The song's chord progression was borrowed from David Bowie's "Boys Keep Swinging" and "Fantastic Voyage". On the album Lodger Bowie and collaborator Brian Eno carried out a musical experiment in which multiple songs were written with the same chord progression, of which "Boys Keep Swinging" and "Fantastic Voyage" were the two that surfaced. M.O.R is both a continuation of, and tribute to that experiment, as its chorus also lifts the melody and call-and-response vocals from Boys Keep Swinging (Bowie and Eno both received credit for "M.O.R." after legal intervention).
"M.O.R." itself stands for "middle of the road", which appears in the lyrics.
Music video
The song's music video was directed by John Hardwick and is considered one of the most expensive videos the band ever made. It was shot in Sydney, Australia, and follows the misadventures of the band members (or rather, stuntmen in balaclavas pretending to be them) as they try to escape from the police. It was intended that the stuntmen wear masks of the band members (to make it appear that the band were actually performing their own stunts) but the masks created for the video were such poor representations, that the decision was made to use balaclavas instead. The video also features cameos by stunt choreographer Grant Page as a helicopter pilot, and actor Noah Taylor as a truck passenger. It is included in the Blur: The Best of DVD/VHS released on 30 October 2000. The 'actors' in the video are all anagrams of the member of the band they play. They are as follows:
Dan Abnormal - Damon Albarn
Trevor Dewane - Dave Rowntree
Morgan C. Hoax - Graham Coxon
Lee Jaxsam - Alex James
'Dan Abnormal' was an alias also used by Albarn whilst playing keyboards on the first Elastica album, as well as the title of a track on The Great Escape.
________________________________________________________________________________________________
"Bustin' + Dronin'" and "Swallows in the Heatwave" produced by Blur
"M.O.R." (road version) and "Dancehall" produced by Stephen Street
Damon Albarn: Vocals
Graham Coxon: Guitar, Vocals
Alex James: Bass Guitar
Dave Rowntree: Drums
M.O.R.
Blur Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I need to unload
Under the pressure
Gone middle of the road
Fall into fashion
Fall out again
We stick together
'Cause it never ends
Here comes a low
I'm a boy and you're a girl
Here comes a high
The only ones in the world
Here comes everything
You and me can work it out
Here it comes
You, me, we'll work it out!
Here comes tomorrow
1 2 3 episodes
We stick together
Gone middle of the road
'Cause that's entertainment
It's the sound of the wheel
It rolls on forever
You know how good it feels
Here comes a low
I'm a boy and you're a girl
Here comes a high
The only ones that's in the world
Here comes everything
We're like monkeys out in the space
Here it comes
We are members of the human race
You, me, we'll work it out!
It's automatic
I need to unload
Under the pressure
Gone middle of the road
Fall into fashion
Fall out again
We stick together
'Cause it never ends
Here comes a low
I'm a boy and you're a girl
Here comes a high
You're the only one that's in the world
Here comes everything
You and me can work it out
Here it comes
You, me, we'll work it out!
The lyrics of Blur’s song M.O.R. are about the pressure of conformity and the desire to break free from it. The repeated phrase “middle of the road” refers to the idea of being average and unremarkable, a product of society’s expectations. The singer wants to “unload” this pressure and fall “out again” from the fashion of the day. Despite this longing to be an individual, the singer acknowledges the comfort of sticking together with others who feel the same way, because it never truly ends.
Line by Line Meaning
It's automatic
Things are happening on their own without any control or intervention.
I need to unload
I need to relieve and release myself from certain burdens or responsibilities.
Under the pressure
Being subjected to stress or adversity.
Gone middle of the road
Switched to a moderate or conservative position, losing the initial interest or enthusiasm.
Fall into fashion
Embrace the latest trends and fads.
Fall out again
Lose interest or enthusiasm for the same things that were previously appealing.
We stick together
We remain united and supportive of each other.
