Appleby spent a winter and spring holed up with close friends in a Ballard warehouse banging pots, plucking strings, tapping mason jars, and plunking pianos. What emerged from these musical ramblings was the long-awaited debut full-length, Fire on the Vine. The album elaborates on his affinity for organic soundscapes and acoustic found sounds. And yet, the record remains accessible with lush, satisfying melodies. True to the approach taken with his first EP, Shoes for Men and Beasts, the songs are crafted carefully, with an emphasis on compelling lyrics. The thoughtful narratives supply the cast of characters with a range of experiences and emotions that reflect the songwriter’s personal doubts and realizations.
Some who have only seen Appleby perform solo may find the album a bit surprising. Though many of the songs are crafted around Appleby’s somewhat sparse finger picking style, they take on new identities as far-reaching instrumentation wraps around luring melodies and harmonies. With live performances on KEXP and shows with Damien Jurado and The Head and the Heart in his rear view mirror, Appleby and his band anticipate a fruitful remainder of the year with various tours and local opportunities.
Boys
Bryan John Appleby Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Boots wrapped in rope and wire
And black hands in cold leather
But I am not one of them. No, I am not one of them
But they all know me by name. They all know me by name
Men in the aisles, closed eyes and gold dust on their fingers
Don’t let your vices linger
They say Elijah was carried off,
caught up in a chariot made of flame
So we too will ride in cars that shine
If you name it, it’s yours to claim
But I am not one of them. No, I am not one of them
But they all know me by name. They all know me by name
Girls from the corner, coming from the Corinthian Quarters
That’s my place on Jackson
The Preacher and the Politician, the Working Man
They come looking to me, they come asking
I know soon God will come and even if I run
His horsemen bound to find me
He’ll ask me why I’ve done the things I’ve done
And I’ll tell Him you made the mouths I feed
And I’ll say, I am not one of them
I am not one of them
But He’ll turn to me and say,
Oh, I don’t know you by name!
No, I don’t know you by name!
And I’ll think to myself,
You never did make known to me Your ways
The song “Boys” by Bryan John Appleby talks about the social divide and the unspoken hierarchy that exists amongst people of different classes. The first stanza describes the “slum childs” who gather in a certain area with their boots wrapped in rope and wire, and their cold leather hands. While they may appear as outsiders, they all know each other by name. The next stanza talks about men who are wealthy and well-to-do with gold dust on their fingers. They preach and claim that God will come soon and will bless them if they are pure of heart. The third and final stanza talks about girls from the corner who come from the Corinthian Quarters. They are visited by the preacher, the politician, and the working man, who all come asking for something. They believe in God and the final reckoning where everyone will be judged. The singer acknowledges and contrasts himself to each of those groups, as he is not one of them, but everyone knows him by name. In the final lines, the singer is visited by God, and he realizes that he doesn’t know Him by name.
The song paints a vivid picture of people of different social standings and their beliefs. It talks about the unique social structure of the time and how people interacted with each other. It shows how everyone’s beliefs are tailored to their social status and how the singer finds himself distanced from God despite his interactions with people from all walks of life.
Line by Line Meaning
Boys from the street, slum childs come in here together
The boys from the slums gather here with their makeshift clothes.
Boots wrapped in rope and wire
Their boots are secured with whatever they find, like rope and wire.
And black hands in cold leather
Their hands, dark in complexion, are covered in cold leather.
But I am not one of them. No, I am not one of them
Despite their familiarity with him, the artist asserts that he doesn't belong to that group.
But they all know me by name. They all know me by name
Despite his denial of belonging to their group, they call him by his name.
Men in the aisles, closed eyes and gold dust on their fingers
The men inside the building have their eyes shut and gold dust on their fingers.
They say soon God will come, so hold your tongue
They believe that God will come very soon, hence they advise others to be prepared and not to speak out of turn.
Don’t let your vices linger
They advise to avoid indulging in sinful behavior.
They say Elijah was carried off, caught up in a chariot made of flame
They reference a story from the Bible about Elijah being taken away in a chariot of fire.
So we too will ride in cars that shine
They believe they will also ride in shining cars.
If you name it, it’s yours to claim
They believe that if they want something, they just have to name it and it will be theirs.
But I am not one of them. No, I am not one of them
The artist distances himself from this group as well.
