Cigarette Smoker Fiona
Arctic Monkeys Lyrics

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Sat at the side of the pool at one of your houses
With wet white trousers on
And worlds collide as the evening continues, the dignity fucks off
Her brother's gone off to the strippers to make up for all the lost time
She could have been one of the bitches but she's actually alright

Cigarette smoker, I'm sorry
But we're all unsure how much you've had

But we think that you ought to maybe not have anymore

A country home, even if we really tried
Would it cease to surprise us now
And I bet your dad would like to give us all a slap
When are your parents back do ya know?

Well, I never came from no ghetto
But it wasn't nowhere near here
Well, spoken girls and stilettos
Aren't something to fear

Cigarette smoker, I'm sorry
But we're all unsure how much you've had
But we think that you ought to maybe not have anymore

Cigarette smoker, I'm sorry
But we're all unsure how much you've had
But we think that you ought to maybe not have anymore

Cigarette smoker, cigarette smoke doesn't hide

As well as you think
And you think that it ought to act as the perfect disguise

Overall Meaning

In the Arctic Monkeys' song "Cigarette Smoker Fiona," the lyrics capture a moment in which the singer and their friends are at a pool party at one of their houses. The setting seems to be one of decadence and excess, as the party-goers are wearing wet white trousers and seem to be losing their sense of dignity as the night goes on. The brother of one of the attendees has left to go to a strip club, and there is a sense of longing and missed opportunity in the air. Despite this, the singer notes that Fiona could have been one of the "bitches" at the party, but instead she seems to be holding her own and enjoying herself.

The song repeatedly addresses Fiona as a "cigarette smoker," with the singer expressing concern about how much she has had to drink. It is clear that Fiona is someone who is living on the edge, perhaps indulging in a bit too much partying and hedonism. The repeated refrain of "we think that you ought to maybe not have anymore" underscores a sense of unease and tension at the party.

In addition to painting a vivid scene of a wild night, "Cigarette Smoker Fiona" raises larger questions about the price of excess and living on the edge. The imagery of cigarette smoke as a "disguise" that doesn't hide as well as one might think suggests that even as Fiona and the other party-goers indulge in their vices, their actions are not as private or secret as they might believe.

Line by Line Meaning

Sat at the side of the pool at one of your houses
I was sitting next to the pool at one of your houses

With wet white trousers on
My white trousers were wet

And worlds collide as the evening continues, the dignity fucks off
As the night goes on, things get crazy and we lose our inhibitions

Her brother's gone off to the strippers to make up for all the lost time
Her brother went to the strip club to make up for lost time

She could have been one of the bitches but she's actually alright
She could have been a bad person, but she's actually pretty cool

Cigarette smoker, I'm sorry
I apologize to the cigarette smoker

But we're all unsure how much you've had
We don't know how much you've smoked

But we think that you ought to maybe not have anymore
Maybe you should stop smoking

A country home, even if we really tried
Even if we wanted to, we couldn't have a country home

Would it cease to surprise us now
It wouldn't be surprising anymore

And I bet your dad would like to give us all a slap
I'm sure your dad would want to hit us