What does Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner mean?

Fall Out Boy: Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner Meaning

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Album cover for Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner album cover

Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner Lyrics

Drink down your Gin and Kerosene,
And come spit off bridges with me,
Just to keep us warm.
Light a match to leave me be.
Light a match to leave me.

I'll keep my jealousy close,
'Cause it's all mine.
And if you say this makes you...

  1. 1TOP RATED

    #1 top rated interpretation:
    loonylovegood
    click a star to vote
    Nov 25th 2005 !⃝

    Okay, this could be way off... but here's what I think:

    I believe this song is about a guy (Pete) whose girlfriend cheats on him (Pete's girlfriend, in fact, cheated on him with his two best friends in the same weekend). Because of this, he's filled with many emotions.

    "Drink down that Gin and Kerosene,
    And come spit on bridges with me,
    Just to keep us warm.
    Light a match to leave me be.
    Light a match to leave me be."

    To pour gin and kerosene on a bridge would, of course, make it highly flamable. Lighting a match would make the bridge catch on fire and burn down. Thus, I think this lyric is meant to reference "burning bridges." The metaphor "burning bridges" can be interpreted different ways, but considering one of the lines ("Light a match to leave me be."), it could be meant as burning "social bridges." You know, like cutting ties? Because of this betrayal, he doesn't want to have anything to do with her anymore.

    "I keep my jealousy close,
    'Cause it's all mine."

    Obviously, he would be feeling jealousy if she cheated on him. I'm probably overthinking it, but maybe the "'cause it's all mine" line is there because he feels like he's lost a lot of things (his girlfriend, his girlfriend's affection, his trust in his girlfriend, etc.) and maybe he feels that his jealousy is all he has that belongs soully to him. (This is all in more of an emotional sense, not physical)

    "And if you say this makes you happy,
    Then I'm not the only one lying."

    Once he's found out about the cheating, there would noteably be tension in their relationship. Maybe the girlfriend still might have wanted to be with him after cheating on him (it's happened before) and because he loves her, maybe he doesn't dump her immediately. But there would be tension and their relationship would be strained, which would make both of them unhappy. But if the girl really wanted to be with him, she would lie about being happy.

    "Keep quiet.
    Nothing comes as easy as you."

    The 'keep quiet' could maybe mean he's tired of hearing her excuses. The other line could be a reference to how easy or slutty he feels she is for cheating on him.

    "Can I lay in your bed all day?"

    I'm probably really off with this, but this line could just be about how tired and emotionally as well as physically trained the whole ordeal has made him feel, and how he just wants to be with her like normal again.

    "I'll be your best kept secret
    And your biggest mistake."

    I have a little trouble wit this line... but I'm guessing maybe his girlfriend might neglect telling people about him in the future because of her cheating on him, and how she might look back on the entire relationship (or maybe just her cheating on him) as a mistake.

    "The hand behind this pen relives a failure every day."

    Because of her cheating on him, he feels like a failure in general. He probably replays the fact over and over again in his head and wonders if it's his fault he couldn't make her happy.

    "So wear me like a locket around your throat.
    I'll weigh you down.
    I'll watch you choke.
    You look so good in blue.
    You look so good in blue."

    This verse shows the anger he would feel because of her deception. As much as a person may deny it, in the midst of rage, almost everyone has probably thought or said they wanted to kill the person who upset them.

  2. 2TOP RATED

    #2 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Nov 11th 2005 !⃝

    I can interpret a few parts of this song that I picked out, one part being "so wear me like a locket around your throat/I'll weigh you down I'll watch you choke/you look so good in blue/you look so good in blue" that means that he loves her so much that he wants to be with her through anything, even though it's hurting both of them.

    As for this part: "keep quiet/nothing comes as easy as you/can I lay in your bed all day?/I'll be your best kept secret and your biggest mistake/the hand behind this pen relives a failure every day" that stands as, he wants to be with her sexually and emotionally and personally, (basically I'm overviewing in detail that he loves her), and that he knows it's wrong but he wants her anyway. like he's diving into the deep end and doesn't want to surface though he knows he can. some of Fall Out Boy's songs are hard to interpret but they're Pete's feelings, nonetheless. Thanks for reading this and email me if you want to ask a question or leave a comment on Fall Out Boy, KTRocks05@yahoo.com

  3. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Sep 16th 2011 !⃝

    Ok, maybe I'm a little negative, however...

    Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner is a quote from Dirty Dancing; a classic bad boy meets good girl love story. However, I think this takes it to another level.

    He's asking her to come have some fun with him knowing it's going to end up badly with the lyrics about drinking gin and kerosene, spitting on bridges and then lighting a match to leave him. So he's already decided he's not going to stick with her and is waiting for her to do something to give him an excuse to break up.

