Steven Page has said the song was partly inspired by "Back to the Old House" by The Smiths. While some have misinterpreted the lyrics to mean that the man in the song is stalking an ex-girlfriend and breaks into her apartment to terrorize her, Ed Robertson has said that this is definitely not the case. The person in the song and his girlfriend are still together and happy, having "bought an old house on the Danforth" (Danforth Avenue in Toronto). However, he goes back to visit "the old apartment" "where we used to live", and winds up breaking in to reminisce. Although recalling "broken glass", the "crooked landing, crooked landlord", and other disadvantages, he nonetheless feels nostalgia for "fading memories / blending into dull tableaux".
The song drew a notable level of attention in the U.S. Priestley also invited the band to play the song at the fictional night club "The Peach Pit After Dark" on his series Beverly Hills, 90210. With some isolated exceptions, this was the band's first break into the American market, which continued with their next release, a live version of "Brian Wilson" from the certified-gold album Rock Spectacle. The live version of "The Old Apartment" from that album was included on later American radio singles as a B-side option for stations.
The studio version of the song has two main versions: the original album version and a radio mix, which was a completely new mix of the song. Notable differences in the radio mix, besides a completely new audio mix, include an 8-bar instrumental intro and in Page's noticeably filtered vocal bridge. A 1995 demo version also appears on the compilation album Stop Us If You've Heard This One Before.
Apple Inc. included the music video on the Mac OS 8 installation CD as a QuickTime example.
New band member Kevin Hearn appeared in the music video despite not being present on the studio recording.
The Old Apartment
Barenaked Ladies Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
This is where we used to live
Broken glass, broke and hungry
Broken hearts and broken bones
This is where we used to live
Why did you paint the walls?
Why did you clean the floor?
The hole I punched in the door?
This is where we used to live
Why did you keep the mousetrap?
Why did you keep the dish rack?
These things used to be mine
I guess they still are, I want them back
Broke into the old apartment
Forty-two steps from the street
Crooked landing, crooked landlord
Narrow lane way filled with crooks
This is where we used to live
Why did they pave the lawn?
Why did they change the lock?
Why did I have to break it
I only came here to talk
This is where we used to live
How is the neighbor downstairs?
How is her temper this year?
I turned up your TV
And stomped on the floor just for fun
I know we don't live here anymore
We bought an old house on the Danforth
She loves me and her body keeps me warm
And I'm happy here
This is where we used to live
Broke into the old apartment
Tore the phone out of the wall
Only memories, fading memories
Blending into dull tableaux
I want them back
I want them back (this is where we used to live)
I want them back (this is where we used to live)
I want them back (this is where we used to live)
I want them back
The Barenaked Ladies' song "The Old Apartment" is a reflective piece about the nostalgia and mixed emotions that come with revisiting a former living space. The first verse describes the brokenness that now exists where happy memories once were. Physical items are missing and the emotional damage from broken relationships is evident in the broken hearts and bones. The singer asks questions about the changes made to the living space, wondering how and why things have changed, perplexed and hurt that his presence has seemingly been forgotten. The second verse gives context to the physical location, describing it as tucked away on a narrow, crooked street with a crooked landlord, providing a sense of roughness and shadiness. The singer hopes to connect with someone from the past who may still be around, albeit not in the current living state. The final verse offers a resolution to the story, providing insight that the singer has moved on and found love in a different home. Yet, despite the happiness found elsewhere, he still yearns for the memories and possessions left behind.
The song is a resonance of a couple's past relationship, particularly the ending. The first verse is the imagery of the broken home. The singer is puzzled about the changes made in the home with painted walls and a plastered door, along with missing items that used to be theirs. In the second verse, the singer suggests difficulty with their old landlord, as well as the difficulties in maintaining the property, revealed in the frequently paved lawn. The chorus continues to express the nostalgia felt by the singer, wishing for the past to return, for someone else to experience their pain through physical means. The bridge of the song mentions how the passage of time can blur memories, making them fade out, and provides an additional explanation for the singer's nostalgia.
Line by Line Meaning
Broke into the old apartment
Returning to the previous residence
This is where we used to live
Reminiscing about their past home
Broken glass, broke and hungry
Living in poverty and hardship
Broken hearts and broken bones
Suffering from emotional and physical pain
Why did you paint the walls?
Questioning changes made to the old apartment
Why did you clean the floor?
Questioning cleaning efforts made to the old apartment
Why did you plaster over the hole I punched in the door?
Questioning repair work to previous damages
Why did you keep the mousetrap?
Questioning why certain items were kept
Why didn't you keep the dish rack?
