She Don't Want Nobody Near
Counting Crows Lyrics

She don't want nobody near
The subject of the song doesn't want anyone around her.

But you can't get away from that
Despite her dislike for people, she can't escape them completely.

They appear and disappear
People come and go in the subject's life.

And they all get a string attached
Those who come into the subject's life inevitably develop some sort of attachment to her.

Pretty soon they got you hanging on a line
People become dependent on the subject and her attention.

Pretty soon they're singing one by one the same old rhyme
Those who are attached to the subject begin to mimic each other in their efforts to please her.

They say, "I'm alright, I just can't get home tonight."
People make excuses for why they can't leave the subject's company.

She don't want nobody home
The subject doesn't want anyone in her personal space.

'Cause it's a little too crowded then
She feels uncomfortable in overcrowded spaces.

But she don't wanna be alone
Despite her dislike for crowds, she doesn't want to be left completely alone.

So they just keep pouring in
People continue to come into the subject's space.

Pretty soon they got her headed for the door
The subject becomes anxious due to the number of people around her and wants to leave.

She comes home to find that they're not hanging 'round no more
After her guests leave, the subject feels a sense of relief and peace comes over her.

She says "I'm alright, you just can't get home tonight."
The subject reassures herself that she is okay and doesn't need to follow her guests out the door.

Don't you wonder what she looks like in the light?
The subject's appearance is being questioned.

Pretty whitewashed lies
The lies told by those around the subject are painted white to hide their true nature.

Endless alibis
The guests around the subject have many excuses for their presence.

And the reasons that need cleaning every night
The excuses and lies that have been told require cleaning up or hiding for the subject.

Half a world away
The subject is emotionally distant from those around her.

You can't wash away the stain of the deceiving
The lies and deception of those around the subject cannot be undone or erased.

And the things that you cannot believe, and well
There are things that are hard to believe due to the lies told by those around the subject.

She don't want no one around
The subject does not want anyone near her.

'Cause she don't want anybody to see
She is hiding something and doesn't want anyone to notice.

What she looks like when she's down
When the subject is feeling low, she doesn't want anyone to witness it.

'Cause that's a really sad place to be
The subject feels that her emotions, when she is low, are negative and something to hide from others.

Pretty soon she gets them crawling up the walls
The subject's guests start to annoy her and she wants them to leave.

Then she wonders why they beg her please to never call
Those who were previously attached to her and didn't want to leave, now don't want to come back to see her.

She says, "I'm ok. It's alright. Hey, look who's on TV tonight."
The subject pretends everything is okay and distracts herself with something else (in this case, watching TV).

Don't you wonder why it's dark outside at night?
A somewhat cryptic line that leaves the listener to their own interpretation.

She says, I'm alright, I just can't get home tonight.
The subject reassures herself that she's fine and doesn't need to go anywhere, despite feeling trapped and weighed down by her guests and emotional state.