these days
Bon Jovi Feat. Richie Sambora Lyrics
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Trying to keep myself out of the rain
Saw a vagabond king wear a Styrofoam crown
Wondered if I might end up the same
There's a man out on the corner
Singing old songs about change
Everybody got their cross to bare, these days
To a motel room on the boulevard
Guess she's trying to be James Dean
She's seen all the disciples and all the wannabes
No one wants to be themselves these days
Still there's nothing to hold on to but these days
These days, the stars seem out of reach
These days, there ain't a ladder on these streets
These days, are fast, nothing lasts in this graceless age
There ain't nobody left but us these days
Jimmy shoes busted both his legs, trying to learn to fly
From a second story window, he just jumped and closed his eyes
His momma said he was crazy, he said, momma, I've got to try
Don't you know that all my heroes died
And I guess I'd rather die than fade away
These days, the stars seem out of reach
But these days, there ain't a ladder on these streets
These days are fast, love don't last in this graceless age
Even innocence has caught the morning train
And there ain't nobody left but us these days
I know Rome's still burning
Though the times have changed
This world keeps turning round and round and round and round
These days
These days, the stars seem out of reach
But these days, there ain't a ladder on these streets
These days are fast, love don't last in this graceless age
Even innocence has caught the midnight train
And there ain't nobody left but us these days
These days, the stars seem out of reach
These days, there ain't a ladder on these streets
These days, are fast, nothing lasts
There ain't no time to waste
There ain't nobody left to take the blame
There ain't nobody left but us these days
The lyrics of Bon Jovi's "These Days" address the feeling of disillusionment and despair that mark our modern society. The opening verse describes a faceless man trying to avoid the rain, who sees a vagabond king wearing a crown made of Styrofoam and fears he will end up just as lost and forgotten. The next verse describes a woman trying to escape reality in a motel room, emulating James Dean and surrounded by wannabes who have lost their sense of identity. The chorus summarizes the sense of hopelessness that pervades the song, with lines like "these days, the stars seem out of reach" and "there ain't nobody left but us these days."
The song then shifts to describe the story of a person (Jimmy) who tries to escape the sense of hopelessness by embracing a reckless pursuit of his dreams. He jumps from a second-story window to learn how to fly, and his mother sees him as crazy. However, he sees himself as emulating his heroes, who all died trying to achieve something great. The final verse comes back to the present and notes that, despite the passage of time and the changes that have occurred, the world keeps turning on, and we are all left to face the problems of the present.
Line by Line Meaning
I was walking around, just a face in the crowd Trying to keep myself out of the rain
I felt insignificant and unnoticed, just roaming the streets aimlessly trying to avoid getting wet
Saw a vagabond king wear a Styrofoam crown Wondered if I might end up the same
I saw a homeless man with a makeshift crown and wondered if I too would end up in a similar state of desperation
There's a man out on the corner Singing old songs about change Everybody got their cross to bare, these days
There's a man on the street corner singing songs about change, as everyone seems to be going through their own struggles in the present time
She came looking for some shelter with a suitcase full of dreams To a motel room on the boulevard Guess she's trying to be James Dean She's seen all the disciples and all the wannabes No one wants to be themselves these days Still there's nothing to hold on to but these days
A woman arrived with ambitions and aspirations, but ended up in a motel that's far from glamorous. She's copying the persona of James Dean, and has seen numerous people who are trying to be somebody else instead of themselves, just like these days. Unfortunately, there's nothing to hold on to at the moment but the present time
These days, the stars seem out of reach These days, there ain't a ladder on these streets These days, are fast, nothing lasts in this graceless age There ain't nobody left but us these days
Lately, it feels like the stars are unreachable and there's no ladder to climb to success. The current era is fast-paced, and nothing seems to endure in this unforgiving age. It seems like there's nobody else but us to face this world
Jimmy shoes busted both his legs, trying to learn to fly From a second story window, he just jumped and closed his eyes His momma said he was crazy, he said, momma, I've got to try Don't you know that all my heroes died And I guess I'd rather die than fade away
Jimmy tried to fly by jumping off the second story, but ended up severely injuring himself. His mother thought he was insane, but Jimmy was determined and said that all his heroes died. He'd rather die than fade away into the abyss of the forgotten
I know Rome's still burning Though the times have changed This world keeps turning round and round and round and round These days
Even though times have changed, Rome is still burning, and the world keeps spinning in a continuous motion. That's just how it is these days
These days, the stars seem out of reach But these days, there ain't a ladder on these streets These days are fast, love don't last in this graceless age Even innocence has caught the midnight train And there ain't nobody left but us these days
Currently, the stars appear too far away and there's no means to reach them. There's also no ladder to climb to the top. These days are fast-paced, and love is short-lived in this brutal world. Even innocence has disappeared, as though it caught the last train. It feels like there's no one else but us in this world right now
These days, the stars seem out of reach These days, there ain't a ladder on these streets These days, are fast, nothing lasts There ain't no time to waste There ain't nobody left to take the blame There ain't nobody left but us these days
Currently, it feels like the stars are unattainable, and there's no ladder to climb to success. The present days may end quickly and nothing seems to be lasting. There's no time to waste, with no one else to hold accountable, except us
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Songtrust Ave
Written by: JON BON JOVI, RICHARD SAMBORA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind