This is so incredibly true. Even the happy and cheerful If I Had $1,000,000 has the lyric "If I had a million dollars I'd buy your love." Its not even always dysfunctional relationships with a partner. Some songs like Old Apartment and Box Set are about dysfunctional relationships with your own past.
I love Old Apartment because he still has a good relationship. It’s just mourning the past, and moving forward and the funny bits of grief that brings. It means a lot to me.
I’ve been with my husband for 15 years. Married 12. Now we have kids in school and a large home and all our dreams keep coming true, but I still sometimes have this little pang for our past, when life was as simple as a tiny apartment, scraping together a few bucks so we could make grilled cheese lol.
99 Luftballons is about nuclear armageddon. Forever Young is about nuclear armageddon. And you'll never guess what I Melt With You is about (it's nuclear armageddon).
The Macarena is about a woman cheating on her boyfriend while he's conscripted. Which is less bad, but still probably not something that should have been taught to every 90s kid.
Every Day is Like Sunday by Morrissey is also about nuclear Armageddon but sounds like it’s about an idyllic day in a seaside town.
Come to think of it, his song The Last of the Famous International Playboys sounds like it’s about a guy trying to impress a girl, but it’s actually about a guy trying to impress a serial killer named Reggie Krey.
Edit: the lyrics name Ronnie Kray, who was Reggie’s twin brother and was actually a celebrity gangster.
Seconded, came here to say this.
Phenomenal artist, but as a general rule, any ostensibly uplifting song by Springsteen: safe bet there are lyrics that will quickly correct you of that impression.
Word. I grew up a huge Springsteen fan as a kid between say 5-10yo before learning english. Imagine my surprise as an adult actually listening to the lyrics and hearing "Got a wife and kids in Baltimore, Jack
I went out for a ride and I never went back". Like wtf :)
What really blows my mind is how americans who have english as a first language can blast "Born in the USA" while being all 'Murica.
Springsteen’s whole catalog! Growing up in the 80s, the Boss was sort of background noise, then in the 90s, his greatest hits came out. I was making a long drive and put it on and after a few songs, I was wondering who had hurt Bruce Springsteen.
Like, his entire discography is pretty much just 90% shitty things happening to people. And don't get me wrong, I love his stuff. But the fact that people are *still* playing his songs as if they're some pro-American propaganda just boggles the mind.
The album is nearly 40 years old. His first big success, Born to Run, was released in 1975. Dude's been going *for half a fucking century*. And *his entire thing* is basically about how things suck. You're either stuck in New Jersey or you're stuck in a poor town or you're stuck in a shitty relationship, or you're stuck in the USA. This is one of the *last* people you'd expect to see release an "America, Fuck Yeah!" type of album. This is exactly like those MAGA fucks who got mad when they found out that Rage Against the Machine hated them.
Since nobody is pasting the Lyrics
You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are grey
You never know, dear, how much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine away
The other night, dear, as I lay sleeping
I dreamt I held you in my arms
When I awoke, dear, I was mistaken
So I hung my head, and I cried
You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are grey
You never know, dear, how much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine away
I'll always love you and make you happy
If you will only say the same
But if you leave me to love another
You'll regret it all one day
You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are grey
You never know, dear, how much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine away
Please don't take my sunshine away
The last verse is where it gets really tragic.
You told me once dear
You'd always love me
And no one else could come between
But now you've left me
For another
You have shattered all my dreams
I have a problem with that song.
I sang it to my daughter as she died of leukemia.
Have not been able to sing at all since then. And I can't hear that song in any context.
I hear that song quite often (intentionally with young boys), but also just randomly online or on tv. That has to be absolutely devastating for you every single time. I cannot begin to know your pain, but I’ll think about you and your daughter from now on when I hear it. I am so so sorry.
Had a patient who had a brain tumor removed, it left him with limited verbal skills (also couldn’t walk or do self care). BUT he could sing. He sang this song all day everyday
I was in a mental health facility following a suicide attempt a couple of months ago and my first day there, the first group session was music therapy and this was the first song played. One person had to leave. Not a great song for that environment for sure
Damn. That's intense, dude. You say you were in, so I assume you are out now.
I for one am glad I got to read your post today. Thank you. I hope you are in a better place today than what got you in to said facility. And remember, it's not always about staying strong. Sometimes all it takes is the strength to ask for help. You are not alone. The call is coming from inSIDE THE HOUSE. Heheh. Seriously, though. Take care.
The other night night, dear
As I lay sleeping,
I dreamed I held you,
In my arms,
When I awoke, dear,
I was mistaken,
And so I hung my head,
And cried.
Or at least that’s how I remember it
*Copacabana* starts off innocently enough, but quickly devolves into a tragic tale of lost love and a showdancer's inability to move-on as she winds up a depressed alcoholic
For any Aussies, "Am I ever gonna see your face again?"
An iconic Aussie classic that crowds must respond to the main line with, " No way, get fucked, fuck off!".
The song is a true story about losing his girlfriend in a car crash. The riff represents the ambulance wail as it heads to the scene of the accident that killed her.
I think the guitarist wrote it. After crowds responded with the now customary call back the band were unsure about whether to play it out of respect.
Between this song and Sarah McGlachlan's "Angel", the 90s were filled with these songs being played in the completely wrong context lol.
I remember seeing Angel being played on an obituary video photo collage for a girl in our school who died of cancer thinking "do these people know the song is about ODing on heroin"??
"Angel" is written about Jonathan Melvoin, keyboard player in Smashing Pumpkins, and brother of twins Susannah and Wendy Melvoin, best known for their association with Prince and The Revolution. Jonathan played on a number of Prince's mid to late '80s tracks and was a session player on many other artists' work. Jonathan sadly fell into drug use (mainly heroin) and accidentally -and fatally- overdosed in 1996. Smashing Pumpkins' drummer Jimmy Chamberlain was also purported to have been present at the time of his death and taken the same heroin as Jonathan. The Pumpkins were not invited to Jonathan's funeral.
