username July 10th, 2005 10:17AM  
Gavin Rossdale wrote this one about his ex-girlfriend Jasmine Lewis. It can also be perceved as a day in the life of a manic depresant.

MrPizzazz702 November 16th, 2005 06:55PM  
To me it sounds like the writer was in an abusive relationship, from both sides. He regrets his abusiveness and wishes he could withdrawal it from time, because he really loved her and misses the times they've shared.

MrE December 24th, 2005 11:54AM  
Glycerine or Glycerin has thousands of uses but interestingly enough it is considered one of the best ways to preserve flowers. Flowers preserved with glycerine are very supple and last a long time.
Don't let the days go by.....Glycerine

anonymous April 24th, 2006 11:25PM  
The abuse refered to in the song is emotional abuse dealt by the writer and physical abuse by the girl. There is regret for the past mistreatment and also a standoffish tone in some parts of the song. Glycerin is derived through fermentation of alcohols, and so it fits this song. While the relationships gets older there are some sweet memories consumed by many more bitter ones. This song is very depressing, I love it! - H.C.Smith

anonymous November 20th, 2006 07:03PM  
Bush is famous for its surreal lyrics. This term simply means that the lyrics do not necessarily make any sense, they just capture a certain feeling. Musical equivalent of abstract art. Take "bad moon wine again" Don't even bother turning this phrase upside-down looking for a meaning, your endeavor will prove fruitless. The phrase sounds good, and it motivated by feeling, not reason.

There is a correlation, most likely, between some of the rough phrases in the song, and what the song's intended subject was in Gaven's mind, if there was one. This is due to the style in which surreal lyrics are written, through free associative writing; in other words, random phrases that simply "appear" in ones thoughts. The first thoughts that come to your head, writted down, then = free associative writing.

anonymous July 4th, 2007 02:35AM  
First off, I love the song! The first time I heard it I bought Sixteen Stones and listened to Glycerine over and over. . .
Anyway. . . Although used in many things, explosives and soap are chief among the uses of Glycerin (Anyone seen FIGHT CLUB?). When I thought about this I thought that it could show the duality of love. Sometimes it destroy and sometimes it cleans. It can kill us and save us at the same time (Soap saves lives?). Some of the lyrics seem to hold hope for love or the relationship in question, others seem to show the pain and suffering of the particular relationship.

anonymous September 18th, 2008 02:40AM  
The word Glycerin means a liquid that has no color or odor, but a slightly sweet taste. So the contradicting terms like "I'm never alone, I'm alone all the time" "Everything's gone white, now everything's grey" Now your here now your away" may mean he doesn't know much about her, she's clear, has no scent to trace which traditionally is a way to find out about organic substances. All he knows about her is she tastes sweet like "couldnt love you more youve got a beautiful taste."

I too think that is is a bi-polar, abusive relationship. He plays the head games and she lashes out in frustration as in "I treated you bad, you bruise my face." just my interpretation though.

anonymous October 25th, 2008 06:20PM  
Ever been in a relationship that went from love love to hate love, and it's hard to let you, even though you want to. That's this song.

anonymous November 17th, 2008 04:24PM  
The song is takes it's meaning from it's name. Glycerine, or glycerin is short for nitroglycerin, which is a highly unstable and explosive substance that can ignite without influence. It's about how a relationship can be fine and then when something gets added in ("Our old friend fear and you and me"), it becomes unstable and one day it falls apart in your hands.

anonymous December 8th, 2008 10:48AM  
Personally, i love bush, gavin's lyrics and attitude toward's his work inspire me to this day. Like other's have said, his lyrics are meant to be interpreted by your own opinions, from your own personal experiences. Yes glycerin is an highly explosive, when he sings "don't let the days go by.... glycerine." he could be asking it to go off and end all of his hurt, don't let the days go by... but also like the other opinion glycerin is also used to preserve flowers, he could be asking to let it go on, because he still feels love.. But I love the way Gavin puts his lyrics into perspective and describes things so beautifully but still leaves them mysterious to the listener, so even if like some critics say his lyrics make no sense, to me, his lyrics are perfect.

anonymous February 3rd, 2009 05:28AM  
Glycerine is used as a comparison to Heroin...I'm sure you can figure out the rest :P

jwilson924 February 22nd, 2009 01:04PM  
I am bipolar, or I have maniac depression. This song does share alot of similarities with my day. You go from happy to sad, from comfort to emptiness. This song really captures that. I can see the aspect of a relationship problem to. Like things are just going back an forth from good to bad. I think it means what ever you want it to. Its got alot of room for anyone to put it to a situation in their life.

anonymous May 4th, 2009 09:30PM  
Many people like the reference to nitro-glycerine as a an explosive, but what most fail to recognize is that nitro-glycerin is also a medication for people with heart attacks. They take it to keep their heart pumping when they get attacks. Now that sounds more like a love song chorus.

anonymous August 15th, 2009 03:21AM  
"Bad moon wine again" = I have bad night so I drink. again. I'm not sure how you can either miss that or overlook it. This song has some delicate moments, but by no means is it something to "listen to for every day of the past year" looking for deeper meaning.

come on people, don't make it so complicated. Try analyzing real poetry if this can boggles you.