    I'll keep my jealousy close...then I'm not the only one lying. Too me keeping your jealousy close would mean your really jealous and don't want to show it. Here I think he's saying he's faking jealousy to make her think he cares.

    Reliving a mistake every day continues the theme that he's a player and best kept secret and biggest mistake seems to support that as she'll be embarrassed about how he used her and not want anyone to know. No one comes as easy as you and lying in her bed all day to me means he knows she's an easy target and he's just using her for sex and definitely doesn't want to be seen in public with her.

    Wearing him like a locket around her throat, weighing her down, choking, and turning blue to me says that he knows she's going to pine over him and this is one of the parts he loves the best.

  4. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Sep 11th 2011 !⃝

    This is a song about Pete's jealousy of his ex-lover at the time and essentially this is him conveying his feelings again like he had done Previously on Take This To Your Grave on the track "Tell Mick He Just Made My list of things to do today" Below, i'll provide my take on the lyrics.

    Drink down your Gin and Kerosene,
    And come spit off bridges with me,
    Just to keep us warm.
    Light a match to leave me be.
    Light a match to leave me.

    To use gin and Kerosene on something like a bridge will light it on fire. Pete isn't talking about his ex lover literally burning bridges, but he is using some clever wording to tell her to burn social bridges, such as contact with him. The "Light a match..." section is just as stated before: Pete is saying to his Ex to leave him alone.


    I'll keep my jealousy close,
    'Cause it's all mine.
    And if you say this makes you happy,
    Then I'm not the only one lying.

    This section is probably one of the less clever of the entire song, but it doesn't take away from the song for being so straight forward. Pete is admitting that he is jealous for how things happened in the situation, and he wants it to just be his. But, the 2nd half is a reference to either the end or very close to the end of the relationship in which they could just be saying things to make each other happy when they knew they were on rocky ground after the cheating incident had been exposed, creating friction.

    [Chorus: x2]
    Keep quiet,
    Nothing comes as easy as you.
    Can I lay in your bed all day?
    I'll be your best kept secret
    And your biggest mistake.
    The hand behind this pen relives a failure every day.

    First half of the Chorus is escentially Pete saying "stop talking i don't want to hear what you have to say" but at the same time he's saying he wants a break mentally and physically, or just wanting things to go away and have everything go back to how they were in the beginning of the relationship: hence "Can i lay in your bed all day?" Pete continues in the 2nd half of the Chorus by saying even if his ex doesn't mention him in any conversation following their relationship, he's gonna be a secret from all of the guys she dates, but He's also going to be her biggest mistake by cheating on him. The "hand behind this pen..." line is Pete feeling like a failure for her cheating on him, like she wasn't satisfied in the relationship

    And I'll keep my jealousy close,
    'Cause it's all mine.
    And if you say this makes you happy,
    Then I'm not the only one lying.

    This verse has already been discussed, so no need in continuing the discussion here as it is just for reiteration in the song.

    Drink down your Gin and Kerosene,
    And come spit off bridges with me,
    Just to keep us warm.
    Light a match to leave me be.
    Light a match to leave me.

    As for this part too, it is good for the song to have repetitious verses, but when explaining the lyrics it is not necessary to re-explain what you have already.

    [Chorus x2]

    So wear me like a locket around your throat.
    I'll weigh you down.
    I'll watch choke.
    You look so good in blue.
    You look so good in blue.
    [x3]

    This part is a bit tricky to explain. Metaphorically speaking, Pete is saying that he is the nicest, most pretty locket people have ever seen and she is getting complements for wearing this locket or whatever(just as an example), but the locket has a secret inside that she cheated on him kind of like in the Scarlet Letter, except she's not literally seen with an A on her clothing. But the secret is going to weigh her down and make her feel uncomfortable because of what she did.(i'll weigh you down, i'll watch you choke) Pete isn't literally going to weigh her down and watch her choke but the pressure of the situation will most likely do that for him.

    [Chorus: x3]
    [comes back in during chorus 2nd time:]
    (So wear me like a locket around your throat.
    I'll weigh you down.
    I'll watch you choke.
    You look so good in blue.

    A small detail that is probably not noticed as much in the CD version of this song but in live performances is when backing vocals are provided by Trohman who sings the "keep quiet...." verse while Patrick sings the "So wear me like a locket..." section. Not sure if it is a stylistic thing, but I think there is a hidden meaning for both sections being sung together. Both parts are sung together to add emphesis for the situation, meaning Pete's feelings in the "keep quiet" section and then his thoughts in the "SO wear me like a locket..." section.

