. Everyone seems to hear "five for three" at this part, but I'm not sure what that would mean..? It does sound that way, but it also sort of sounds like he's singing "fat for three," which would make more sense to me -- he's fat enough for three people, he's drunk, and he's "pressing on" her (presumably, he molested her).
"Oh darling, / Stop talking, / And start walking" - I think that here, Richard is telling her to stop talking about and reliving the horrific event that she's experienced, and instead start mentally "walking away" from it, leaving it in the past so that she can continue on with her life and not let it negatively affect her any longer.
"Oh darling, / Stop crying, / And start smiling" - Richard lets the girl know that everything is okay; that she can stop reliving her assault and being depressed, and instead work towards becoming stronger and smiling again.
Well, that's my two cents about this song. It's definitely been one of my absolute favorites by this band ever since I first got into them. it's a bittersweet story that delivers a powerful message overall, and the song in and of itself is simply beautiful.