Califone is the musical project of former Red Red Meat frontman Tim Rutili. Its regular and rotating contributors include many former members of Red Red Meat and some members of other Chicago bands, such as Tortoise. Their music is less rooted in blues-rock than Red Red Meat and is more directly inspired by experimental music and early American folk music as can be found on Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music.
Califone's current lineup includes Joe Adamik (drums), Jim Becker (banjo, violin), Ben Massarella (percussion), and Tim Rutili (vocals, guitar, keyboards). Each member is a multi-instrumentalist.
Tim Rutili has collaborated with a number of other artists as well. He joined up with Modest Mouse frontman Isaac Brock and others in 2002 to release the album Sharpen Your Teeth under the band name Ugly Casanova. Some members also toured with Freakwater and served as a backing band to record the album Thinking of You in 2005. In 2006, Tim Rutili teamed up with Wil Hendricks and Michael Krassner under the name The Unseen Hand to record the soundtrack for Rank, a documentary about bullriding. In the same year Califone worked with animator/musician Brent Green on a series of performance art pieces featuring animation, live music, and spoken word. They are also featured on the soundtrack for the movie Stranger than Fiction.
Funeral Singers
Califone Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
What will I do without the weight of you?
Funeral singers wail
Charity fails, whose child are you now?
The lighthouse keeper grazed the lip
Spread like a fog
But doesn't take the jump again tonight
The book is aching for the tree
Return, return, return to me
All my friends, all my friends
All my friends are weeds and rain
All my friends are half-gone birds
Are magnets, all my friends are words
All my friends are funeral singers
Funeral singers, funeral singers wailing
A spark is aching for the light
Return, return, return tonight
All my friends, all my friends
All my friends are keeping time
All my friends have just quit trying
All my friends are funeral singers
Funeral singers, funeral singers wailing
The first line of the song, "A little narcotic warm on me," creates a sense of comfort and escape, suggesting that the singer is in a state of feeling numb to their emotions. The second line, "What will I do without the weight of you?" suggests that the singer has lost someone or something significant in their life. This theme is carried throughout the song as it addresses loss, grief and the inner turmoil that can follow.
The refrain "Funeral singers wail, charity fails, whose child are you now?" alludes to the idea of being lost and alone in the world without direction or guidance. The lighthouse keeper metaphor implies searching for a way out, yet feeling as if they are stuck in the fog. The repeated phrase "Return, return, return to me" throughout the song adds to the sense of longing for something lost or missing.
The chorus repeats "All my friends, all my friends, all my friends" suggesting that the singer does have a circle of support and companionship, but feels disconnected and detached from it. The line "All my friends are half-gone birds" again suggests loss, as birds are often a symbol of freedom and mobility, but being "half-gone" suggests that this freedom is slipping away. The repetition of "Funeral singers, funeral singers wailing" in each chorus adds to the somber and sorrowful tone of the song.
Line by Line Meaning
A little narcotic warm on me
The singer is feeling a slight sense of warmth and comfort from a narcotic substance.
What will I do without the weight of you?
The singer is questioning what they will do now that they no longer have the emotional burden and comfort of someone else in their life.
Funeral singers wail
The singer hears the mournful singing of funeral singers, adding to the somber atmosphere.
Charity fails, whose child are you now?
The artist reflects on the failure of charity and wonders who they belong to now, without the support of others.
The lighthouse keeper grazed the lip
The lighthouse keeper brushes against the edge of something, possibly a metaphor for being on the brink of something dangerous or experiencing a close call.
Spread like a fog
Something has spread out and covered the area like a dense fog, possibly metaphorical of an overwhelming feeling or situation.
Stood in the weather and prayed for a push
The singer stood out in the elements and wished for a force to propel them, perhaps referring to a change or a push towards something new.
But doesn't take the jump again tonight
Despite the artist's wish for a push, they ultimately decide not to take any action tonight and continue to stand still.
The book is aching for the tree
There is a desire for something to be reunited with its source or origin, in this case a book and a tree.
Return, return, return to me
The artist is asking for something to come back to them, possibly referring to a lost love or sense of self.