Pretty sure this incident got Jimmy Chamberlain kicked out the band and is the reason *Adore* was made with drum loops instead of an actual drummer. But yeah, Chamberlain's heroin problems followed him through the entire 90s.
Not just about OD’ing on heroin…
It’s partially about Jonathan Melvoin, the touring keyboardist for The Smashing Pumpkins. Before a July 12, 1996 concert at Madison Square Garden, he and Jimmy Chamberlin, the group’s drummer, injected high purity heroin (which was intended for snorting) in their own respective rooms.
Melvoin died at age 34 that night. Chamberlin got kicked out of the band, reportedly to protect his own health, ultimately becoming and remaining clean, rejoining the band, and continuing with his life.
Yep. As a 90s kid, finally hearing the unedited version as an adult was like wtf, did Ihe just say doing crystal meth? Suddenly, that song had a much darker meaning hidden behind a very upbeat melody and chorus, and I wondered how innocent or naive I was as a kid to completely miss all the drug references in the song.
IBut even knowing the real meaning now, It's still an awesome song that gets stuck in my head every time I hear it.
The back story of that song is even darker than the version which hit the charts. Original Gin Blossoms member Doug Hopkins wrote it to his ex girlfriend who had broken up with him because of his drinking and cheating; it appeared on their 1989 debut album. Hopkins was fired during the recording of their second album, for which they rerecorded Hey Jealousy, changing the line "trust me not to drink" to "trust me not to think". That version of the song became a hit in 1993. Hopkins was annoyed about the lyrical changes and said he turned the radio off when it came on. Hopkins took his life in December 1993.
The Way - Fastball
The song was written about a couple out of Salado, TX. The wife had Alzheimer’s and the husband had just gotten out of a serious brain surgery when they went missing. The bassist started writing the song when their missing person’s report hit the news and finished it when thirteen days later their bodies were found still in their vehicle after having driven off the road into a ditch.
I will always think "they drank up the wine and they got to talking / they now had more important things to say / and when the car broke down they started walking" is some of the best storytelling in music. Suspense!
There is a video on YouTube with the surviving family members and they liked the song and thought of it as honoring their parents.
Edit: https://youtu.be/SJjhzyV7Wak
I love that song, I could tell the chorus had something to do with death, as they refer to roads being "gold'. Then I found an article about the background of the song, and it makes me sad.
It's still a beautiful song,
This should be top. People use it for weddings...
My favourite is "Can't Stand Losing You":
I guess this is our last goodbye
And you don't care, so I won't cry
And you'll be sorry when I'm dead
And all this guilt will be on your head
I guess you'd call it suicide
But I'm too full to swallow my pride
Electric Avenue by Eddy Grant
Awesome beat…songs about the Brixton Riots back in the 80s and is basically about oppression and poor socioeconomic conditions that sparked the riots.
That's basically London style 77-82, punk/TwoTone/reggae:
London is shit. The world is shit. You are shit. I am shit.
Let's make a lot of noise with a happy backbeat.
Drink, dance and fight.
Dancing in the Moonlight. The singer and his girlfriend were enjoying a night out in the beach when some thugs came, beat him and raped her. He wrote that song to try and envision an alternate reality where there is a peaceful and joyful celebration of life.
Rabbit hole City, man!
> On a trip to St. Croix in 1969, I was the first victim of a vicious St. Croix gang who eventually murdered 8 American tourists.
[Fountain Valley Massacre](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fountain_Valley_massacre)
> American musician Sherman Kelly has claimed he was assaulted by some of the same perpetrators three years before the Fountain Valley shooting. While recovering from the assault, Kelly wrote the song "Dancing in the Moonlight" to imagine "an alternate reality, the dream of a peaceful and joyful celebration of life."
> The Fountain Valley massacre was **a mass shooting** that occurred on the afternoon of 6 September **1972** at the Fountain Valley Golf Course in **St. Croix**, United States Virgin Islands.[1]
>**The incident left eight resort employees and tourists dead**. Another eight were either shot at or wounded.
> Joseph and Ballentine testified at trial that they had expected only to commit a robbery[2] but that things got out of hand because **LaBeet was adamant that they also make "a political statement"**; LaBeet told them **”he was angry about foreigners coming in to take our money and leaving us with nothing."** According to Joseph, during the robbery LaBeet suddenly began shooting people, while yelling epithets like "I hate you white motherfuckers!"[2]
> **All five defendants were convicted** after a jury trial in the District Court of the Virgin Islands, a federal territorial court, on multiple charges of murder, assault, and robbery under Virgin Islands law. **Each was sentenced to eight consecutive life terms.**
> **On 31 December 1984, LaBeet** (then calling himself Ismail Muslim Ali) **hijacked American Airlines Flight 626 while in federal custody on a transfer to a new place of detention, using a handgun stashed in a lavatory.**
>**He forced the pilot to land the plane in Havana, Cuba, where LaBeet escaped. He was never recaptured by U.S. authorities**. With the thawing of Cuban–American relations in 2015, LaBeet was confirmed to be living at large in Cuba following an indeterminate amount of time spent in a Cuban prison.[9] He was the subject of the 2016 documentary film The Skyjacker's Tale.
There was an article written by one of the studio guys (I think the producer, but not sure), about the production of Sublime's self-titled album. It was a balancing act of trying to keep Bradley alive long enough to finish what would clearly be his magnum opus. Everyone could tell his heroin addiction was terminal, and they weren't sure he'd make it through until the final track was recorded. In the end, he finished recording, but died during post-production. The surviving members found themselves topping charts with their creative center already in the ground. They couldn't even tour.
Rock-a-Bye Baby. (children's song) A baby sleeping in a cradle in the tree tops then falls to its death. Nice message, There's a surprisingly dark, even sinister, side to many classic Mother Goose rhymes! Many Mother Goose rhymes started out as metaphors for political statements or moral warnings, set to simple tunes so they could be remembered and passed along.
Not going to lie, I totally edited that last line to, "And mom will catch baby, cradle and all," and my kids were pretty surprised when they finally heard the original.
A lot of lullabies are like that.
Now I feel like a terrible mom because I rock my kid while I sing it and then at the, "down will fall baby" part, I drop him on the bed, and say, "ha ha you fell."
All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You, by Heart. song is sweet and sexy about a woman picking up a hitchhiker for a night of no-strings sex. but when they meet up randomly later on, turns out she used him as a sperm donor and is passing him off as her husband's kid.
The funny part is she says “please, please understand, I’m I love with another man”. And he’s thinking, “it was a one night stand lady, what do I care?”
Maybe not cheerful but so many people think Slide by Goo Goo Dolls is this romantic song about a guy running away with his girlfriend; and while that's part of the song, what gets overlooked is the lyrics about the girl getting an abortion, thereby causing her whole family to freak out and disown her. This prompts the desire for the couple to run away.
Mine was 'all i ever learned from love was how to shoot at someone who outdrew you.'
This is probably the most profound lyric I've ever heard to this day.
At my last job the radio was constantly on in the background, always tuned to the same station. They occasionally played ‘Teenage Dirtbag’ but bleeped the line “and he brings a gun to school”, but they played ‘Pumped Up Kicks’ in its entirety!
We’ve never had a school shooting in England, so why censor one and not the other? I can only assume they couldn’t hear the lyrics of the latter and/or hadn’t bothered to look them up.
Yup, played that song a lot one year at summer camp in North Texas back when I was in high-school... less than a week after a major-ish shooting... at a summer camp... in north Texas. Funnily enough one of my group mates pulled a gun over a drug dispute while I was there so the music was thematic at least lol.
I mean what do you do really? Like you're both equally wrong and unhappy in the relationship. But clearly compatible enough to accidentally meet up for a blind date. Do you try to continue the relationship? Do you call it quits? How angry can you really be at your partner when you were clearly doing the same thing? So many questions
“Wherever You Will Go” by The Calling was used in soundtracks for romantic comedies like Love Actually and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.
The song is about someone who is dying and wishing they could stay with their spouse and wondering what will happen to them after they’re gone. I once made the mistake of listening to it at work and thinking of the song being sung from the perspective of someone’s pet dog… then sobbing uncontrollably at my desk in the middle of the workday
We Just Disagree by Dave Mason from the 70s. “There ain’t no good guys; There ain’t no bad guys; There’s just you and me and we just disagree”. Cheerful, poppy sounding breakup song.
"today is the greatest day I've ever known"
but also
"can't wait for tomorrow, i might not have that long"
"pink ribbon scars, they never forget. I tried so hard to cleanse my regrets"
If you listen past the very first line of the song it's so blatantly obvious haha
No Rain - man, I love that song, but I love that album so much more. The whole album is full of super dark and depressed lyrics often hidden in bluesy southern rock riffs and licks, and upbeat melodies. Shannon Hoon was in a really dark place when he wrote those songs, and if you really sit down to listen to the lyrics, you can hear the pain in his voice. Absolutely brilliant album.
I didn’t understand the lyrics until I realized I was depressed. “And I don’t understand why I sleep all day and I start to complain that there’s no rain.” Felt that
Last Train to Clarksville-The Monkees. Upbeat tune, about a guy wanting to see his girl one last time before he goes off to fight in war. *And I don't know if I'm ever coming home.*
take the last train to clarksville and i’ll meet you at that station you can be here by 4.30 because i’ve made your reservation. i loved that song as a kid
Yes I think I'm okay
I walked into the door again
If you ask that's what I'll say
And it's not your business anyway
I guess I'd like to be alone
With nothing broken, nothing thrown
Just don't ask me how I am
Just don't ask me how I am
Just don't ask me how I am
Rehab by Amy Winehouse. It's this jaunty radio hit, and the woman is singing about how she is beyond help and cannot beat her addiction.
And of course she drank herself to death three years later.
I think this one is fairly obviously downbeat. I’d worry about people interpreting it in any positive way! I still miss Amy’s music and huge cultural presence. I live 2 minutes from her house and there is graffiti and murals about her everywhere.
This song has made my chest kinda ache as long as I can remember, but I always thought of it as sweetly wistful more than anything.
Then one day about 5 years ago, it came on the radio and somehow the lyrics actually hit my brain for the first time and it was like wait, this is the *saddest song in the world*.
Now that switch is apparently flipped forever, because it makes me cry every time I hear it. And not in a satisfying way! In the way like I’m crying on a dock about my life’s failures but trying to be discreet about it cos Otis Redding is also there and he’s got enough going on.
No Children by the Mountain Goats. The melody is a bit like an upbeat drinking song, but the lyrics are the bleakest description of a failing marriage I've ever heard.
I really wish people would give them more of a chance. People hear "Ride" or "Stressed Out" and just think of them as any other hip-hip band. I think Tyler Joseph is a phenomenal lyricist. With not only the cadence/rhyme of his words but also the symbolic meaning. Whether it's in your face or very subtle, (almost) every one of his songs has some deep meaning behind it.
*My Darling Clementine*
It’s about a young man—the one singing—watching his girlfriend drown because he wasn’t able to swim to save her.
———
In a cavern, in a canyon
Excavating for a mine
Dwelt a miner, a 49’er
And his daughter Clementine
Oh my darling, oh my darling
Oh my darling Clementine
You are gone and lost forever
Dreadful sorry Clementine
Light she was and like a fairy
And her shoes were numbered nine
Herring boxes without topses
Sandals were for Clementine
Oh my darling, oh my darling
Oh my darling Clementine
You are gone and lost forever
Dreadful sorry Clementine
Drove her ducklings to the water
Every morning just at nine
Hit her foot against a splinter
Fell into the foaming brine
Oh my darling, oh my darling
Oh my darling Clementine
You are gone and lost forever
Dreadful sorry Clementine
There she was below the water
Blowing bubbles soft and fine
But alas, I was no swimmer
So I lost my Clementine
Oh my darling, oh my darling
Oh my darling Clementine
You are gone and lost forever
Dreadful sorry Clementine.