    This is just my take on things, everyone has their own views. Enjoy :)

  5. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jun 29th 2011 !⃝

    it's definitely not about dirty dancing

  6. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Nov 22nd 2010 !⃝

    "Nobody puts baby in the corner" is a famous quote from dirty dancing...and if you watch the movie...they keep their relationship a secret, there is a whole scene with this one bridge, the girl, Baby,(played by Jennifer Grey) wears blue at some point in the movie im pretty sure...so maybe this is from the perspective of the man(Played by Patrick Swayze)

  7. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    May 23rd 2010 !⃝

    Great thinking everyone, but this is what I see:

    The girl cheated on the main character. This left their relationship weak and thin. Their relationship got so cold he said he wants her to burn bridges together-causing fire-causing heat- to have some warmth left between them This of course is not literal.

    I keep my jealousy close, cause its all mine, and if you think this makes you happy than I'm not the only one lying.

    The main character keeps his anger and jealousy of her cheating on him to himself, because he still loves her and wants to be with her, and the girl seems to feel bad so is still in the relationship. And she tries to make up for it by pretending to be happy, but she really isn't and so is he and he knows of her misery.

    Keep quiet, nothing comes as easy as you, can I lay in your bed all day, I'll be your best kept secret and your biggest mistake, the hand behind this pen relives a failure everyday.

    I think this means, don't apologize or say soothing words to him for cheating, its not going to help. Nothing comes as easy as you-as in he still is disappointed in her for being slutty and cheating. She doesn't want everyone knowing she cheated on him, so he will be her best kept secret, so no one will find out, and her biggest mistake as in she made a mistake of cheating on him, and a mistake on staying with him and lying that she didn't cheat on him.

    The first verse is repeated and so is the meaning.

    So wear me like a locket around your throat, I'll wear you down, I'll watch you choke, you look so good in blue, you look so good in blue.

    This means that to make it up to him about cheating, she will be kind and loving, and show you off as her love, while you stand by knowing the truth and her misery and regret, and wear her down until she is done pretending. You look so good in blue as in she is still everything he loves even though she has hurt him so much.

    hope I helped :]-alex

  8. hbazzani
    click a star to vote
    Mar 14th 2010 !⃝

    I think the chorus can be interpreted soooo many different ways.

    But here's mine:

    "keep quiet"
    I think he's saying he's just gonna forget about her cheating. He doesnt neccessarily want to still call her his girlfriend, but he wants to try and forget about her betrayal. So he's saying keep quiet, so her fake apologies will stop

    "nothing comes as easy as you"
    This part means that what she did was slutty, so she's "easy". It Also means
    it wouldn't be a challenge to get her back.

    "can I lay in your bed all day?"
    this is him saying he wishes she didn't mess up. He can't exactly be with her again because he doesnt trust her, so he wants more of a sexual relationship, over an emotional one. he still wants to be close to her, and sex is the only way to do that without getting hurt.

    "I'll be your best kept secret and your biggest mistake"
    she's kept many secrets from him before (about other guys) and now he's one of them. They arent getting back together, because everyone would judge him for going back to her. So instead they just secretly hook up. He doesnt want his friends to find out so he plans on being her "best kept" secret. And maybe continuing to hook up will be her "biggest mistake" because her feelings will grow and to him it will only be sex. And she will realize that cheating on him was her biggest mistake yet.

  9. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jan 25th 2010 !⃝

    i think this song is about a guy who falls for this girl even though she has a bf.

    I keep my jealousy close,
    'Cause it's all mine.
    --this is the how the guy feels about the girls relationship

    And if you say this makes you happy,
    Then I'm not the only one lying.
    --theyre doing what makes them happy even though its wrong. theyre lying about it together

    Nothing comes as easy as you.
    --hes genuinely happy when hes with her without even trying

    Can I lay in your bed all day?
    -- he wants to spend time with her doesnt want to leave her or lose her

    I'll be your best kept secret
    --no one can know their feelings for each other because these two people arent supposed to be together. itd be a scandal if anyone found out

    And your biggest mistake.
    --the girls got something good going already, and throwing it away would be foolish

  10. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jun 19th 2009 !⃝

    "I'll be your best kept secret
    and your biggest mistake"
    I'm not sure... but I think the girl still likes him and realizes that cheating with the other guys was a bad idea. I'm not sure though ^^

  11. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jan 6th 2009 !⃝

    I think... The person singing is having an affair with said girl. and he's jealous that she won't leave whom ever she is with to be with him.

    Drink down that Gin and Kerosene,
    And come spit off bridges with me,
    Just to keep us warm.
    Light a match to leave me be.
    Light a match to leave me.
    (this verse is about him finally realizing she's not coming around so he's drinking he misery, and burning any brides to tie him back to said girl.)

