Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Blast from the past gets me thinking!

I was driving the kids home from karate today, and the song Stand by R.E.M. came on. I loved this band - still love the music that I loved "back then," of course. So I wanted to find the video of my favorite song, and their most well-known song - End of the World As We Know It.

I know all the words to this song. I remember the clip from Tommy Boy where Chris Farley and David Spade are driving and singing, and this song comes on, and they screw it up royally! Not me, I always thought - I know the words!


The song I'm talking about runs from about 27 sec to 50 sec

Apparently, I had some of them wrong. :O The horror! For those who don't know this about me - I pride myself on knowing the RIGHT lyrics to a song. HAVE to know them, or I feel weird when I listen. I will listen to a song over and over and over until I get them down, too. With the proper inflection and emphasis and everything. Go ahead - we'll pause while you laugh at me.

Yes, I know that's sad. I know that's weird. But I love music. It can make me feel better, help me get out anger, you name it, it helps with my emotions. So the lyrics are important to both my music loving side, and the writer buried inside of me.

I digress. Anyway, I've made fun of my husband for not knowing the lyrics to songs - I will correct him singing in the shower without even having to think about it. Yes, it drives him nuts. But you know, he actually appreciates that knack in me. He was so embarrassed, for example, to learn that in the song "If You're Gonna Play in Texas," by Alabama (yes country - :P), where he sang " When a cowboy in the back stood up and yelled, 'Hi-hi Joe'!" the lyric is ACTUALLY "When a cowboy in the back stood up and yelled, 'Cotton-Eyed Joe'!" I honestly laughed so hard at him for two reasons - one, HOW did he get that? No one says "Hi hi," especially not a COWBOY. But Cotton Eyed doesn't sound a thing like Hi hi. Anyway - you get the picture.

So when searching for this video:


I also found the "official" lyrics - and I was appalled to find out I was singing some of them wrong. Yeah, that's a silly thing to be appalled about, but man, how embarrassing to tease my hubby about lyrics - when something I prided myself in (this is a tough song to learn the lyrics to, if you know what I mean) was WRONG!!! Ugh. Sad.

So here are the lyrics for those of you who've always wanted to know just what the heck Michael Stipe was saying in this song!


That's great, it starts with an earthquake, birds and snakes, an aeroplane -
Lenny Bruce is not afraid. Eye of a hurricane, listen to yourself churn -
world serves its own needs, regardless of your own needs. Feed it up a knock,
speed, grunt no, strength no. Ladder structure clatter with fear of height,
down height. Wire in a fire, represent the seven games in a government for
hire and a combat site. Left her, wasn't coming in a hurry with the furies
breathing down your neck. Team by team reporters baffled, trump, tethered
crop. Look at that low plane! Fine then. Uh oh, overflow, population,
common group, but it'll do. Save yourself, serve yourself. World serves its
own needs, listen to your heart bleed. Tell me with the rapture and the
reverent in the right - right. You vitriolic, patriotic, slam, fight, bright
light, feeling pretty psyched.

It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine.

Six o'clock - TV hour. Don't get caught in foreign tower. Slash and burn,
return, listen to yourself churn. Lock him in uniform and book burning,
blood letting. Every motive escalate. Automotive incinerate. Light a candle,
light a motive. Step down, step down. Watch a heel crush, crush. Uh oh,
this means no fear - cavalier. Renegade and steer clear! A tournament,
a tournament, a tournament of lies. Offer me solutions, offer me alternatives
and I decline.

It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine.

The other night I tripped a nice continental drift divide. Mount St. Edelite.
Leonard Bernstein. Leonid Breshnev, Lenny Bruce and Lester Bangs.
Birthday party, cheesecake, jelly bean, boom! You symbiotic, patriotic,
slam, but neck, right? Right.

It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine...fine...

(It's time I had some time alone)


Sing it with me, people!!! You know you love the song!!!

2 comments:

K.A.T said...

lmao I love that song but I never bothered to try to learn it cuz I knew I couldn't

KathyLikesPink said...

My gosh I had no idea the lyrics were so complicated!I usually just sing the chorus.

But for you, kid, I sat here and sang along with the laptop!!!

Great song.

 
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