My Chemical Romance: I Never Told You What I Do For A Living Meaning
I Never Told You What I Do For A Living Lyrics
You can say a prayer if you need to
Or just get in line and I'll grieve you
Can I meet you alone?
Another night and I'll see you
Another night and I'll be you
Some other way to...
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The album tells the story of a man and woman dying and while she goes to heaven he goes to hell, he makes a deal with the devil and has to kill 1000 men to be with her. Since this is the last song on the cd, I think this is the part where he is telling her how he had to kill people to be with her. I could be wrong though
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This is the song that says what the guy has to do to get his life back. He has to kill so he can be with his girl again and he hates it.
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Okay, first of all the entire album is one story and this song is the final chapter.
To make the story clear: two lovers. both die. He's in hell, she's not.
He wants to be with his lover again, so he makes a deal with the devil; Satan will resurrect both of them IF he brings the devil 1,000 evil souls. A few songs are about some of the evil souls he brings to Satan. (ie: You know what they do to guys like us in prison, I'm not okay)
So satan brings them back to life and they live happily with each other, but she has no idea what he does (hence the name of this song)
THIS SONG is the end of the story.
It talks about how he has killed so many people, yet falls short. He tried so hard because he wants to be with her so much.
"a stain that never comes off the sheets" refers to the fact that he has killed so many people. Something that can never be undone.
"I keep a book of the names" refers to him keeping track so he can show Satan how many he has killed.
"I did it all so maybe I'll live this every day" means he did this so that they could be together. He is explaining his deal with Satan to her.
"It ain't the money and it sure as hell ain't just for the fame. It's for the bodies I claim and lose." Again, he is explaining it to her.
"they gave us two shots to the back of the head." This could mean a few things.
A: He got caught and they were both killed.
B: Satan tricked him and killed them both. (the trick was that Satan wanted more souls and made the protagonist do all the work)
"I'm laughin' out, cryin' out, laughin' out loud." He knows that he should have known better than to trust Satan, so he laughs at his own stupidity and desperation. (sometimes people laugh when they get tricked. They know they should have seen it coming, so they laugh at themselves)
"And we'll love again, we'll laugh again, we'll cry again and we'll dance again" probably means that they will one day see each other again after he pays his debt in hell. where or when that will happen I have no clue.
"It's better off this way"
This is one of the most mis-interpreted lines in the entire song.
What it means is that it's better that he is in hell and she isn't because he feels that he can no longer be with her. He thinks she is to good for a murderer. Also he feels that he deserves hell and doesn't want to drag her down with him.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So long story short, he tells her what he does to stay alive with her and the devil kills them, yet he still has hope for the future.
Oh and the lyrics in the song are not really in order.
See, the song is out of order so it sounds good. many songs are like that. -
This is a lead on of the song demolition lovers. It's about the lovers who were killed in the desert. She was sent to heaven and he was sent to hell so he makes a deal with the devil, he must kill and capture the souls of 1000 evil men in order to reunite with his lover. He speaks of what he had to do in order to be with her this is shown in the line "I'm so dirty babe... The kind of dirty where the water never cleans off the blood I keep a book with the names of them.." This insinuates that he is an assassin sent out to do the devils dirty work.
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I think... well here's what I think
it's about a serial killer. He can't stop killing people hence I tried. (another knife in my hands) he doesn't realize he's doing what he's doing . maybe a split personality. anywaysie... and he feels guilty. These murders will be in his conscience forever. (a stain that never comes off the sheets) he's trying to get help ( clean me off I'm so dirty) so that's what I think. I KNOW there's more to it, tho. It most likely ties in wit the revenge theme. but I don't understand why people on this site are calling other people down if they think an interpretation is stupid (unless you think drowning lessons is about Alzheimer's I dunno who put that, but they're fucked) anyways, a song meaning is different to everyone, dependent on what that person has been through and experienced, who that person is etc. There is NO WAY that we would be able to interpret a song that lets say gee wrote because we haven't been r seen what he has. like we all know skylines is about 9/11 but since most of us have never seen it, the song might help us out and we might think of that song as a relief for some other big disaster in out lives. especially wit mcr. Thay put so much emotion and feeling in there songs and its impossible to pinpoint the interpretation. Most songs of theirs are about several things (life experiences, the concept in which the album is on etc)
Well thanks for your time. I'm done my rant for today. lol
lady_of_sorrows_04@hotmail.com -
Okay, who ever wrote the lengthy article is 99.99% correct. The story does continue on from "I Brought You My Love, You Brought Me Your Bullets". And the man and woman are the pair who were gunned down in the desert in the song "Demolition Lovers". The two of them both died- the woman went to heaven while the man went to hell. The man made a deal with the devil to retrieve the souls of 1000 evil men. In "Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge," his lover is mourned over during the song, Helena (although originally the title did come from Gerard's late grandmother, Elena Lee Rush). After the funeral, the man begins the task of mass murder and along the way gets a group of students' souls who went on a shooting spree at their school for being bullied all the time (I'm Not Okay...). He retrieves the soul of a man in prison and talks vaguely about abuse and prison rape (You Know What They Do To Guys Like Us In Prison). He also gets feelings of regret, and thinks about giving up (Ghost Of You), but continues anyway.
Some people say that the transition from tracks 1-7 into tracks 8-13 switches the mood of the CD from light to dark. Towards the end the song lyrics' meanings deepen.
In the end the man supposedly succeeds and is reunited with his love. He then explains how they came to be together again. But the man of course is wanted for 1000 murders and the two of them are discovered by the police who shoot them while dancing - in the backs of their heads, naturally. It is better off this way; they can be together without the guilt, the worries, and being wanted criminals the rest of their lives.
[An alternate theory says the man kills 999 people, and a woman is his last victim before he can see his lover again. But he gets to know her before killing her and tells her all about why he is doing what he is doing while they dance. Since he could never live with himself anyway - let alone face his lover, its all better off this way.]
He tried.
^^The guy who wrote this is spot on, apart from the "other interpretation", which is the one he put in brackets at the end... The woman he is dancing with would be his 1000th victim, and so before he kills her, he wants to get to know her a bit more, and while they are dancing in the street, he tells her the whole story, about why he is doing this, and then before he gets to kill her, the police arrive (as he is wanted for 999 murders remember), and "they gave us two shots to the back of the head"... as someone said earlier, notice how its NOT "to the back of OUR heads"... This shows that two shots were fired, into the back of her head.... This meant that he had inadvertantly taken the 1000 souls that he needed, and so the devil then took his life away so he could reunite with his lover, in heaven... Therefore they're "all dead now", and "its better off this way, so much better off this way", because although he died, his task is now complete, so he is now free to meet up with his lover...
Zahir -
Wait wait wait
Ok now I realise you were ALSO using this as a forum and correcting the interpretation above you
Lol my bad, I'm sorry
I thought you meant that was the album this song came from
Sorry :) -
I know I shouldn't be treating this like a forum lol
But to the person who rote the interpretation above this
Well the album is three cheers for sweet revenge darling -
The album is I brought you my bullets, you brought me your love. and I think the guy who is singing takes the identities of his murder victims, but feels guilty about it in the end when he kills someone he cares about and tries to stop killing. but he does it again the very next night and so he figures he'll just see his girl again when he dies.
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This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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i think this song is meant to be about a man that kills a thousand men and lives their life for a while.
well never again and never again.
they gave us two shots to the back of the head.
and we're all dead now.
so in the end the guy that killed all the people gets shot, therefore the people he killed are really dead now coz he was them.
that made no sense. but try and understand.