    I'll keep my jealousy close,
    'Cause it's all mine.
    And if you say this makes you happy,
    Then I'm not the only one lying.
    (if you can't figure out what this means! I'm sorry but its simply put! he's jealous he's keeping it to himself.. He's not happy and if she said she was.. She's only lying too)

    Keep quiet,
    Nothing comes as easy as you.
    Can I lay in your bed all day?
    I'll be your best kept secret
    And your biggest mistake.
    The hand behind this pen relives a failure every day.
    (I believe this is him begging her to just stay with him... That for once he has something easy in his life... and though he is a secret if she doesn't stay it will be her biggest mistake)

    So wear me like a locket around your throat.
    I'll weigh you down.
    I'll watch choke.
    You look so good in blue.
    You look so good in blue.
    (and this verse which is probably the best verse of the song. Its simply just a play on words. He's basically a weight on her shoulders, one day she's going to feel the mistake she made and its going to weigh her down, and she will get choked up cause that's when she'll realize its too late. and when you choke you turn blue. Simply just a play on words no hope of anyone dying.)

    but again I could be wrong but that's how I understand it...

    and the whole dirty dancing I can see that too! FOB great songs that make you think! love it!

  12. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jan 1st 2009 !⃝

    I believe that this song is generally about an affair, the narrator/singer is the "other man", and that the girl he's in love with is abandoning him. Thus, he is angry (perhaps rightly so).

    I feel that the lines "So wear me like a locket around your throat. / I'll weigh you down; I'll watch you choke. / You look so good in blue. / You look so good in blue" describe that anger coming to a head and the man murdering the girl he loves in a strangling fit of anger.

  13. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Oct 1st 2008 !⃝

    Haha did that guy seriously try to say that he thinks the song is about how he literally strangles a girl with a locket he gave her:P haha

  14. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Sep 22nd 2008 !⃝

    I think it's about a boy who likes a girl a lot and cannot stop loving her no matter what

    "drink down that gin and kerosene" both of these are very flammable, so if something or someone was washed down in them they would be very flammable because of the chemicals "light a match and leave me be" which is a metaphor for feeling unstable and wanting to be left alone so that they don't fell confused or uncomfortable next to the person that they like

    "keep quiet nothing comes as easy as you can I lay in your bed all day I'll be your best kept secret and your biggest mistake" "keep quiet nothing comes as easy as you" this means that he wants her to stay quiet about their relationship because he might still feel uncomfortbale about the entire thing and doesn't want people to reject him if it doesn't work out. "can I lay in your bed all day" this means that he wants to be with her even when she is not there because he already thinks about her all the time, such is the effect of true love. "i'll be your best kept secret and your biggest mistake" she won't want to tell anyone for fear that it could it jeapordize their relationship, but he knows that it probably won't work out because he is also afraid of being rejected.

    "I'll keep my jealousy close because it's all mine" he is jealous of her because he thinks she is perfect and she could always come back if the relationship comes to an end but he thinks that she is all he has, besides how jealous he is.

    "I'll weigh you down I'll watch you choke, you look so good in blue" He thinks he will drag her down somehow and that she will be seriously affected (i'll watch you choke), and he knows that she could be hurt if he finds out he doesn't love her or that he could be hurt but he can't stop loving her (you look so good in blue; this makes sense because when she will "choke" she will "turn blue" and he will still love her even though he knows it's his fault that she has been hurt)

  15. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jun 20th 2008 !⃝

    "You look so good in blue" refers to her choking.

    I agree with everyone who talked about burning bridges.

  16. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    May 12th 2008 !⃝

    "keep quiet. nothing comes as easy as you(THIS MAY REFER THAT THE GIRL IS KIND OF A WHORE), can I lay in your bed all day?(BUT THIS MAY TELL US THAT THE BOY WANTS HER ANYWAYS AND THAT THEY HAD SEX) I'll be your best kept secret(BECAUSE MAYBE THE GIRL HAD A BOYFRIEND AND SHE WAS CHEATING ON HIM) and your biggest mistake(AGAIN THE CHEATING, OR MAYBE IF WE LOOK DEEPER WE CAN SAY THAT THE GIRL GOT KNOCKED UP,HAHA. AND THE CHILD'S FATHER ISNT HER BOYFRIEND BUT THIS ONE NIGHT STAND BOY), the hand beyond this pen relieves a failure everyday"(THE BOY IS TIRED OF MAKING SO MANY MISTAKES)

  17. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Apr 29th 2008 !⃝

    There's something in the "i'll lock a locket around your throat" bit. Cos I feel the same way about someone and can't tell her but I think pete's saying that if he can't have her then no one else can. Or that he will get her something or do sentimental that she won't be able to leave him and guilt trip her into a relationship that he wants and doesn't know wether she wants to or not because we don't know anything about this girl maybe she wants to be but is with someone. But anyway I love all your interpretations!

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