"in some its bad moon wine again and in some lyrics its bad moon wine again" - utkrisht represents your posts entirety well.

anonymous September 26th, 2009 02:36AM  
heroin is available as an elixir within a glycerine solution. the following lyrics make this interpretation even more likely: "If I treated you bad you bruise my face couldn't love you more you got a beautiful taste" and: "when we rise it's like strawberry fields" so this song is actually describing the complicated relationship with drugs that some people have to suffer through.

markov October 26th, 2009 09:49PM  
This is pretty coy lyric poetry, but I'd say at least one part of the song is about him making soap out of someone and washing w/ it.. Soap is made from fat, glycerine and lye.. most fat is in or near the skin.. So,

must be your skin that I'm sinkin' in.. Think tub full of bubbles

are you at one, or do you lie (lye)

glycerine

could've been easier on you

anonymous November 7th, 2009 09:54AM  
Love. The love is so strong. He knows, they know, it's not working. All the pain and all the suffering. And yet they go back, love.

anonymous March 1st, 2010 12:42AM  
Well first off you can sit there and try to figure out the meaning of the song. That you will partly figure out but not as a whole.He writes his songs for the listener. He writes them so you can relate and put your own meaning behind the song.Thats one of the reasons why I love bush,

He did write this song about his relationship with his ex girlfriend. I can only give my opinion and interpretation of the song, I don't believe that it's a bipolar or back and forth with himself, I believe he writes the song on how he's feeling,and as if the TWO of them were talking in a converstation or singing the statements that were made between the two of them on the day they finaly ended the bitter-sweet relationship.I believe in the song he starts at the end of the relationship and remembers back in time.


At the begining of the song he says
"It must be your skin I'm sinking in,I believe he's stating he's finally walking in her shoes,and now knows how she had been feeling.The feeling of being in love.Like how she felt towards him.If you notice in that he also says YOU..thats part of the reason why it proves he was talking to her.

And I didn't mind, it's not my kind

Hes trying to say he didn't mind the feeling and he states its not my kind.Hes trying to say its not like him to fall in love.


When he states
Must be for real 'cause now I can feel"
I believe he's talking about being in love.He knows its true because he gets the feeling of being in love!

When he says
YOU DIDNT WANT THIS,REMEMBER THAT.
I believe he's stating the conversation she's saying HE was the one that didn't want the relationship,remember.She had finaly had enough.

I believe two of the lines in the song in diffrent verses tie together.They were talking to each other on the phone.When your arguing with someone you don't have collected thoughts and is all over the board.When he says

I'll never forget where you're at

and

Are you at one or do you lie


I believe in the first one he's saying he's not going to forget what she was doing and where she was at when she ended the relationship.I believe she was at a bar with another man.

When he says are you at one or do you lie.
He asking her are you going to tell the truth of where your at or are you going to lie to me.These lyrics also make me believe the song started from the end of the relationship because he's remembering where she was at when it eneded.The second lyrics in the other verse is him looking back on the times he would ask if she was at the bar and maybe cheating again,and maybe she was lieing now.

I believe he is blaming himself in the song for the reason why the relationship ended and was bad.The reason he feels this is because he was the one that was scared to fall in love even though he wanted to and was.Thats why he says it should have been easier by three he starts with
Our old friend FEAR.He was scared to fall in love and with out the fear it would have been easier on him and her

"I couldn't change though I wanted to
Should have been easier by three
Our old friend 'Fear' and you and me"

i also believe the reason he's blamming himself for the relationship ending and being so bad was because he states

It might just be me clear, simple and plain

and when he says

well, that's just fine, that's just one of my names

He saying to her that fine,she was the one in the relationship why can't we just be simple,plain and why can't you be clear with me!
thats why he says that's just one of my names he's recalling arguments!

Bad mood wine again
Bad mood wine again
As she falls around me

He's talking about if he was talking about getting drunk if something was ever wrong and him hitting her as you notice after he says
as she falls around me!