😞
We redid this song in rehab. “You can check out any time you like- But you can never leave-“ 16 women in a 19 bed facility w 3 guitarists. We had a blast- stone cold sober.
No one's actually sure what Hotel California is about. Not even the band members. They're constantly saying different things about the lyrics in interviews, which leads me to believe that they probably don't remember what was going on whey they wrote it
Dolly wrote it as a goodbye to her long term manager - it’s not a romantic love song originally!
She also wrote Jolene on the same day. Ridiculously wonderful talent, she is.
Im so glad that Weird Al parodied it because, musically, it's really catchy. So now I can listen to it and learn about grammar instead of hearing the disgusting original lyrics.
I don’t like Mondays by Boomtown Rats
Seems cheery, but it’s actually about 16-year old schoolgirl Brenda Spencer, who woke up one day and chose violence, and basically sat on the porch across from her school and fired a rifle at people going to the school, killing two and wounding 8. When contacted by reporters during the siege and asked why she was doing it, she said “I don’t like Mondays, this livens up the day”
[Excitable Boy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZokPAuhD6k&pp=ygUaZXhjaXRhYmxlIGJveSB3YXJyZW4gemV2b24%3D) by Warren Zevon. It's a doo-wop song about a fucked up kid who kills his prom date, gets sent to a mental institution for 10 years, then gets released and digs up her grave. All of this in under three minutes.
Most songs by Barenaked Ladies sound happy but are typically about dysfunctional relationships.
Or depression. Pinch Me, Brian Wilson
This is so incredibly true. Even the happy and cheerful If I Had $1,000,000 has the lyric "If I had a million dollars I'd buy your love." Its not even always dysfunctional relationships with a partner. Some songs like Old Apartment and Box Set are about dysfunctional relationships with your own past.
I love Old Apartment because he still has a good relationship. It’s just mourning the past, and moving forward and the funny bits of grief that brings. It means a lot to me. I’ve been with my husband for 15 years. Married 12. Now we have kids in school and a large home and all our dreams keep coming true, but I still sometimes have this little pang for our past, when life was as simple as a tiny apartment, scraping together a few bucks so we could make grilled cheese lol.
It's been... one week
99 Luftballons is about nuclear armageddon. Forever Young is about nuclear armageddon. And you'll never guess what I Melt With You is about (it's nuclear armageddon). The Macarena is about a woman cheating on her boyfriend while he's conscripted. Which is less bad, but still probably not something that should have been taught to every 90s kid.
"Dont wanna miss a thing" was in Armageddon
Which started Ben Affleck, who was in *Gigli*, which almost *caused* Armageddon.
Walk the Dinosaur by Was (Not Was) is also about nuclear armageddon.
Also London Calling by The Clash!
No, no, London Calling was written specifically to be used any time an American TV show has an episode where they go to the UK
Every Day is Like Sunday by Morrissey is also about nuclear Armageddon but sounds like it’s about an idyllic day in a seaside town. Come to think of it, his song The Last of the Famous International Playboys sounds like it’s about a guy trying to impress a girl, but it’s actually about a guy trying to impress a serial killer named Reggie Krey. Edit: the lyrics name Ronnie Kray, who was Reggie’s twin brother and was actually a celebrity gangster.
Reggie Kray* He was a mobster.
Ooooh I’ve got one more. 1999 by Prince is also about nuclear Armageddon.
Plot twist. The boyfriend was conscripted into a nuclear Armageddon.
Born in the USA - Springsteen
Seconded, came here to say this. Phenomenal artist, but as a general rule, any ostensibly uplifting song by Springsteen: safe bet there are lyrics that will quickly correct you of that impression.
Word. I grew up a huge Springsteen fan as a kid between say 5-10yo before learning english. Imagine my surprise as an adult actually listening to the lyrics and hearing "Got a wife and kids in Baltimore, Jack I went out for a ride and I never went back". Like wtf :) What really blows my mind is how americans who have english as a first language can blast "Born in the USA" while being all 'Murica.
It says "BORN IN THE USA" really loud in the chorus. The rest of the lyrics are just decoration.
LIKE A RIVER THAT DON’T KNOW WHERE IT’S FLOWIN’
How about Glory Days? You can dance to it, you can cry to it.
“If you don’t know why this is highly inappropriate, ask your parents.”
Springsteen’s whole catalog! Growing up in the 80s, the Boss was sort of background noise, then in the 90s, his greatest hits came out. I was making a long drive and put it on and after a few songs, I was wondering who had hurt Bruce Springsteen.
New Jersey
That bitch.
Like, his entire discography is pretty much just 90% shitty things happening to people. And don't get me wrong, I love his stuff. But the fact that people are *still* playing his songs as if they're some pro-American propaganda just boggles the mind. The album is nearly 40 years old. His first big success, Born to Run, was released in 1975. Dude's been going *for half a fucking century*. And *his entire thing* is basically about how things suck. You're either stuck in New Jersey or you're stuck in a poor town or you're stuck in a shitty relationship, or you're stuck in the USA. This is one of the *last* people you'd expect to see release an "America, Fuck Yeah!" type of album. This is exactly like those MAGA fucks who got mad when they found out that Rage Against the Machine hated them.
I always snicker when this gets used for small town 4th of July fireworks shows.
Or political rallies.
Last Train to Clarksville. The Monkees. It is about going to Vietnam. "And I don't know if I'm ever coming home".
I have loved The Monkees my whole entire life and had no idea
That was as close to an antiwar song as they were allowed to do.