'Cause it never ends
Because it's a never-ending cycle that repeats itself over and over again.
Here comes a low
Here comes a period of sadness, depression, or discouragement.
I'm a boy and you're a girl
We belong to different genders with different expectations and experiences.
Here comes a high
Here comes a period of joy, excitement or elation.
The only ones in the world
We are unique and irreplaceable individuals in the world.
Here comes everything
Here comes a time of change, growth, or transformation.
You and me can work it out
We can resolve our problems and differences through cooperation and understanding.
Here it comes
Here comes the moment we've been waiting for, the future is approaching.
You, me, we'll work it out!
We'll find a way to overcome our challenges and make things work together!
Here comes tomorrow
Here comes a new day, a new start, and new opportunities.
1 2 3 episodes
Random things happen one after the other, making life unpredictable and exciting.
Cause that's entertainment
Because that's how people are entertained, by watching the ups and downs of others.
It's the sound of the wheel
That's how life works, spinning and turning, without a moment of rest.
It rolls on forever
Life is a never-ending journey with countless twists and turns.
You know how good it feels
We all love the thrill and excitement of facing new challenges and overcoming them.
We're like monkeys out in the space
We're all explorers in the vast unknown, trying to make sense of our existence.
We are members of the human race
We all share a common ancestry and destiny, being part of the same human family.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: STEVEN ALEXANDER JAMES, DAVID BOWIE, DAVID ROWNTREE, DAMON ALBARN, GRAHAM COXON, BRIAN ENO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@zeitgeistdinahmoebwanafefe8721
Heaven loves ya
The crowds part for you
Nothing stands in the way
When you're a boy
Clothes always fit ya
Life is a pop of a cherry
When you're a boy
You can wear a uniform
Learn to drive and everything ...
@allezje
It's automatic
I need to unload
Under the pressure
Gone middle of the road
Fall into fashion
Fall out again
We stick together
'Cause it never ends
Here comes a low
I'm a boy and you're a girl
Here comes a high
The only ones in the world
Here comes everything
You and me can work it out
Here it comes
You, me, we'll work it out!
Here comes tomorrow
1 2 3 episodes
We stick together
Gone middle of the road
'Cause that's entertainment
It's the sound of the wheel
It rolls on forever
You know how good it feels
Here comes a low
I'm a boy and you're a girl
Here comes a high
The only ones that's in the world
Here comes everything
We're like monkeys out in the space
Here it comes
We are members of the human race
You, me, we'll work it out!
It's automatic
I need to unload
Under the pressure
Gone middle of the road
Fall into fashion
Fall out again
We stick together
'Cause it never ends
Here comes a low
I'm a boy and you're a girl
Here comes a high
You're the only one that's in the world
Here comes everything
You and me can work it out
Here it comes
You, me, we'll work it out
@josh5846
Bowie and Albarn were mates, they played together. M.O.R. was essentially a tribute to the experimentation of using the same chord progression that Brian Eno and Bowie played with throughout Bowie's Berlin era album, Lodger. Although it wasn't initially credited to Bowie and Eno, the song was never trying to cover up the fact that it sounded like 'boys keep swinging', or 'fantastic voyage' for that matter. It was always a tribute to one of Blur's biggest influences
@jameswhite-aldworth2804
You say that but Bowie threatened the band with a court action as he considered it a ripp off
@orangetemp2486
Can you give a me song ?
@docsavage8640
Is that why Bowie and Eno had to take legal action to get credit as cowriters?
@kopite09
This is on Wikipedia
@zeitok8
@@jameswhite-aldworth2804 it was bowie record label, bowie and eno had no problem, and as everybody know, they ended working with albarn...
@alicepayne9726
It took me so long to realise they were all anagrams of the band members names
@terryprofitt6902
?
@white_lotus_rising8812
Dan Abnormal is the best XD
@liamgallagherssexy1737
@mariana! WAIT REALLY?? i didn’t notice that