Cream and Bastards Rise
Harvey Danger Lyrics
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I'd hate to be the one to break it to you
It's only sad 'cause it's true
They misled you when they bred you
Somebody said some things they had no right to
Somehow they stuck, then you were known as someone who
Could simply not follow through if he had to
(But you have to, don't you?)
You don't have to be a genius, but it helps to (helps to)
Fools and charlatans, they may get wise
But only cream and bastards rise, and you can see it in their eyes
You followed good advice to the letter
You know your friend?
He's doing so much better than you are ever likely to do
He'll eclipse you and he will not miss you
You don't have to be a genius, but it helps to (helps to)
All the also-rans are real nice guys
But only cream and bastards rise:
People who can buy and sell you
Sharing a joke that they will never tell you
You think you're dialed in
Someone has to win, and you know what that means
It means someone's gotta lose
It's probably you
It's not a race, it's not a competition
And if it were you'd be in no position to
Get them to listen to you if you had to
Not even if your life depended on it
You don't have to be a genius, but it helps to (helps to)
Some are aliens, the rest are spies
But only cream and bastards rise, and you can see it in their eyes
The lyrics of "Cream and Bastards Rise" by Harvey Danger are a sarcastic commentary on the pursuit of success and the pressure to conform to societal expectations. The song suggests that following the rules and doing what you're told won't necessarily lead to success or happiness. It's a criticism of the idea that success is determined solely by hard work and good behavior. The lyrics suggest that some people are born with inherent advantages or are willing to stoop to unethical behavior to get ahead.
The first verse paints a picture of someone who has done everything their "people" have told them to do, only to find out that they've been misled. They're known as someone who can't follow through, even though they want to succeed. The chorus states that only "cream," or the best and brightest, and "bastards," or those who are willing to do whatever it takes to succeed, rise to the top. The second verse talks about a friend who is doing better because they didn't play by the same rules that the singer did.
The song suggests that success is not a level playing field and that some people are given advantages that others are not. It also implies that there are people who will do whatever it takes to succeed, even if it means hurting others. The song's overall message is that the pursuit of success can be a rigged game, and that even doing everything right doesn't guarantee anything.
Line by Line Meaning
You're doing everything your people said to
You're following your people's advice
I'd hate to be the one to break it to you
It's tough to tell you the truth
It's only sad 'cause it's true
The sad thing is that it's true
They misled you when they bred you
They led you astray when they raised you
Somebody said some things they had no right to
Someone said things they shouldn't have
Somehow they stuck, then you were known as someone who
Somehow those things stuck, you became known as someone who
Could simply not follow through if he had to
Couldn't do what was required of him
(But you have to, don't you?)
(But you have to follow through, don't you?)
You don't have to be a genius, but it helps to (helps to)
You don't need to be a genius, but it's useful
Fools and charlatans, they may get wise
Even fools and charlatans can become shrewd
But only cream and bastards rise, and you can see it in their eyes
Only the most cunning and ruthless will succeed, and you can tell by looking in their eyes
You followed good advice to the letter
You followed good advice exactly as it was given
You know your friend?
Do you know your friend?
He's doing so much better than you are ever likely to do
He's doing much better than you ever will
He'll eclipse you and he will not miss you
He'll outshine you and not care about you
All the also-rans are real nice guys
Everyone who doesn't succeed is still a nice person
But only cream and bastards rise:
Only the ruthless and cunning will succeed
People who can buy and sell you
People who can control you financially
Sharing a joke that they will never tell you
Laughing at something they'll never share with you
You think you're dialed in
You think you have everything figured out
Someone has to win, and you know what that means
Someone has to succeed, and that means someone else has to fail
It means someone's gotta lose
It means someone else will lose
It's probably you
You're probably the one who will lose
It's not a race, it's not a competition
It's not about winning or losing
And if it were you'd be in no position to
But even if it was, you wouldn't be able to
Get them to listen to you if you had to
Make them listen to you if you needed to
Not even if your life depended on it
Not even if your life were at stake
Some are aliens, the rest are spies
Some people are outsiders, the rest are deceivers
But only cream and bastards rise, and you can see it in their eyes
Only the most cunning and ruthless will succeed, and you can tell by looking in their eyes
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: AARON HUFFMAN, JEFF LIN, SEAN NELSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
NameNick 905
You're doing everything your people said to
I'd hate to be the one to break it to you
It's only sad 'cause it's true
They misled you when they bred you
Somebody said some things they had no right to
Somehow that stuck and you were known as someone who
Could simply not follow through if they had to
But you have to, don't you?
You don't have to be a genius
But it helps to, it helps to
Fools and charlatans they may get wise
But only cream and bastards rise
Yeah, you can see it in their eyes
You follow good advices to the letter
You know your friend, he's doing so much better than you
Are ever likely to do, he'll eclipse you
But he will not miss you
You don't have to be a genius
But it helps to, it helps to
All the also-rans are real nice guys
But only cream and bastards rise
People who could buy and sell you
Sharing a joke that they will never tell you
You think you're dialled in, someone has to win
And you know what that means
It means someone's got to lose
It's probably you, oh whoa ho ho ho
It's probably you, oh whoa ho ho ho
It's not a race, it's not a competition
And if it were, you'd be in no position to
Get them to listen to you if you had to
Not even if your life depended on it
You don't have to be a genius
But it helps to, it helps to
Some are aliens, the rest are spies
But only cream and bastards rise
Yeah, you can see it in their ah, ha, ha, ha
Ah, ha, ha, ha
Ah-ha ha-ha ha-ha ha
Ah-ha ha-ha ha-ha ha
Ah-ha ha-ha ha-ha ha
Ah-ha ha-ha
Michael Mikey
This song is soooooooo good. These guys deserved way more recognition than they had.
fuzzygreenturtle _
I guess they weren't cream or bastards
Jasofal
Their best, in my opinion.
Michael Mikey
@***** And their other ones should have been as well.
J. Child
It's sad these guys broke up. They should've been superstars, but only cream and bastards rise.
NameNick 905
You're doing everything your people said to
I'd hate to be the one to break it to you
It's only sad 'cause it's true
They misled you when they bred you
Somebody said some things they had no right to
Somehow that stuck and you were known as someone who
Could simply not follow through if they had to
But you have to, don't you?
You don't have to be a genius
But it helps to, it helps to
Fools and charlatans they may get wise
But only cream and bastards rise
Yeah, you can see it in their eyes
You follow good advices to the letter
You know your friend, he's doing so much better than you
Are ever likely to do, he'll eclipse you
But he will not miss you
You don't have to be a genius
But it helps to, it helps to
All the also-rans are real nice guys
But only cream and bastards rise
People who could buy and sell you
Sharing a joke that they will never tell you
You think you're dialled in, someone has to win
And you know what that means
It means someone's got to lose
It's probably you, oh whoa ho ho ho
It's probably you, oh whoa ho ho ho
It's not a race, it's not a competition
And if it were, you'd be in no position to
Get them to listen to you if you had to
Not even if your life depended on it
You don't have to be a genius
But it helps to, it helps to
Some are aliens, the rest are spies
But only cream and bastards rise
Yeah, you can see it in their ah, ha, ha, ha
Ah, ha, ha, ha
Ah-ha ha-ha ha-ha ha
Ah-ha ha-ha ha-ha ha
Ah-ha ha-ha ha-ha ha
Ah-ha ha-ha
thelastpersonalive
god i miss this band
Ludus Aurea
Little by Little was such a fucking astonishingly good final album.
Scotty B
Really like this song...Some are aliens, the rest are spies
SlowGhost
Such a great song