HAPPY IS A YUPPIE WORD
At the risk of sounding like a fanboy, here's a lyric from Switchfoot's new album NOTHING IS SOUND that's got me thinking. The verbose vagueness of this lyric leaves room for the listener to interpret through his/her own lense on life at the moment. And it inspires me to talk pretty and use big words like "verbose". Check out "Happy Is A Yuppie" word and share what it means to you at the moment by leaving a comment down below.
Everyone dies
Everyone loves a fight
Nothing is sound
Nothing is right side right
Evening comes, when the sun goes down in red
Nothing is cool
When will all the fighting end
When will all the fighting end
Happy is a yuppie word
Nothing in the world could fail me now
It's empty as an argument
I'm running down a life that won't cash out (cash out)
Everything fails
Everything runs it's course
A time and a place, for all of this loving war
Everyone buys, everyone's gotta price, and nothing is new
When will all the failures rise
When will all the failures rise, rise!
Happy is a yuppie word
Nothing in the world could fail me now
It's empty as an argument
I'm running down a life that won't cash out
Happy is a yuppie word
Blessed is the man who's lost it all
Happy is a yuppie word (word)
Looking for an orphanage
I'm looking for a bridge I can't burn down
I don't believe the emptiness
I'm looking for the kingdom coming down
Everything is meaningless
I want more than simple cash can buy
Happy is a yuppie word
Happy is a yuppie word
Happy is a yuppie word
Happy is a yuppie,
Nothing is sound
Nothing is sound
Nothing is sound
Nothing is sound
Nothing is sound
Nothing is sound
Nothing is sound
Happy is a yuppie word
Nothing in the world could fail me now
Happy is a yuppy word (word)
So calm down, yeah!
Everyone dies
Everyone loves a fight
Nothing is sound
Nothing is right side right
Evening comes, when the sun goes down in red
Nothing is cool
When will all the fighting end
When will all the fighting end
Happy is a yuppie word
Nothing in the world could fail me now
It's empty as an argument
I'm running down a life that won't cash out (cash out)
Everything fails
Everything runs it's course
A time and a place, for all of this loving war
Everyone buys, everyone's gotta price, and nothing is new
When will all the failures rise
When will all the failures rise, rise!
Happy is a yuppie word
Nothing in the world could fail me now
It's empty as an argument
I'm running down a life that won't cash out
Happy is a yuppie word
Blessed is the man who's lost it all
Happy is a yuppie word (word)
Looking for an orphanage
I'm looking for a bridge I can't burn down
I don't believe the emptiness
I'm looking for the kingdom coming down
Everything is meaningless
I want more than simple cash can buy
Happy is a yuppie word
Happy is a yuppie word
Happy is a yuppie word
Happy is a yuppie,
Nothing is sound
Nothing is sound
Nothing is sound
Nothing is sound
Nothing is sound
Nothing is sound
Nothing is sound
Happy is a yuppie word
Nothing in the world could fail me now
Happy is a yuppy word (word)
So calm down, yeah!
posted by Shaun Groves @ 9/14/2005
12 comments
12 Comments:
Wow! Sounds powerful!... I guess it has something to do with the ongoing war we are having with the Middle East...I could be wrong.
Any thoughts?
Peanut
I don't think it's about the war in the Middle East. So many of the lyrics suggest a deeper meaning.
It's not so much this specific war, but everything about this world. Nothing really can satisfy us unless it's from God. So we create these words that don't really give what they promise (like happiness).
I'd really suggest visiting the official switchfoot site (under music/video section). There's a long explanation about the meaning of the album which I wouldn't be able to do justice in summarizing.
---
To all those that think Switchfoot is selling out in order to appeal to the masses...maybe you should take a closer look at what they're saying before making a judgment.
That's cheating. I'd rather not be told what it means. I'd rather explore what it means to me. A lyric is not the bible right? Well, unless it is, as in the case of Shane and Shane's stuff. But usually...
There's no absolute here - I think Switchfoot would agree. What it meant to them when they wrote it is absolute but now that it's out there we all get to bring our own perspective to the song. We can reach new conclusions, maybe even better conclusions, about what it means. That's way more interesting too. (to me anyway) Maybe I'm just weird.
