Wed, December 8, 2004
Filibuster vigilantly—2:40 PM
I very rarely listen to the lyrics of songs until I know them pretty well. I'm more of a melody person. I mean, of course there are some songs which have really obvious lyrics, so of course I hear those and I know what those songs are about. I know "Birdhouse in Your Soul" is about a little nightlight. But whenever people point out that it's inappropriate how often Green Day's "Time of Your Life" is used as a sweet and sentimental song in movies and TV, since it's actually about a bitter breakup, I just nod silently, because I had no idea it was about that.
Once I hear a song enough times, if it's one of the ones I really like, then the lyrics start to seep in and I start figuring it out. Or, that process can be fast-tracked if someone covers the song in a way that it's sung really, really slowly. This morning, Iron and Wine's cover of "Such Great Heights" came on the iPod, and I heard the opening for the first time:
I think it is a sign
that the freckles in our eyes
are mirror images
and when we kiss they're perfectly aligned.
Wow. Now I get why people like listening to song lyrics. That's really pretty, and it makes me fall in love with love all over again. And with Garden State.
"AC" — Wed, 12/8/04 3:34pm
Ew. I'll stick with the original version, thank you.
Bee Boy — Wed, 12/8/04 3:50pm
You mean their lyrics are different? I had no idea! Does the Postal Service version eschew concepts of love and tenderness in favor of cats, cigarettes, and Salon.com? I've never listened that closely.
Joe Mulder — Thu, 12/9/04 9:35am
"But whenever people point out that it's inappropriate how often Green Day's "Time of Your Life" is used as a sweet and sentimental song in movies and TV, since it's actually about a bitter breakup..."
BitterSWEET breakup (maybe a tad more bitter than sweet; that's Green Day's distinction to make, not mine), but, otherwise, yeah, I DO say that.
Brandon — Thu, 12/9/04 5:08pm
Well, the first clue might be that the song's actual title is "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)."
However, like most good songwriters, Green Day (I can't find the specific songwriting credits, so I'm crediting the whole band) was smart enough to infuse the lyrics with a fair amount of ambiguity, so that most listeners can impose a little (or a lot) of their own subjective, emotional viewpoint, and make the song more personal. This is what the best songs - and song lyrics - do.
So in that respect, I think movies and TV shows have some leeway to use "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" for moments of sweetness and sentimentality. Because I would guess for a lot of viewers, that's gonna ring true.
"michwagn" — Tue, 12/14/04 7:07am
Reminds me of R.E.M.'s "The One I Love" and how even at concerts of people who are ostensibly fans, I invariably see people slow dancing, hugging, cuddling, and kissing during the song that goes "This one goes out to the one I left behind...a simple prop to occupy my times" over and over.
But, you call a song "The One I Love" and have the first line be "This one goes out to the one I love" people don't need to take the time to search for irony.
"cesoid" — Fri, 8/5/05 8:21am
Just because a song is about something sad doesn't mean it can't purposely evoke happiness or nostalgia. Some of my favorite music has a sharp contrast between the story they tells and the emotions they makes you feel through the wording or the tune. I think this mirrors life, where you often find that your emotions are not what you expected them to be. A breakup could make you think of all the good times and the fact that a relationship that's now over was still worth every minute you gave it.