cool ah? -
I really don't think the 1000 soul thing is right I think it is about how a killer gets his victim because the name "I never told you wat I do for a living" killing is wat it is obviously also "Stay out of the light Or the photograph that I gave you You can say a prayer if you need to Or just get
in line and I'll grieve you that means he meets this girl and they really haven't meet in person so he doesn't want her to ruin the photos."Can I meet you, alone Another night and
I'll see you Another night and I'll be you Some other way to continue To hide my face" this means he wants to finally meet and kill her its another way to hide his face from her
"Another knife in my hands A stain that never comes off the sheets Clean me off I'm so dirty babe The kind of dirty where the water never cleans off the clothes I keep a book
of the names and those" this means that he didn't kill her and now she knows and he wants her help to stop killing
"Only go so far 'til you bury them" this is a big clue in my thery it supports that he gets girls and then kills them
"Touched by angels, though I fall out of grace" I'm not sure of this but it means he wants to be good but he can't so he won't "And down we go And we all fall down I tried" this also helps and all his victims go down but wen he really loves them so does he meantly "And we'll all dance alone to the
tune of your death We'll love again, we'll laugh again
And it's better off this way" I am pretty sure tis means he will get over her death eventually and it better for him to kill because he is addicted and he will love and laugh again with other people "And never again, and never again They gave us two shots to the back of the head And we're all dead now"
this means and he will never kill again and that she's dead and he is to in his head
that's what I think btw this song needs more credit, it's great -
If you look at the Life on the Murder Scene Verison, you get a different, yet insightful separate glance to the concept:
"Far from this return
I fall out of grace
I live my whole life motherfucker babe
By this everyday
You can't take this life
Take it back from me
I live my whole life baby
I live this everyday
You see your life in my hands
Your love is covered in blood
and piss, clean me off
I'm so dirty babe
You know the money and it ain't for the taunt where do you go
You feel the hurt in my head
Let's go
And go so far
And we'll bury them
In a hole so deep
Life from this return
I fall out of grace
I live my whole life motherfucker babe
By this everyday
I see your life in my hands
And now it's covered in blood
and piss, clean me off
I'm so dirty babe
It ain't for money, baby
Baby, I just do it for fame
It's for the glory, baby
When this ends
And go so far
And we'll bury them
So hard and deep we'll go through
I tried, well
I tried, well
And we'll all dance along to the tune of your death
And we'll laugh again, we'll cry again
And it's better off this way
And never again, and never again
They gave us two shots to the back of the head
And we're all dead now
Well never again, and never again
They gave us two shots to the back of the head
And we're all dead now
I tried
One more night, well...
I tried
I tried
Well, I tried
I tried!
I tried!
I tried!
Well...
And we'll love again,
we'll laugh again
We'll cry again
and we'll dance again
And it's better off this way
It's so much better off this way
And I'm trying to see that you wanted to die
And never again
And never again
They gave us two shots to the back of the head
And we're all dead now"
Though fairly similiar to the original version, you see some differences, "I see your life in my hands" perhaps as, her return/death is all his fault, and he feels the guilt of her death. And the main difference,or add-in is:
"And I'm trying to see that you wanted to die" perhaps, I think that he survived, and she did not. She died once again, which ends very much like (in my interpretation) Demolation Lovers and ties in to Helena, "Long ago, just like the hearse you die to get in AGAIN" meaning she died twice, this being the second time. Yes, I know Helena was written for Mikey and Gerard's grandmother Elena Rush Way, though it also is the start of the 3 Cheers Concept. If you listen to the beginning five seconds of music of this song, you hear (especially audible through headphones) the left ear of demonic music (they are being pursued by the Devil,) and the right ears you hear sirens (police). It is unknown whether the police or the Devil kills them (or just her) When it says, "They gave us two shots to the back of the head, and we're all dead now," you immediatly notice something isn't right with that statement. "..gave us two shots to the back of the head" you don't know if it was two shots each, or two shots total, and it just says "head." If two of them were shot, it should be "...two shots to the back of our heads." I think he means that when she was shot and died, he died with her, though he physically lived on. He also viewed (before she got shot obviously) this as an oppurtunity to "clean off all the blood." All the murders he comitted would be made right and justified for her return. Sad song, but I love it.
Sorry this was so lengthy, but I hoped it helped.
Sorry this was sorta lengthy. -
Alright kids, it's NOT JUST THIS SONG that's about all of the killing and stuff. It's the entire album. Listen to all of the songs and it all fits togeather
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Ok listen the whole thousand evil men thing is right for sure I have seen the interveiw form gerard that said so and yes it is about him killing and taking ppls identities and then near his last kill they are both killed and sent to either heaven or hell---together-"we'll love agian and we'll laugh again-we'll cry again and we'll dance again- and so on and so forth
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