But they all know me by name. They all know me by name
Despite his denial of belonging to their group, they call him by his name.
Girls from the corner, coming from the Corinthian Quarters
Girls from the nearby area come to him.
That’s my place on Jackson
Jackson is where he conducts his business.
The Preacher and the Politician, the Working Man
People of different backgrounds come to him.
They come looking to me, they come asking
They seek his help and advice.
I know soon God will come and even if I run, His horsemen bound to find me
The singer believes that God will come soon and even if he tries to escape, he cannot run away from God.
He’ll ask me why I’ve done the things I’ve done
The singer believes that God will question him about his actions.
And I’ll tell Him you made the mouths I feed
The artist believes that God will understand that he had to do certain things to provide for those around him.
And I’ll say, I am not one of them
Again, the artist reiterates that he doesn't belong to any particular group.
I am not one of them
He emphasizes this further.
But He’ll turn to me and say, Oh, I don’t know you by name!
The singer believes that God will not recognize him.
No, I don’t know you by name!
The artist repeats this statement.
And I’ll think to myself, You never did make known to me Your ways
The singer realizes that he never really understood or followed God's ways.
Contributed by Riley A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Chrońmy Pszczółki
Boys from the street, slum childs come in here together
Boots wrapped in rope and wire
And black hands in cold leather
But I am not one of them. No, I am not one of them
But they all know me by name. They all know me by name
Men in the aisles, closed eyes and gold dust on their fingers
They say soon God will come, so hold your tongue
Don’t let your vices linger
They say Elijah was carried off,
caught up in a chariot made of flame
So we too will ride in cars that shine
If you name it, it’s yours to claim
But I am not one of them. No, I am not one of them
But they all know me by name. They all know me by name
Girls from the corner, coming from the Corinthian Quarters
That’s my place on Jackson
The Preacher and the Politician, the Working Man
They come looking to me, they come asking
I know soon God will come and even if I run
His horsemen bound to find me
He’ll ask me why I’ve done the things I’ve done
And I’ll tell Him you made the mouths I feed
And I’ll say, I am not one of them
I am not one of them
But He’ll turn to me and say,
Oh, I don’t know you by name!
No, I don’t know you by name!
And I’ll think to myself,
You never did make known to me Your ways
Sunnhawk
The world needs to hear him. Thank you.
dlouthain
I will be listening to Fire on the Vine for years to come. A friend of mine told me he's working on a new album right now. Can't wait.
Bailey Koehn
thank you Salomon Freeski TV for showing me another great band. i'm in love
Benjamin Noyade
It definitely needed to be heard.
Chrońmy Pszczółki
Boys from the street, slum childs come in here together
Boots wrapped in rope and wire
And black hands in cold leather
But I am not one of them. No, I am not one of them
But they all know me by name. They all know me by name
Men in the aisles, closed eyes and gold dust on their fingers
They say soon God will come, so hold your tongue
Don’t let your vices linger
They say Elijah was carried off,
caught up in a chariot made of flame
So we too will ride in cars that shine
If you name it, it’s yours to claim
But I am not one of them. No, I am not one of them
But they all know me by name. They all know me by name
Girls from the corner, coming from the Corinthian Quarters
That’s my place on Jackson
The Preacher and the Politician, the Working Man
They come looking to me, they come asking
I know soon God will come and even if I run
His horsemen bound to find me
He’ll ask me why I’ve done the things I’ve done
And I’ll tell Him you made the mouths I feed
And I’ll say, I am not one of them
I am not one of them
But He’ll turn to me and say,
Oh, I don’t know you by name!
No, I don’t know you by name!
And I’ll think to myself,
You never did make known to me Your ways
Renae Christie
I saw him open for The Head and the Heart. I haven't stopped listening since.
Kay Rae
I am responsible for maybe 20 views for myself and all the people I have shared this lovely song with. Thank You for this song.
Vero Calderón
5:13 idk why it makes me cry, from happiness though
Spench
Verónica Calderón That's odd, since in my mind it's the saddest part of the song. In my opinion, it's about a man believing that God will accept him if he does good in the world, but when he gets to heaven he gets rejected because he never knew the true way to heaven because God never told him "Never did make known to me your ways"
Yash
I fucking hate that one dislike to this amazing song