His music is typically labeled as power pop, though he doesn't completely agree. His major musical influences include The Cars, David Bowie, Electric Light Orchestra, Elvis Costello, The Kinks, Robyn Hitchcock, Paul McCartney, and Todd Rundgren.
His debut album, One Mississippi, was released in 1996 on Virgin Records. The album featured several contributions with Jason Falkner and gained many favourable reviews in the music press but failed to sell in sufficient numbers and Benson was dropped by Virgin.
It would be another six years until Benson issued the follow-up, Lapalco. Again the critical plaudits poured in but this time the record enjoyed a certain degree of commercial success.
While touring this record Benson played the Reading and Leeds Festivals and finished his Leeds set with a performance of the track "Jet Lag" featuring guest appearances from Meg White of The White Stripes along with members of The Datsuns and Soledad Brothers.
In 2003 Benson re-released his debut album along with bonus tracks including the unreleased six track extended player, Welfed Boy EP, featuring songs from a demo session with Falkner.
Also in 2003, Benson released an EP, Metarie, with his then band, The Wellfed Boys. The EP featured a cover of Paul McCartney's "Let Me Roll It". This was the first song written completely by another artist to be featured on a Benson release. Another cover, this time "Strong Boy", from Gram Parsons International Submarine Band's 1968 album, Safe at Home, was released as a b-side in 2005.
In 2005, Benson released his third album, The Alternative to Love, and toured extensively in the US, UK and Europe with his new touring band, The Stiff Tissues.
Benson is also a member of The Raconteurs, a collaboration with Jack White of The White Stripes and two members of The Greenhornes, Jack Lawrence and Patrick Keeler. The group's debut album, Broken Boy Soldiers, was released in the US on May 16th, 2006, with "Steady, As She Goes" the first single.
Brendan currently lives in Nashville, Tennessee.
He has also worked as a producer for The Greenhornes, The Nice Device, The Mood Elevator (a permutation of The Welfed Boys), and Stiff Tissues member Dean Fertita's former band, The Waxwings.
In 2008, his song "What I'm Looking For" was used in an Apple iPod Touch television ad, propelling sales of that particular song on iTunes and other online music retailers.
Benson's fourth full-length record, My Old, Familiar Friend, was released on August 18, 2009. This was followed by What Kind of World (2012), and You Were Right (2013).
Bad for Me
Brendan Benson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Another losing streak
Guess I'm on a roll
I haven't got a chance
I'm too week
She sucks my soul
And this St Christopher That hangs around my neck
Has got to be a phase
'Cause I crash every time
The same old wreck
The same mistake
And I make a mental note so I don't forget
A little reminder of what hasn't happened yet
Well maybe she's bad for me
But I don't care to see
'Cause what I want and what I need
Are the same to me
In the end
And there is a voice in my head saying no
But my mouth says yes
I should stop I know but I really wanna go
it's okay I guess
And I've played with fire so many times before
Guess I'll never learn
Just like an addict I keep coming back for more
Come to love that burn
And I make a mental note so I don't forgetA Little reminder of what hasn't happened yet
Well maybe she's bad for me (Bad for me)
But I don't care to see
'Cause what I want and what I need (What I need)
Are the same to me
Well maybe she's bad for me (Bad for me)
But I don't care to see
'Cause what I want and what I need (What I need)
Are the same to me
There is a feeling that I get deep in my gut
But I pay no mind
Instinct out of sync but so what
Love is blind
And I make a mental note so I don't forget
A Little reminder of what hasn't happened yet
She's gonna be the death of me
Here it comes again
The only leaf left on the tree
And blowing in the wind
Well maybe she's bad for me (Bad for me)
But I don't care to see
'Cause what I want and what I need (What I need)
Are the same to me
In the end
In the end
In Brendan Benson's "Bad for Me," the singer expresses his obsessive attraction to a woman who he knows is probably bad for him. He admits to being on a losing streak and constantly making mistakes, but cannot resist this woman, who he claims "sucks [his] soul." He wears a St Christopher's medal around his neck as if for protection or good luck, but realizes it doesn't seem to be working because he keeps crashing every time he gets involved with this woman.
The singer acknowledges the voice in his head warning him that this woman is not good for him, but ignores it and follows his desires, even though he knows they will lead to destructive consequences. He has played with fire before, but he keeps coming back because he has developed a love for the pain, which is reminiscent of the addictive tendencies he can't control. The singer is aware of his reckless behavior, and he makes a mental note to remember what hasn't happened yet, hinting that he knows that things will end badly.
Despite the warning signs, the singer declares that what he wants and what he needs are the same things, making it impossible for him to tear himself away from this woman. He realizes that she may be the death of him, but cannot stop himself from being drawn to her, even though his instincts may be out of sync. In the end, love is blind, and the singer knows that he will continue to follow his heart, no matter where it may lead him.
Line by Line Meaning
Well here it goes again
Starting another cycle of losing streaks
Another losing streak
Experiencing repetitive failures
Guess I'm on a roll
Feeling like things are never going to work out
I haven't got a chance
Feeling powerless to change the situation
I'm too week
Being too weak to resist her attraction
She sucks my soul
Losing oneself completely to the person
And this St Christopher
The religious necklace provides no intervention
That hangs around my neck
The necklace hangs around his neck showing no impact
Has got to be a phase
The effect of faith on his life is questionable
'Cause I crash every time
Continuously making the same mistake
The same old wreck
Ending up with the same negative outcome
And I make a mental note so I don't forget
Taking note of the mistake to learn from it
A little reminder of what hasn't happened yet
Remembering the warning signs that haven't shown up yet
Well maybe she's bad for me
Admitting that she could be detrimental
But I don't care to see
Not caring about the harm she brings
'Cause what I want and what I need
Knowing what he wants and needs, but choosing not to acknowledge the harmful effect of her presence
Are the same to me
The lines between want and need are blurred
And there is a voice in my head saying no
A gut instinct telling him to not go through with it
But my mouth says yes
Choosing to ignore the instinct and giving into temptation
I should stop I know but I really wanna go
Knowing the harmful effect of her presence but being too tempted to resist
it's okay I guess
Accepting the consequences
And I've played with fire so many times before
Having prior experience with the negative consequences
Guess I'll never learn
Choosing to ignore the lessons learned from prior experiences
Just like an addict I keep coming back for more
Being addicted to the attraction of danger
Come to love that burn
Enjoying the pain and harm it brings
There is a feeling that I get deep in my gut
Gut instinct kicks in, warning of the danger
But I pay no mind
Choosing to ignore the warning signs
Instinct out of sync but so what
Ignoring the warning signs regardless of the consequences
Love is blind
Being unable to see the negative effects of the attraction
She's gonna be the death of me
Knowing that she will bring him his demise
Here it comes again
Going back to the cycle again
The only leaf left on the tree
Being the only option left
And blowing in the wind
Being at the mercy of fate
In the end
Regardless of the consequences, he still goes back to her
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: BRENDAN BENSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@TurkGallant
BB you got a winner here.
@snaholo
good tune . . .
@mickybro
Best song of the YEAR, so far. I hope he comes to Atlanta.
@pooritech
Speaks to me! Great song! Just discovered the guy... great guy!
@pordoklani1
great song ! great album!
@brokenbricks5634
so good
@adritomasi
:D
@MrNoodles88
sounds like lou reed