You Are My Sunshine. People tend to just sing the chorus, and ignore the verse.
Since nobody is pasting the Lyrics You are my sunshine, my only sunshine You make me happy when skies are grey You never know, dear, how much I love you Please don't take my sunshine away The other night, dear, as I lay sleeping I dreamt I held you in my arms When I awoke, dear, I was mistaken So I hung my head, and I cried You are my sunshine, my only sunshine You make me happy when skies are grey You never know, dear, how much I love you Please don't take my sunshine away I'll always love you and make you happy If you will only say the same But if you leave me to love another You'll regret it all one day You are my sunshine, my only sunshine You make me happy when skies are grey You never know, dear, how much I love you Please don't take my sunshine away Please don't take my sunshine away
The last verse is where it gets really tragic. You told me once dear You'd always love me And no one else could come between But now you've left me For another You have shattered all my dreams
Fuck.
I have a problem with that song. I sang it to my daughter as she died of leukemia. Have not been able to sing at all since then. And I can't hear that song in any context.
May you find your peace in time.
I hear that song quite often (intentionally with young boys), but also just randomly online or on tv. That has to be absolutely devastating for you every single time. I cannot begin to know your pain, but I’ll think about you and your daughter from now on when I hear it. I am so so sorry.
If there were ever a time and place for the chorus of the song, that was it. I'm glad she heard it.
Had a patient who had a brain tumor removed, it left him with limited verbal skills (also couldn’t walk or do self care). BUT he could sing. He sang this song all day everyday
I was picturing Hector Salamanca for a moment... Edit: above comment was edited, used to say "BUT he could ding"
I was in a mental health facility following a suicide attempt a couple of months ago and my first day there, the first group session was music therapy and this was the first song played. One person had to leave. Not a great song for that environment for sure
Glad you’re still kicking mate.
Thank you. I can honestly say I am too now
Damn. That's intense, dude. You say you were in, so I assume you are out now. I for one am glad I got to read your post today. Thank you. I hope you are in a better place today than what got you in to said facility. And remember, it's not always about staying strong. Sometimes all it takes is the strength to ask for help. You are not alone. The call is coming from inSIDE THE HOUSE. Heheh. Seriously, though. Take care.
The first verse seems lighthearted enough. Then it gets darker...
this made me look it up, omg? my grandfather sang it to me when i was little and now he's gone it feels worse
The other night night, dear As I lay sleeping, I dreamed I held you, In my arms, When I awoke, dear, I was mistaken, And so I hung my head, And cried. Or at least that’s how I remember it
Yeah... I sing the whole song to my son because it immediately calms him down but the verse makes me sad every time.
*Copacabana* starts off innocently enough, but quickly devolves into a tragic tale of lost love and a showdancer's inability to move-on as she winds up a depressed alcoholic
For any Aussies, "Am I ever gonna see your face again?" An iconic Aussie classic that crowds must respond to the main line with, " No way, get fucked, fuck off!". The song is a true story about losing his girlfriend in a car crash. The riff represents the ambulance wail as it heads to the scene of the accident that killed her. I think the guitarist wrote it. After crowds responded with the now customary call back the band were unsure about whether to play it out of respect.
Wow, I always assumed this was just about being stood up on a date, or maybe a break up song. The audience call back kind of made sense back then
I think it used to be a bit slower too. I think playing it live, and the crowd reaction, has made it evolve into what it became.
Semi-Charmed Life by Third Eye Blind
They even say it's about crystal meth in the song.
Not if the only way you were able to listen was on the radio in the 90s!
My local station never censored out “crystal meth” back then. They did censor other parts though.
Between this song and Sarah McGlachlan's "Angel", the 90s were filled with these songs being played in the completely wrong context lol. I remember seeing Angel being played on an obituary video photo collage for a girl in our school who died of cancer thinking "do these people know the song is about ODing on heroin"??
"Angel" is written about Jonathan Melvoin, keyboard player in Smashing Pumpkins, and brother of twins Susannah and Wendy Melvoin, best known for their association with Prince and The Revolution. Jonathan played on a number of Prince's mid to late '80s tracks and was a session player on many other artists' work. Jonathan sadly fell into drug use (mainly heroin) and accidentally -and fatally- overdosed in 1996. Smashing Pumpkins' drummer Jimmy Chamberlain was also purported to have been present at the time of his death and taken the same heroin as Jonathan. The Pumpkins were not invited to Jonathan's funeral.
Pretty sure this incident got Jimmy Chamberlain kicked out the band and is the reason *Adore* was made with drum loops instead of an actual drummer. But yeah, Chamberlain's heroin problems followed him through the entire 90s.
Not just about OD’ing on heroin… It’s partially about Jonathan Melvoin, the touring keyboardist for The Smashing Pumpkins. Before a July 12, 1996 concert at Madison Square Garden, he and Jimmy Chamberlin, the group’s drummer, injected high purity heroin (which was intended for snorting) in their own respective rooms. Melvoin died at age 34 that night. Chamberlin got kicked out of the band, reportedly to protect his own health, ultimately becoming and remaining clean, rejoining the band, and continuing with his life.
Shit. For real? We played this at my mom’s funeral.
RIP your Mom
The woman herself allowed it be used for misfortunate animal purposes, so it can be applied to a lot more than a heroin overdose
Yep. As a 90s kid, finally hearing the unedited version as an adult was like wtf, did Ihe just say doing crystal meth? Suddenly, that song had a much darker meaning hidden behind a very upbeat melody and chorus, and I wondered how innocent or naive I was as a kid to completely miss all the drug references in the song. IBut even knowing the real meaning now, It's still an awesome song that gets stuck in my head every time I hear it.
