Misery
♫ Green Day Lyrics


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Virginia was a "lot lizard" from F.L.A.
She had a compound fracture in the "trunk"
It started when she ran away
Thumbs out on the interstate
She hitched a ride to misery

"Mr. Whirly" had a catastrophic incident
He fell into a city by the bay
He liquidated his estate
Now he sleeps upon the Height
Panhandling misery

He's gonna get high high high
When he's low low low
The fire burns from better days
And she screams why oh why
I said I don't know
The catastrophic hymns from yesterday
Of misery

Vinnie was a hustler out of Amsterdam
He ran the drug cartel in "Tinseltown"
They found him in a Cadillac
Bludgeoned with a baseball bat in the name
Of misery

Gina hit the road to new york city
Mysteriously the night Vinnie croaked
She stopped in Vegas to elope
With Virgina and the dope
And kissed the bride eternally

They're gonna get high high high
When they're low low low
The fire burns from better days
And she screams why oh why
I said I don't know
The catastrophic hymns from yesterday
Of misery

Hell hounds on your trail now once again, boy
Its groping on your leg until it sleeps
The emptiness will fill your soul with sorrow
Because its not what you make, its what you leave

And we're gonna get high high high
When we're low low low
The fire burns from better days
And she screams why oh why
I said I don't know




The catastrophic hymns from yesterday
Of misery

Overall Meaning

"Misery" by Green Day is a song that tells the stories of various people who are experiencing miserable situations. The first verse focuses on Virginia, who is described as a "lot lizard" from Florida. A "lot lizard" is a term used to refer to a prostitute who operates at truck stops. The lyrics suggest that Virginia has a compound fracture in her "trunk," which could mean an injury in her spine or torso. She hitchhikes to escape her situation and ends up finding misery instead.


The second verse introduces Mr. Whirly, who had a catastrophic incident and ended up liquidating his estate. He now lives on the streets and begs for money, experiencing his own form of misery. The chorus describes how both characters turn to drugs and alcohol to escape the pain of their lives, but the fire of better days still burns within them. The final verse introduces Vinnie, a drug dealer from Amsterdam who is found dead in his car. Gina, who was mysteriously with him the night he died, elopes with Virginia and the dope they had acquired, united in their misery.


The song is a commentary on the hardships of life and how people cope with them. The various characters in the song represent different ways that people fall into misery, through addiction, crime, or just plain bad luck. The chorus serves as a reminder that despite the escapism of drugs and alcohol, the pain of the past still lingers and must be faced.


Line by Line Meaning

Virginia was a "lot lizard" from F.L.A.
Virginia was a sex worker working at truck stops in Florida.


She had a compound fracture in the "trunk"
She had a serious injury in her chest or abdomen.


It started when she ran away
Her problems began when she left home.


Thumbs out on the interstate
She's looking for a ride on the highway.


She hitched a ride to misery
She got a ride to a place of great suffering and distress.


"Mr. Whirly" had a catastrophic incident
Mr. Whirly experienced a terrible event.


He fell into a city by the bay
He ended up in San Francisco.


He liquidated his estate
He sold all of his property and assets.


Now he sleeps upon the Height
He now lives in a hilltop neighborhood.


Panhandling misery
He is begging for money while experiencing great suffering.


He's gonna get high high high When he's low low low
He turns to drugs when he's feeling down.


The fire burns from better days
He remembers good times that are now gone.


And she screams why oh why I said I don't know The catastrophic hymns from yesterday Of misery
They lament the sad events of the past and their ongoing suffering.


Vinnie was a hustler out of Amsterdam
Vinnie was involved in illegal activities in Amsterdam.


He ran the drug cartel in "Tinseltown"
He was in charge of a drug trafficking organization in Los Angeles.


They found him in a Cadillac Bludgeoned with a baseball bat in the name Of misery
He was killed, probably by rivals, in a car with a baseball bat, in a context of great suffering.


Gina hit the road to new york city
Gina left for New York City.


Mysteriously the night Vinnie croaked She stopped in Vegas to elope With Virgina and the dope
The night Vinnie died under mysterious circumstances, Gina stopped in Las Vegas to get married with Virginia and the drugs.


And kissed the bride eternally
The wedding was for life, a permanent commitment.


Hell hounds on your trail now once again, boy
You're being pursued by trouble again.


Its groping on your leg until it sleeps
Your troubles weigh heavily on you until they finally go away.


The emptiness will fill your soul with sorrow
You will feel sad and lost.


Because its not what you make, its what you leave
The meaning of your life is not about material possessions, but what you contribute to the world.


And we're gonna get high high high When we're low low low
We use drugs to escape from the lows of life.


