VIDEO: Some Nights…are Fun
Speak to most people, they’ll tell you nights are tough on daydreamers. So you stayed inspired all day and managed to find strength to be consistently productive as you chased whatever you’ve deemed worthy of your life’s time. But at night you reluctantly slow down, physiology demands that your body rests dormant in recuperation regardless of how much you’d much rather keep going. You want to keep going, else be forced to deal with the attack of self-doubt and reality. That’s the true emotion of this song by Fun.
However, the mark of a good record is that it can be interpreted in many different ways. Put another way, each time you hear the record its possible to relate to it differently than you did on previous listens, or its possible for different people to listen to the record and each would have a distinct interpretation. This is easily shown with hiphop records, but I’ll cover that on a different night. The point is, you may disagree with my interpretation, and that’s okay.
Now back to Fun’s record. Fun is known as a New York band, but its actually led by a kid from Arizona, Nate Ruess. They say it takes an average of three years for a good artist to gain popularity and start to develop commercially. For Nate, try 10 years. You don’t go through a decade (or even only a couple of years) of gigging at the weirdest of venues, changing on trains, writing and recording songs, being…bare, sacrificing and then sacrificing some more, without some tough nights.
Let’s get into the lyrics.
The first four lines start easy, the nights we stay awake dwelling on the losses… versus the nights we don’t. The times we tell anyone who’d listen how much self-belief we have and get hype just thinking about what we could achieve… versus the nights we just wish we had no dreams.
We’re adamant about staying true to ourselves and maintaining our authentic identity, but the temptations come more frequently than encouragement. And in all the mental chaos, you even forget why you chose that identity that you hold so dearly.
Relationships. Ruess refers to a “martyr,” the person who dedicates themselves to a cause. You’d be blessed to have one of those backing you, always ready to put out the fire when you have mental implosions. You are their cause, or at least one of their major causes. This in itself is a topic, and one also for a different night. In fact I read a quote today [by @Auunty on twitter] that really expresses how few and far between real supporters or martyrs are: “only few people care, the rest are just curious.” Ruess, like most artists, also speaks on relationships with friends and family. It gets really personal when artists voice family anecdotes in lyrics. Imagine writing a letter to the world and candidly including the sentence – “My heart’s breaking for my sister, in the con that she calls ‘love’”. Lyrics from Some Nights by Fun:
Some nights, I stay up cashing in my bad luck
Some nights, I call it a draw
Some nights, I wish that my lips could build a castle
Some nights, I wish they’d just fall off
But I still wake up, I still see your ghost
Oh Lord, I’m still not sure what I stand for oh
What do I stand for? What do I stand for?
Most nights, I don’t know anymore…
Oh whoa, oh whoa, oh whoa oh oh
Oh whoa, oh whoa, oh whoa oh oh
This is it, boys, this is war – what are we waiting for?
Why don’t we break the rules already?
I was never one to believe the hype – save that for the black and white
I try twice as hard and I’m half as liked, but here they come again to jack my style
And that’s alright; I found a martyr in my bed tonight
She stops my bones from wondering just who I am, who I am, who I am
Oh, who am I? mmm… mmm…
Well, some nights, I wish that this all would end
Cause I could use some friends for a change
And some nights, I’m scared you’ll forget me again
Some nights, I always win, I always win…
But I still wake up, I still see your ghost
Oh Lord, I’m still not sure what I stand for, oh
What do I stand for? What do I stand for?
Most nights, I don’t know… (come on)
So this is it? I sold my soul for this?
Washed my hands of God for this?
I miss my mom and dad for this?
(Come on)
No. When I see stars, when I see, when I see stars, that’s all they are
When I hear songs, they sound like this one, so come on
Oh, come on. Oh, come on, OH COME ON!
Well, that is it guys, that is all – five minutes in and I’m bored again
Ten years of this, I’m not sure if anybody understands
This one is not for the folks at home; Sorry to leave, mom, I had to go
Who the f*** wants to die alone all dried up in the desert sun?
My heart is breaking for my sister and the con that she call “love”
When I look into my nephew’s eyes…
Man, you wouldn’t believe the most amazing things that can come from…
Some terrible lies…ahhh…
Oh whoa, oh whoa, oh whoa, oh oh
Oh whoa, oh whoa, oh whoa, oh oh
The other night, you wouldn’t believe the dream I just had about you and me
I called you up, but we’d both agree
It’s for the best you didn’t listen
It’s for the best we get our distance… oh…
It’s for the best you didn’t listen
It’s for the best we get our distance… oh…
On a whim, I added the instrumental for this record to a show I did near Aldgate East in central London, at a place called Vibe bar. Also talking about my nights as an artist, and my turbulent confidence levels.
One Comment on “VIDEO: Some Nights…are Fun”
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Love this!
Great lyrics.
Wish more people saw your work, they will soon………..