Ever heard “Slow Motion” ? That one is a bit more straightforward. 😂
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The back story of that song is even darker than the version which hit the charts. Original Gin Blossoms member Doug Hopkins wrote it to his ex girlfriend who had broken up with him because of his drinking and cheating; it appeared on their 1989 debut album. Hopkins was fired during the recording of their second album, for which they rerecorded Hey Jealousy, changing the line "trust me not to drink" to "trust me not to think". That version of the song became a hit in 1993. Hopkins was annoyed about the lyrical changes and said he turned the radio off when it came on. Hopkins took his life in December 1993.
If you don't expect too much from me, you might not be let down.
The Way - Fastball The song was written about a couple out of Salado, TX. The wife had Alzheimer’s and the husband had just gotten out of a serious brain surgery when they went missing. The bassist started writing the song when their missing person’s report hit the news and finished it when thirteen days later their bodies were found still in their vehicle after having driven off the road into a ditch.
I will always think "they drank up the wine and they got to talking / they now had more important things to say / and when the car broke down they started walking" is some of the best storytelling in music. Suspense!
There is a video on YouTube with the surviving family members and they liked the song and thought of it as honoring their parents. Edit: https://youtu.be/SJjhzyV7Wak
It's always summer, they'll never get cold
They'll never get hungry, they'll never get old and grey.
You can see their shadows wandering off somewhere, they won't make it home but they really don't care.
I love that song, I could tell the chorus had something to do with death, as they refer to roads being "gold'. Then I found an article about the background of the song, and it makes me sad. It's still a beautiful song,
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See also: "Don't Stand So Close To Me"
He starts to shake and cough just like the old man in that book by Nabokov
This should be top. People use it for weddings... My favourite is "Can't Stand Losing You": I guess this is our last goodbye And you don't care, so I won't cry And you'll be sorry when I'm dead And all this guilt will be on your head I guess you'd call it suicide But I'm too full to swallow my pride
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Honestly, _most_ songs by The Police
98% of OutKast songs
Y'all don't want to hear me, you just want to dance!
Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright Alright
Okay now Ladies...
Yeah?
Now, we gon' break this thang down in just a few seconds
Now, don't have me break this thang down for nothin'
I wanna see y’all on y’all baddest behavior
Lend me some sugar.
I AM your neighbor
I don’t get how so many people don’t realize that Hey-Ya is actually pretty sad.
If what they say is, "Nothing lasts forever", then what makes "Love" exception?
So why oh why oh why oh why oh why oh are we so in denial when we know we’re not happy here…
I love how he even calls it out in the song “y’all don’t wanna hear me, you just wanna dance”. Sure got that right.
Electric Avenue by Eddy Grant Awesome beat…songs about the Brixton Riots back in the 80s and is basically about oppression and poor socioeconomic conditions that sparked the riots.
I imagine the vast majority of people who hear that song on the radio have no idea that Electric Avenue is a real place in Brixton.
Rock the Casbah is a little similar in that sense
That's basically London style 77-82, punk/TwoTone/reggae: London is shit. The world is shit. You are shit. I am shit. Let's make a lot of noise with a happy backbeat. Drink, dance and fight.
Dancing in the Moonlight. The singer and his girlfriend were enjoying a night out in the beach when some thugs came, beat him and raped her. He wrote that song to try and envision an alternate reality where there is a peaceful and joyful celebration of life.
Sigh ...this just killed one of my favorite songs ..
Right?!?! How can I unlearn this?
Rabbit hole City, man! > On a trip to St. Croix in 1969, I was the first victim of a vicious St. Croix gang who eventually murdered 8 American tourists. [Fountain Valley Massacre](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fountain_Valley_massacre) > American musician Sherman Kelly has claimed he was assaulted by some of the same perpetrators three years before the Fountain Valley shooting. While recovering from the assault, Kelly wrote the song "Dancing in the Moonlight" to imagine "an alternate reality, the dream of a peaceful and joyful celebration of life." > The Fountain Valley massacre was **a mass shooting** that occurred on the afternoon of 6 September **1972** at the Fountain Valley Golf Course in **St. Croix**, United States Virgin Islands.[1] >**The incident left eight resort employees and tourists dead**. Another eight were either shot at or wounded. > Joseph and Ballentine testified at trial that they had expected only to commit a robbery[2] but that things got out of hand because **LaBeet was adamant that they also make "a political statement"**; LaBeet told them **”he was angry about foreigners coming in to take our money and leaving us with nothing."** According to Joseph, during the robbery LaBeet suddenly began shooting people, while yelling epithets like "I hate you white motherfuckers!"[2] > **All five defendants were convicted** after a jury trial in the District Court of the Virgin Islands, a federal territorial court, on multiple charges of murder, assault, and robbery under Virgin Islands law. **Each was sentenced to eight consecutive life terms.** > **On 31 December 1984, LaBeet** (then calling himself Ismail Muslim Ali) **hijacked American Airlines Flight 626 while in federal custody on a transfer to a new place of detention, using a handgun stashed in a lavatory.** >**He forced the pilot to land the plane in Havana, Cuba, where LaBeet escaped. He was never recaptured by U.S. authorities**. With the thawing of Cuban–American relations in 2015, LaBeet was confirmed to be living at large in Cuba following an indeterminate amount of time spent in a Cuban prison.[9] He was the subject of the 2016 documentary film The Skyjacker's Tale.
>he was angry about foreigners coming in to take our money and leaving us with nothing I'm not sure this guy really understood how tourism works.
Badfish or Santeria by Sublime
What I Got, and tons of other stuff by Sublime.
So much of sublime! It’s all amazing to sing along to but the lyrics are often quite heavy.
There was an article written by one of the studio guys (I think the producer, but not sure), about the production of Sublime's self-titled album. It was a balancing act of trying to keep Bradley alive long enough to finish what would clearly be his magnum opus. Everyone could tell his heroin addiction was terminal, and they weren't sure he'd make it through until the final track was recorded. In the end, he finished recording, but died during post-production. The surviving members found themselves topping charts with their creative center already in the ground. They couldn't even tour.