All my friends, all my friends
The singer is reflecting on their social circle and how they are all intertwined with one another.
All my friends are weeds and rain
The artist's friends are seen as something wild and uncontrolled, like weeds and rain.
All my friends are half-gone birds
The singer's friends are fragile creatures, half there and half not, flying in and out of their life.
Are magnets, all my friends are words
The singer is drawn to their friends and their words, feeling a magnetic pull towards them.
All my friends are funeral singers
The singer sees their friends as sad and mournful, like funeral singers.
Funeral singers, funeral singers wailing
The mournful singing of funeral singers adds to the already heavy atmosphere.
A spark is aching for the light
There is something within the artist that is yearning to be ignited, to find light in their life again.
Return, return, return tonight
The singer is asking for the return of something, wishing for it to happen tonight.
All my friends are keeping time
The singer's friends are marching in the same rhythm and moving together, keeping time with each other.
All my friends have just quit trying
The artist's friends have all given up and stopped trying to improve their lives or situations.
All my friends are funeral singers
The artist sees their friends as being stuck in a cycle of mourning and sadness, unable to move past the pain.
Funeral singers, funeral singers wailing
The mournful singing of funeral singers is again heard, highlighting the sadness within the artist's life and social circle.
Lyrics © ROUGH TRADE PUBLISHING, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Temistoclas Hugo Rutili
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@spuma01
A little narcotic warm on me
What will I do without the weight of you?
Funeral singers wail
Charity fails, whose child are you now?
The lighthouse keeper grazed the lip
Spread like a fog
Stood in the weather and prayed for a push
But doesn't take the jump again tonight
The book is aching for the tree
Return, return, return to me
All my friends, all my friends
All my friends are weeds and rain
All my friends are half-gone birds
Are magnets, all my friends are words
All my friends are funeral singers
Funeral singers, funeral singers wailing
A spark is aching for the light
Return, return, return tonight
All my friends, all my friends
All my friends are keeping time
All my friends have just quit trying
All my friends are funeral singers
Funeral singers, funeral singers wailing
@spuma01
A little narcotic warm on me
What will I do without the weight of you?
Funeral singers wail
Charity fails, whose child are you now?
The lighthouse keeper grazed the lip
Spread like a fog
Stood in the weather and prayed for a push
But doesn't take the jump again tonight
The book is aching for the tree
Return, return, return to me
All my friends, all my friends
All my friends are weeds and rain
All my friends are half-gone birds
Are magnets, all my friends are words
All my friends are funeral singers
Funeral singers, funeral singers wailing
A spark is aching for the light
Return, return, return tonight
All my friends, all my friends
All my friends are keeping time
All my friends have just quit trying
All my friends are funeral singers
Funeral singers, funeral singers wailing
@CapitanDavid
I'm not a native English speaker, I can't understand the main meaning of this song. Can you please explain it?
What this song all about?
@LeeElia
Thank you
@danmelvin9460
@DaviD hey dude! It's a little poetic, but the song is broadly about someone who feels very alone and is missing either someone (or people) from their past or maybe the person that they once were when they were younger. That's my interpretation, anyway. Hope that helps :)
Quick edit: It probably does have to do with the person in the song being a drug addict as well with the "A little narcotic warm on me; What would I do without the weight of you" line at the beginning. But you could interpret the song as a whole as either the person in the song giving up on their life and their friends and finding some comfort in drug use and wishing they could be the person they once were. Or realizing that their drug use has caused himself and his friends to give up on him and wishing that they was the person that they use to be before their drug addiction. Given the way the song is written, I think that the second interpretation fits better.
@CapitanDavid
@Dan Melvin Yeah , thank you 🙃
@codytylek7836
@DaviD friends dying and the idea of living friends still dying. Living boring life’s and stop trying.
@leelevine1279
Third eye blind just did a cover of this song and put it on their latest album. I thought it was actually the best song on their album, didn’t realize it was a cover until I found this…really great song.
@Shawn-bp6st
Same!!! Blown away by this
@WithBailey
Same!
@cobalt789
Make sure to check out the sylvan esso version too. It's rare that a song only has good covers. But this is one.