I think it speaks to what's behind the words we speak. Do we use specific words because they actually have personal meanings, or is it just convenient? I'll use a personal example. Up until sometime this year, I would use the word "lucky" to describe when something went right for myself or others. And for some reason I got to thinking that "luck has nothing to do with it." And it's true, and I knew it was true, but I continued to use the word "lucky." So I decided to change my verbage to reflect my actual belief. So when I used to be "lucky," now I'm "blessed." I think this song speaks to what people put behind the word "happy."
i'd have to re read that in order to try to find out what it means to me. . i don't even know - maybe i was too distracted when i read it?
I'll have to admit that I went to their website myself to see what it meant. I'm more interested in what was going on in the mind of the creator than what I could impose on it. That way, I'm engaging another person's thoughts, getting to know them a little, without ever meeting them. Just coming up with my own meaning would be impersonal. Music sounds best when it's personal. The Bible is alive when it's personal. I guess that's why I'm much more interested in your music now that I've been reading your blog.
Yeah, it's cheating, but as Keith said, I really enjoy seeing what was going on in the author's head as they wrote the song.
I do form my own explanation of the song, but I'd really rather not try to explain a song in a completely different way than the author intended. I feel that that takes away from the meaning of the song.
Interesting Keith. Never thought about it quite like that.
There's no right way to interpret a song I guess. There's just my way and the stupid way ; )
The lyric spoke to me as more of a look back on life. We strive and strive for all these material possessions because some movie star or advertiser tells us we CAN'T live without it, and then before we know it, it is boring, and sometimes even regretted or disliked. Interesting how that happens.
These lyrics kinda made me think back to Ecclesiastes 3 when Solomon was writing about all the different things in life, and how there will be a time when we encounter them. The Byrds sang the song "Turn, Turn, Turn" back in the 60's with alot of the lines from this passage.
"Happy" seems to me to be taking a look at life and seeing all this crap we've struggled for to be happy, and then realizing Christ and God is the only thing that will make us happy.
Maybe Solomon said it best again in Ecclesiastes 12:8 "Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity."
Great lyric and way with words for this song.
Thanks for the post.
Andrew
I think people my age (college students) have been told our whole lives that we can do anything we set our minds too, that getting what we want out of life should be our goal. If we just work a little harder, study a little more, strive for just a little bit more in this life, we'll be happy. Chase the American dream, you'll be happy. Reach for your dreams, you'll be happy.
But we've come to the point where we've looked around and realized that we're just not. Not happy. Not satisfied. Maybe it's because we're at the point where we have enough responsibility to understand that this life needs to mean something, but we're not busy enough to ignore that fact.
We're starting to get that no matter how much we try and try to be happy, life still happens, and sometimes it sucks.
I don't think "Carpe Diem" is going to cut it any more for me. Living life day to day still has its emptiness. To me, the song is about realizing that there better be a purpose to each and every day, that I need something to look to for hope that is completely outside of me and this world. In a nutshell, it's kinda asking, "What are you going to do today that will affect eternity, rather than just make you happy?"
I think this song is more to remind us that there is happiness, and there is joy. Happiness is temporary, based on your circumstances. Joy is different... even when you aren't "happy," it's there.
From my college experience, I find that really a lot of people that are there only seem to be in it for the degree that will get them a better paying job. A girl in one of my classes said she chose the Sales end of TV because "that's where the money is." We're told all the time that if we get this degree, it will magically get us a great paying job and all the luxuries that go with it... and that will make us happy. Maybe that's what makes happy a "yuppie word."
I think I'm rambling on this. But anyway... yeah. The new Switchfoot is amazing... this song, "The Blues," and "Lonely Nation" made it well worth the price. I love it.
Oh, and I don't think it's weird to have the opinion that songs have multiple meanings and we should interpret it ourselves... I love taking that approach to it. That's getting into good ol' literary theory there.... ;)
*first comment on Blogger, woohoo!*
~ Jen the Lurking Newbie
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