Questioning why certain items were not kept
These things used to be mine. I guess they still are, I want them back
Feeling possessive of old possessions and wanting them back
Forty-two stairs from the street
Describing the location of the old apartment
Crooked landing, crooked landlord. Narrow laneway filled with crooks
Painting a picture of the less-than-ideal living conditions
Why did they pave the lawn?
Questioning changes made to the old apartment complex
Why did they change the lock?
Questioning security improvements made since they left
Why did I have to break it? I only came here to talk
Breaking in unintentionally and feeling frustrated by the consequences
How is the neighbor downstairs? How is her temper this year?
Asking about old neighbors and their disposition
I turned up your TV and stomped on the floor just for fun
Acting mischievously as a form of nostalgia
I know we don't live here anymore. We bought an old house on the Danforth. She loves me and her body keeps me warm, I'm happy here. But this is where we used to live
Acknowledging current happiness in new home while still being attached to the memories of the old apartment
Tore the phone out of the wall
Acting destructively as another way of reliving the past
Only memories, fading memories blending into dull tableaux
Reflecting on the transience of memories
I want them back
Reiterating the desire to reclaim lost possessions and memories
This is where we used to live
Final reminder of the attachment to the old apartment
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Ed Robertson, Steven Page
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@raulcastellanosjr.4754
I heard this song as a seven-year-old kid. We had a 90s Macintosh, and one of the operating system discs it came with had this song on there as a multimedia demo. It made no sense to me at the time. At all. "We bought an old house on the Danforth / she loves me and her body keeps me warm / I'm happy there." What's the big deal then, I thought to myself? He still has the girl. He's doing well. And now he has a house and everything. Why is he worried about his old apartment?
Fast forward to my late twenties. I've lived in a few apartments now, and each has been an upgrade — in some way or another — from the previous. But a few weeks ago, I started reminiscing about my last place. I went through some rough times while I lived there, but I also grew a lot. I went through an era of my life that I now recognize is classic. It's where I lived when I first met my girlfriend; the apartment we would stumble back to after drinks when we had just started going out and barely knew each other. I'm happier and better now than I was back when I lived there, but somehow, I miss the hell out of that apartment. I intentionally drove two towns over so I could drive past it the other day. I don't want to take my life back to that point in time or anything, but I just really get nostalgic for it sometimes and wouldn't mind reliving that era for a night or two.
It took twenty years, but I know what this song is about now. It's about missing an old era, even if you are perfectly happy with your current life.
The apartment I live in now as I sit here and type this is tiny, but it's the first apartment I've ever had all to myself without roommates. It's the first place I've ever decorated exactly how I wanted. It has been the setting to my first experiences as an independent adult with a real job, living in the city. It's where I finally found the inner peace and comfort with myself that I have yearned for my entire life. And it's where I have continued to fall in love with my girlfriend. I don't know how long I'm going to be here, but I know that when it becomes time to move on, I am going to miss the hell out of this place.
If you're still reading this essay of a comment, what I'm trying to say is: this is a timeless song that any city dweller can relate to. It's one of those songs that makes more and more sense as you grow older. It's a song that evokes deep feelings that take years — maybe even decades — to cultivate. Thank you for the music, BNL.
@patrickt6130
I’ve heard this song a million times growing up never payed attention to the lyrics. Man I just left my first apartment I lived in for 7 years straight so many memories. I was so excited to move (better place, better neighborhood & neighbors ) but I cried like a baby when I had to shut that door. I just drove by it yesterday I want to tell them get the hell out of my place 😂 good reminder of life. Everything is temporary appreciate it while you got it and who you got it with
@TristanandIsolt
Great comment.
@loridingledine4902
O to be young again stay where your at young man
@Carterbluestang
This was me and my husband's song. We got married july 1995 the month after high school. He passed away exactly one week ago today. He passed on 12-12-2021. My heart is shattered. Married for 26 years.
@sibe485
I’m so sorry for your loss ❤️
@fredlancaster6599
I couldn't amagine losing my significant other after tht long of marriage. I'm so sorry for your loss. Just remember your husband lives on through this song in your heart
@emaildavidlehman
Very sorry. You guys had a great song. In a couple years you will smile instead of cry. Wishing you the best along the way.
@laurabeane8862
"This is where 'WE' Used To Live"🙏
@sinceunati
Just got back from my cousin's husband's funeral. They were married over 20 years. Had a 15yr old son. He was 52. Died of a bloodclot in his lung. Life can be beautiful but sometimes a beauty is a real bitch.
@tr1338
Broken glass. Broke and hungry. Broken hearts and broken bones.
Sums up my twenties to a tee.