The fire burns from better days
We remember happier times.


And she screams why oh why I said I don't know The catastrophic hymns from yesterday Of misery
We lament the sad events of the past and our ongoing suffering.




Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BILLIE JOE ARMSTRONG, TRE COOL, MIKE DIRNT

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Most interesting comments from YouTube:

@fitaaeni7223

"Macy's Day Parade" lyrics

Today's the Macy's Day Parade
The night of the living dead is on its way
With a credit report for duty call
It's a lifetime guarantee
Stuffed in a coffin, 10% more free
Red light special at the mausoleum

Give me something that I need
Satisfaction guaranteed to you
What's the consolation prize?
Economy sized dreams of hope

When I was a kid, I thought
I wanted all the things that I haven't got
Oh-oh, but I learned the hardest way
Then I realized what it took
To tell the difference between thieves and crooks
Lesson learned to me and you

Give me something that I need
Satisfaction guaranteed

'Cause I'm thinking 'bout a brand new hope
The one I've never known
'Cause now I know it's all that I wanted

What's the consolation prize?
Economy sized dreams of hope
Give me something that I need
Satisfaction guaranteed

'Cause I'm thinking 'bout a brand new hope
The one I've never known, and where it goes
And I'm thinking 'bout the only road
The one I've never known, and where it goes
And I'm thinking 'bout a brand new hope
The one I've never known
'Cause now I know it's all that I wanted



@aldoaldo3961

Today's the Macy's Day parade
The night of the living dead is on its way
With a credit report for duty call
It's a lifetime guarantee
Stuffed in a coffin ten percent more free
Red-light special at the mausoleum
Give me something that I need
Satisfaction guaranteed to you
What's the consolation prize?
Economy sized dreams of hope
When I was a kid I thought
I wanted all the things that I haven't got
Oh, I learned the hardest way
Then I realized what it took
To tell the difference between
Thieves and crooks
Lesson learned to me and you
Give me something that I need
Satisfaction guaranteed
'Cause I'm thinking 'bout
A brand new hope
The one I've never known
'Cause now I know
It's all that I wanted
What's the consolation prize?
Economy sized dreams of…



@michaelshumate3134

Green Day is defiantly my favorite band ever. The change in tone of songs over the years doesn't bother me like most.

I love their early work- But they were still teenagers at the time, so they changed obviously.

They started with songs about getting high, rocking out, having a blast (see what I did there ;))

There albums all had a bit of a change after, with different tones. Like insomniac, which seemed a lot more aggressive, but you see that in previous songs as well.

Then this album came out, it was about a lot more things in society like from minority's point or this songs point that money cant buy happiness.American Idiot was super political, which I love about it, 21st Century Breakdowns story is amazing too. These overall were of course told like a story, which was obvious.
From saint jimmy and the jesus of suburbia too Gloria and Christian.
Then uno, dos, tres which didn't follow a particular pattern like American idiot and 21st century breakdown came out.
I still loved a lot of the songs on those three albums though, they were great.

Finally, Revolution Radio- back with the politics. I really want to see them on tour when they get closer.

I love all of their work really.

Top songs include
1 Coming Clean
2 Longview (Man, that bass
3 Jesus of Suburbia
4 Last Night on Earth (This is literally my favorite love song ever)
5 She
6 Macys Day Parade
7 Waiting
8 Dominated Love Slave (Quiet possibly the greatest country song ever)
9 2000 light years away
10 Pulling teeth

Not really in that order.

Okay maybe more dookie songs should be on this list, can I just love all of their work? I do- what am I saying



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@GreenDay

Crawl on the dance floor.. spit in the air.. get weird. The Father Of All... video is here: https://youtu.be/eXv00PJ9IQM

Catch the Hella Mega Tour presented by Harley-Davidson w/ Green Day, Fall Out Boy, & Weezer + The Interrupters - get dates and tickets: https://greenday.com/tour

@bencummings5304

So

@Anno023

Green Day advertising themselves be like

@khabibnurmagomedov960

Friday 1 november 2019

@aussiemusicfan0298

Green Day thank you for the music. You’re music is so important to me. Unfortunately you’re not coming to my country

@solomonbeh1621

👍

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@cucaluciferina

I grew up in a wasteland. My parents' marriage was never normal, so fights and depression were always around. My brother and I found comfort in music. I still remember the day I got this album and this song spoke to me in many ways, it's hard to grow up not having a choice, not like everyone else does. My brother and I still remember this song as an anthem for the lost, the wandering souls looking for a home, for a place where they can belong.

@cececimbro

Hope you finally found it

@Nathan7041

A toxic wasteland?

@redwanhasan1721

Weird isn't it! When you find similarities with lots of strangers.

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