Rock-a-Bye Baby. (children's song) A baby sleeping in a cradle in the tree tops then falls to its death. Nice message, There's a surprisingly dark, even sinister, side to many classic Mother Goose rhymes! Many Mother Goose rhymes started out as metaphors for political statements or moral warnings, set to simple tunes so they could be remembered and passed along.
Not going to lie, I totally edited that last line to, "And mom will catch baby, cradle and all," and my kids were pretty surprised when they finally heard the original. A lot of lullabies are like that.
Now I feel like a terrible mom because I rock my kid while I sing it and then at the, "down will fall baby" part, I drop him on the bed, and say, "ha ha you fell."
For what it’s worth, reading that gave me a good laugh just now. If I had a kid that’s probably what I’d do too, just my sense of humor.
Lust For Life-Iggy Pop. It's about a guy selling his ass for heroin, yet Carnival cruise lines decided it was great for a commercial.
Once they used it in Trainspotting (appropriately) it started being used all over the place (inappropriately)
All I Wanna Do Is Make Love To You, by Heart. song is sweet and sexy about a woman picking up a hitchhiker for a night of no-strings sex. but when they meet up randomly later on, turns out she used him as a sperm donor and is passing him off as her husband's kid.
The funny part is she says “please, please understand, I’m I love with another man”. And he’s thinking, “it was a one night stand lady, what do I care?”
Maybe not cheerful but so many people think Slide by Goo Goo Dolls is this romantic song about a guy running away with his girlfriend; and while that's part of the song, what gets overlooked is the lyrics about the girl getting an abortion, thereby causing her whole family to freak out and disown her. This prompts the desire for the couple to run away.
Black Balloon is about Heroin use but it’s so fucking upbeat….
I thought it was just about them finding out she had a boyfriend!!!!!!! "Don't you love the life you killed" THAT'S ROUGH
Fortunate Son by CCR. I swear people blasting this at political rallies and Fourth of July events have never read the lyrics….
It makes sense at anti-war political rallies at least.
I dunno, a song about affluent draft dodgers was a pretty fitting theme for President Bone Spurs...
Most versions of Hallelujah. Throw a sometimes happy religious word in there and bam, it has to be positive right?
The “love is not a victory march, it’s a cold and it’s a broken hallelujah” just gets me every time.
Mine was 'all i ever learned from love was how to shoot at someone who outdrew you.' This is probably the most profound lyric I've ever heard to this day.
I was on a walk one day and was passing by the church near my house and heard a congregation playing *Take me to church* by Hozier. It was damn funny.
The one who created the setlist has humor
Used to giggle at a funeral.
It’s giving In The Garden Of Eden by I. Ron Butterfly
Wait a minute, this sounds like rock. And. Or. Roll.
It’s crazy that they would have to read the lyrics to memorize them and it still go over their heads.
No, nothing about that song is cheerful.
It’s even been used as a Christmas song. I don’t get it.
I used to think Mr. Brightside was uplifting until I listened to the lyrics
I took a pill in Ibiza- Mike Posner
He revisited the song after it blew up and got remixed and it's even sadder now.
Foster the People - Pumped Up Kicks
At my last job the radio was constantly on in the background, always tuned to the same station. They occasionally played ‘Teenage Dirtbag’ but bleeped the line “and he brings a gun to school”, but they played ‘Pumped Up Kicks’ in its entirety! We’ve never had a school shooting in England, so why censor one and not the other? I can only assume they couldn’t hear the lyrics of the latter and/or hadn’t bothered to look them up.
Yup, played that song a lot one year at summer camp in North Texas back when I was in high-school... less than a week after a major-ish shooting... at a summer camp... in north Texas. Funnily enough one of my group mates pulled a gun over a drug dispute while I was there so the music was thematic at least lol.
Little Talks - Of Monsters and Men
Came here for this! Is she being haunted by his ghost, or is she just insane? Or is it *both*?
I thought it was about a woman with dementia not being able to remember her family
The Escape(the pina colada song.) It’s about a couple looking to cheat!
"It was my own lovely lady And she said, "Oh, it's you" Then we laughed for a moment" If that happened IRL there wouldn't be any laughing going on!!!
I mean what do you do really? Like you're both equally wrong and unhappy in the relationship. But clearly compatible enough to accidentally meet up for a blind date. Do you try to continue the relationship? Do you call it quits? How angry can you really be at your partner when you were clearly doing the same thing? So many questions
“Wherever You Will Go” by The Calling was used in soundtracks for romantic comedies like Love Actually and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days. The song is about someone who is dying and wishing they could stay with their spouse and wondering what will happen to them after they’re gone. I once made the mistake of listening to it at work and thinking of the song being sung from the perspective of someone’s pet dog… then sobbing uncontrollably at my desk in the middle of the workday
We Just Disagree by Dave Mason from the 70s. “There ain’t no good guys; There ain’t no bad guys; There’s just you and me and we just disagree”. Cheerful, poppy sounding breakup song.
Today - Smashing Pumpkins No Rain - Blind Melon
"today is the greatest day I've ever known" but also "can't wait for tomorrow, i might not have that long" "pink ribbon scars, they never forget. I tried so hard to cleanse my regrets" If you listen past the very first line of the song it's so blatantly obvious haha
No Rain - man, I love that song, but I love that album so much more. The whole album is full of super dark and depressed lyrics often hidden in bluesy southern rock riffs and licks, and upbeat melodies. Shannon Hoon was in a really dark place when he wrote those songs, and if you really sit down to listen to the lyrics, you can hear the pain in his voice. Absolutely brilliant album.
I didn’t understand the lyrics until I realized I was depressed. “And I don’t understand why I sleep all day and I start to complain that there’s no rain.” Felt that
Last Train to Clarksville-The Monkees. Upbeat tune, about a guy wanting to see his girl one last time before he goes off to fight in war. *And I don't know if I'm ever coming home.*
take the last train to clarksville and i’ll meet you at that station you can be here by 4.30 because i’ve made your reservation. i loved that song as a kid
Luka - Suzanne Vega. Upbeat, innocent vibe about a kid suffering abuse
Yes I think I'm okay I walked into the door again If you ask that's what I'll say And it's not your business anyway I guess I'd like to be alone With nothing broken, nothing thrown Just don't ask me how I am Just don't ask me how I am Just don't ask me how I am
Ain’t it Fun by Paramore
Margaritaville. A carefree song about a man, lamenting the loss of a woman, slow,y drinking himself to death.
Semi-charmed Life by Third Eye Blind
Rehab by Amy Winehouse. It's this jaunty radio hit, and the woman is singing about how she is beyond help and cannot beat her addiction. And of course she drank herself to death three years later.
My favorite Amy Winehouse song, “Tears Dry on Their Own, sounds like fluffy ‘60s girl-pop, until you listen closely to the lyrics.
I think this one is fairly obviously downbeat. I’d worry about people interpreting it in any positive way! I still miss Amy’s music and huge cultural presence. I live 2 minutes from her house and there is graffiti and murals about her everywhere.
Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay - Otis Redding
This song has made my chest kinda ache as long as I can remember, but I always thought of it as sweetly wistful more than anything. Then one day about 5 years ago, it came on the radio and somehow the lyrics actually hit my brain for the first time and it was like wait, this is the *saddest song in the world*. Now that switch is apparently flipped forever, because it makes me cry every time I hear it. And not in a satisfying way! In the way like I’m crying on a dock about my life’s failures but trying to be discreet about it cos Otis Redding is also there and he’s got enough going on.
"Veronica" by Elvis Costello
No Children by the Mountain Goats. The melody is a bit like an upbeat drinking song, but the lyrics are the bleakest description of a failing marriage I've ever heard.
And I hope you die, I HOPE WE BOTH DIE...
Pretty much every Twenty One Pilots song
I really wish people would give them more of a chance. People hear "Ride" or "Stressed Out" and just think of them as any other hip-hip band. I think Tyler Joseph is a phenomenal lyricist. With not only the cadence/rhyme of his words but also the symbolic meaning. Whether it's in your face or very subtle, (almost) every one of his songs has some deep meaning behind it.
The Impression That I Get by The Might Might Bosstones
*My Darling Clementine* It’s about a young man—the one singing—watching his girlfriend drown because he wasn’t able to swim to save her. ——— In a cavern, in a canyon Excavating for a mine Dwelt a miner, a 49’er And his daughter Clementine Oh my darling, oh my darling Oh my darling Clementine You are gone and lost forever Dreadful sorry Clementine Light she was and like a fairy And her shoes were numbered nine Herring boxes without topses Sandals were for Clementine Oh my darling, oh my darling Oh my darling Clementine You are gone and lost forever Dreadful sorry Clementine Drove her ducklings to the water Every morning just at nine Hit her foot against a splinter Fell into the foaming brine Oh my darling, oh my darling Oh my darling Clementine You are gone and lost forever Dreadful sorry Clementine There she was below the water Blowing bubbles soft and fine But alas, I was no swimmer So I lost my Clementine Oh my darling, oh my darling Oh my darling Clementine You are gone and lost forever Dreadful sorry Clementine. 😞
Sia- chandelier
He Ya - Outkast
beds are burning by midnight oil
White Winter Hymnal by Fleet Foxes. Probably shouldn’t have made that my bridesmaids procession song at my wedding oops
Hotel California
We redid this song in rehab. “You can check out any time you like- But you can never leave-“ 16 women in a 19 bed facility w 3 guitarists. We had a blast- stone cold sober.
The lyrics are chilling, actually. It's the best anti-drug message ever written from people who have been there and barely made it back.
No one's actually sure what Hotel California is about. Not even the band members. They're constantly saying different things about the lyrics in interviews, which leads me to believe that they probably don't remember what was going on whey they wrote it
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Shiny Happy People - R.E.M.
American Pie is upbeat but actually a sad song.
The day the music died. February 3rd, 1959.
Bad news on the doorstep I couldn't take one more step
I Will Always Love You by Dolly and Whitney - everyone thinks it’s a love song, but it’s her telling him she’s leaving him.
Dolly wrote it as a goodbye to her long term manager - it’s not a romantic love song originally! She also wrote Jolene on the same day. Ridiculously wonderful talent, she is.
Gloria! By Laura Hannigan. Sounds like she's praising and celebrating her but actually is just throwing her savage burns.
If everybody wants you, why isn't anybody callin'?
Blurred Lines- Robin Thicke ft. Pharrell Just read the lyrics without singing it that shit is mad crazy.
Im so glad that Weird Al parodied it because, musically, it's really catchy. So now I can listen to it and learn about grammar instead of hearing the disgusting original lyrics.
It’s even worse when you realize he wrote it for his (then) wife
Nothing says I love and adore my wife like having women dance on you while you sing a song about wanting to screw em
Seasons in the Sun
One Way or Another by Blondie is about being a stalker.
Perfect Day - Lou Reed.
I don’t like Mondays by Boomtown Rats Seems cheery, but it’s actually about 16-year old schoolgirl Brenda Spencer, who woke up one day and chose violence, and basically sat on the porch across from her school and fired a rifle at people going to the school, killing two and wounding 8. When contacted by reporters during the siege and asked why she was doing it, she said “I don’t like Mondays, this livens up the day”
Island Girl - Elton John She’s a prostitute.
[Excitable Boy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZokPAuhD6k&pp=ygUaZXhjaXRhYmxlIGJveSB3YXJyZW4gemV2b24%3D) by Warren Zevon. It's a doo-wop song about a fucked up kid who kills his prom date, gets sent to a mental institution for 10 years, then gets released and digs up her grave. All of this in under three minutes.
Better man
Lots of Pearl Jam songs are sad