Saddle Creek also released Letting Off the Happiness in November 1998, a ten-track record that boasted a much more focused and clear sound than the previous album. According to the Saddle Creek press release, it features members of Lullaby for the Working Class, Neutral Milk Hotel, and Of Montreal. It was predominantly recorded in the Oberst family basement in Omaha on an analog eight track reel to reel; with some work also done at keyboardist Andy Lemaster's Athens, GA studio. Although almost all of the tracks feature a full band, June on the West Coast is performed with only acoustic guitar and vocals. Padraic My Prince gives a dramatic fictional account of the death of Oberst's imagined baby brother.
In 2000 Bright Eyes released Fevers and Mirrors, a demonstration of the immense improvement in production quality and musical vision of the band. New instruments such as flute, piano, and accordion were introduced into the song arrangements. After An Attempt to Tip the Scales, a mock radio interview takes place. The mock radio interview features Todd Fink of The Faint doing an impression of Conor Oberst while reading a script that Oberst wrote. The man interviewing is Matt Silcock, a former member of Lullaby for the Working Class. In this interview, the fake Oberst intentionally presents a strange, contradictory explanation of his attitude towards his music. The interview acknowledges criticisms of his lyrics as overblown and insincere, which had begun to appear as the popularity of the band increased, but responds by stating that the lyrics are meant for personal interpretation. In a 'real' interview with KittyMagik.com, Oberst stated about the mock one: "It was a way to make fun of ourselves because the record is such a downer. I mean, that's one part of who I am, but I also like laughing and fucking around."
2002 saw the release of Lifted or The Story Is in the Soil, Keep Your Ear to the Ground, and since then Oberst has released an almost constant stream of new material on collaborative EPs, split singles, tribute albums, and charity records. He ventured into the studio with Nebraska folk-pop outfit Tilly And The Wall, co-producing their debut album Wild Like Children and released it on his newly established record label, Team Love.
January 2005 saw the release of two albums: I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning, which is a country-tinged mélange of Conor’s finest acoustic songs, featuring guest vocal appearances from Emmylou Harris and Jim James of My Morning Jacket; and Digital Ash In A Digital Urn, which is a more produced, electronic album featuring cameo appearances by Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
One single from each album, Take It Easy (Love Nothing) from Digital Ash and Lua from I'm Wide Awake took the top two slots on Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart, the first time for any artist since 1997.
As had become expected of Bright Eyes recordings, the albums feature an array of talented comrades including members of Rilo Kiley, Tilly And The Wall, Cursive, Now Its Overhead, The Good Life, Azure Ray, The Faint, The Bruces, Neva Dinova, The Postal Service and Audrye Sessions.
In October 2006, Bright Eyes released a compilation of rare tracks called Noise Floor: Rarities 1998-2005.
Bright Eyes released their sixth studio album called Cassadaga on April 9, 2007, preceded by an EP entitled Four Winds on March 6, 2007.
A further 25-30 tracks have been recorded in Portland, Oregon and New York City, with another session planned in Omaha, Nebraska. Some of these tracks had already been performed at live shows.
On February 15, 2011, the band released their seventh studio album, The People's Key.
On June 22, 2020, they released Down In The Weeds Where The World Once Was, their first album on Dead Oceans after a long history with Saddle Creek.
I Woke Up With This Song in My Head This Morning
Bright Eyes Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I woke up with this song in my head this morning
I was dreaming about your record collection
And all of our scratched affection
I woke up with this song in my head this morning
With no singing
There's no swinging too
There's no missing you
I woke and put your record on this morning
I woke and put your record on this morning
So when the oven's hot
I'm gonna melt the plastic
Into an ashtray or candy basket
I woke up and put your record on this morning
With no singing
There's no swinging too
There's no dancing
There's no missing you
When you go
Will you glow
On and on and on and on?
When you go
Will you glow
On and on and on and on?
I woke up with this song in my head this morning
I woke up with this song in my head this morning
It made my head ache
It was that great
But now it's gone, and life is wonderful
You made my head ache
You were that great
But now you're gone, and life is wonderful
There's no singing
There's no swinging too
There's no dancing
There's no missing you
There's no screaming
There's no listening too
There's no scheming
There's no missing you
No missing you
The lyrics of Bright Eyes's "I Woke Up With This Song in My Head This Morning" is about waking up and remembering an ex-lover. The singer is reminiscing about their past relationship with their ex-partner whom they still miss terribly. The song begins with the singer waking up with a song in his head that reminds him of his ex’s record collection that they both used to listen to. He talks about their “scratched affection,” which is most likely a metaphorical reference to something that was once beautiful is now marred and no longer perfect.
The singer then recalls putting on one of his ex-partner’s records, and melting the plastic into an ashtray or candy basket as a way of holding onto the memories they shared together. The lyrics suggest that he is holding onto these memories by breaking something beautiful, like the record, and transforming it into something else.
The chorus of the song seems to be the main message of the singer. Without his ex-partner, there is no singing, dancing, or swinging, but life is still wonderful. He acknowledges the pain that comes with missing someone, but the world moves on, and things get better. He ends the song on a note of acceptance, saying that there is no missing or clinging onto the past.
Some possible interpretations of the song could be that it’s about nostalgia, lost love, and the pain of letting go. The singer expresses how beautiful and great his relationship was while it lasted, but also how he had to face the reality of life after the relationship ended. The song's title emphasizes the idea of waking up with a song in your head, which can signify the hold that memories and emotions can have over us.
Line by Line Meaning
I woke up with this song in my head this morning
The singer woke up with a particular song in their head and became nostalgic.
I was dreaming about your record collection
The singer was dreaming about a person’s record collection.
And all of our scratched affection
The affection the singer had for someone is worn down and damaged.
With no singing
There's no swinging too
There's no dancing
There's no missing you
Singing, swinging, dancing, and missing someone are all interconnected feelings.
I woke and put your record on this morning
The artist woke up and played someone's record to extend the feeling of nostalgia.
So when the oven's hot
I'm gonna melt the plastic
Into an ashtray or candy basket
The singer is willing to destroy the vinyl record to make something new and perhaps poetic.
When you go
Will you glow
On and on and on and on?
When someone leaves a significant impact on a person, they still think about them even after they’ve gone.
It made my head ache
It was that great
But now it's gone, and life is wonderful
The song and the feeling it brought caused the artist pain and pleasure, but ultimately relieved them of their pain.
There's no screaming
There's no listening too
There's no scheming
There's no missing you
No missing you
Screaming, listening, scheming, and missing all interconnect to make up parts of a relationship or how a person feels when they’ve lost that relationship.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind