[Verse 1:]
Honest where I start from
I try and impart my wisdom
A combination of truth and fear
That’s the way it’s always been
My father and his before him
At times we hurt the …
[Verse 1]
Oh, pity me
I’m so alone and so blue
My friends have all gone away
Their friendliness too
[Pre-Chorus]
It was I on my own
With no need to belong
And I wanted to die
That’s when …
[Verse 1]
Got some money, got some cash
I’m rich and now I’m sad
And I wonder if I’m sad about the money that I have
Got some boats on my plane
At the hotel …
[Intro]
Yeah
Polishin’ a goddamn sword, you know what I’m sayin’?
Polishin’ a sword (Uh, uh, uh, uh)
Concrete Family, Concrete Industries, Concrete Boys up, always, never down
(And this beat from Cash, not from …
When the only sound in the empty street
Is the heavy tread of the heavy feet
That belong to a lonesome cop
I open shop
When the moon so long has been gazing down
On …
I was scared of dentists and the dark
I was scared of pretty girls and starting conversations
Oh, all my friends are turning green
You’re the magician’s assistant in their dreams1
Oh, and they come unstuck2
Lady, running down to the riptide3
Taken away to the dark side4
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat because
You’re gonna sing the words wrong5
There’s this movie that I think you’ll like
This guy decides to quit his job and heads to New York City
This cowboy’s running from himself6
And she’s been living on the highest shelf7
Oh, and they come unstuck
Lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat because
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
I just wanna, I just wanna know
If you’re gonna, if you’re gonna stay8
I just gotta, I just gotta know
I can’t have it, I can’t have it any other way
I swear she’s destined for the screen
Closest thing to Michelle Pfeiffer that you’ve ever seen,9 oh
Lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat because
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
Oh lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat because
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
Oh lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you’re singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat because
You’re gonna sing the words wrong
I got a lump in my throat because you’re gonna sing the words wrong
The first verse talk about growing up. First, a person is afraid of silly things like dentist and the dark. Next, they’re afraid of somewhat reasonable things like dropping a pick-up line.
Vance Joy refers to himself and his loved one, presumably a girl, given the mention of females in the opening verse.
Someone who runs down to the riptide is someone who is easily taken up by meaningless things. After all, there is no need to hurry to a place that will exist indefinitely.
The dark side is a negative place. The singer’s loved one, for whatever reason, is no longer on the right path.
The “I got a lump in my throat because you’re gonna sing the words wrong” lyric summarizes this song best. It is a descriptive way to communicate how one feels when he watches a loved one making a mistake. We begin to feel pain, despair, sadness in the same way that the loved one feels it. (There is actually scientific evidence behind this. Mirror neurons enable us to experience the emotions of others in our lives.)
A person running from himself is someone who is not focused.
Living on the highest shelf is something for materialistic people, those who care about accruing nice things.
The conflict in this song reaches its tipping point here. The artist wants to know whether his loved one will remain herself or continue her unfocused habits and drift away.
Vance Joy sees potential in his loved one, though this allusion to celebrity success may be more metaphorical than literal.
1 user explanation and meaning
griffin
He pretty much said that the words were random in an interview but I guess the interpretation is up to you