The band originated in the early 1990s as One Fell Swoop, but changed their name to Dispatch in 1996. Chad Urmston, Braddigan, and Pete (Francis) Heimbold, who were all attending Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont comprised the band's lineup throughout their entire career. Their music has drawn on several influences, such as acoustic folk-rock, reggae, and funk.
Dispatch gained much recognition outside of New England, without any help from a label, and stuck together long enough to release seven albums, three of which were live performances. During concerts, the band had been known to improvise upon their album releases, often resulting in a song ending in twice the length of the original. The group was also fond of switching instruments and vocal duties when playing live.
Upon the announcement of its break-up in 2002, the band scheduled one final concert. The free show was performed at the Hatch Shell in Boston on July 31, 2004. "The Last Dispatch," as it was referred, is said to be the largest concert in independent music history; roughly 110,000 fans from over 20 different countries attended the show. Parts of the performance were released as a CD/DVD two-disc set later that year, entitled All Points Bulletin, along with an earlier show in Somerville, Massachusetts.
All three of the band's members are currently still in the music industry. Urmston is now the frontman of State Radio, while Corrigan (now credited as Braddigan, a nickname by which he was known since his time with Dispatch) and Heimbold (now credited as Pete Francis, his middle name) are succesfully pursuing solo efforts.
After the song Elias, written by Urmston after his experience living and teaching in Zimbabwe, the "Elias Fund" was formed to send children from the ravaged country to college.
Dispatch came out with a movie entitled "Last Dispatch" in July 2005, which documents their final 12 days together as a band and tells the story of how they became "the band that redefined independent music history". The film was released and previewed in Boston. Chad, Brad, and Pete attended the showing and celebrated throughout the weekend with their fans.
On December 22, 2005, Corrigan helped to organize a benefit concert, known as the Relief Project, at Irving Plaza in New York, New York. Along with several other performers, Corrigan invited Heimbold and State Radio to play. The three reunited very briefly, playing the song Here We Go as an encore. Corrigan stated there that he plans further Relief Project concerts featuring all three and perhaps sometime in 2007, a major Dispatch reunion concert.
Entitled "Dispatch: Zimbabwe", Dispatch arranged for one show in Madison Square Garden, with all the money sent towards relief efforts in Zimbabwe. Originally billed as a one show deal on July 14, Dispatch was surprised how quickly this first show sold out and set two more shows for the 13 and 15. After all three shows sold out, Dispatch announced another smaller show on July 11th at Webster Hall in New York, where they made their comeback debut to great success.
Dispatch had a second set of reunion concerts beginning at Red Rocks amphitheater in Denver, Colorado on June 3, 4, and 5th, 2011. These performances launched a reunion tour around the US and the release of their Dispatch EP on May 17th.
In 2017, the band released the song, "Only The Wild Ones" from their album, America, Location 12.
Cover This
Dispatch Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I was wounded, you can't take me there
'Cause it was a crime that I was left
Will you go on without me?
Think I'll just walk myself to sleep
'Cause I ain't working for your father
But I might as well be
But it tends to follow me
You can come into my house, she said
If you do it quietly
But I said
There ain't no chance in that, no
'Cause I am missin' into what you got
Put up your hands if you want me to stop
And I turn around but I think I'm crazy
If you think this happens a lot
Oh, do you like this?
Do you need someone to cover you
Just to show you what you miss?
Wounded, I well go if you go first
But I ain't gonna wait around
Tell me how much is your damn worth
We got then minutes to get there
We got ten minutes to go
Throw this one in for the money
'Cause the next one's for the next show
I ain't working for your father
But I might as well be
I ain't looking for confusion
But it tends to follow me
You can come into my house she said
If you do it quietly
But I said
There ain't no chance in that, no
'Cause I am missin' into what you got
Put up your hands if you want me to stop
But I turn around but I think I'm crazy
If you think this happens a lot
Oh, do you like this?
Do you need someone to cover you
Just to show you what you miss?
So hey, where you going?
Do you need somebody, somewhere
To help you get on by?
'Cause I think, you know who I am
And I'm gonna make this
As fast as I can
Some people call me
The push-up man
I promise it won't take
No no no no no no
Just close your eyes, yeah
And get in the van
I am missin' into what you got
Put up your hands if you want me to stop
And I turn around but I think I'm crazy
If you think this happens a lot
Oh, do you like this?
Do you need someone to cover you
Just to show you what you miss?
'Cause I am missin' into what you got
Put up your hands if you want me to stop
And I turn around but I think I'm crazy
If you think this happens a lot
Oh, do you like this?
Do you need someone to cover you
Just to show you what you miss?
Hey eh hay hay hay hay
And we comin' around again
The song "Cover This" by Dispatch is a thought-provoking piece that is open to various interpretations. The opening lines, "Wounded, you can't take me there, I was wounded, you can't take me there" suggest that the singer is hurt and unwilling to be vulnerable with another person. It's almost as if the person has been scarred by a previous experience that they do not wish to relive. The line "Think I'll just walk myself to sleep" indicates a desolate state of mind, where one would rather be alone with their thoughts than interact with the world.
The refrain "Oh, do you like this? Do you need someone to cover you just to show you what you miss?" suggests that the singer is addressing someone who seems to have a void that they're trying to fill. They're offering to be that cover-up, but it's not clear whether it's a positive or negative role that's being played. The other person has to decide whether the cover-up and distraction will help them deal with their problems or whether they need to face them head-on.
The mention of the "push-up man" and "getting in the van" hints at the more sinister interpretation of the song. It's possible that the singer could be a pimp or a drug dealer, providing a temporary escape from problems for those who need it. It's also possible that they're addressing someone who's struggling with addiction and needs someone to take care of them. The song leaves a lot of room for interpretation and is open to various readings.
Line by Line Meaning
Wounded, you can't take me there
I am hurt, and you cannot take me where I need to go
I was wounded, you can't take me there
I have been injured, and you are not able to take me to the place I require
'Cause it was a crime that I was left
It was wrong that I was abandoned
Will you go on without me?
Are you planning to carry on without me?
Think I'll just walk myself to sleep
I might just walk and drift off to sleep
'Cause I ain't working for your father
I am not your father's employee
But I might as well be
I may as well be since I am doing what he wants me to do
I ain't looking for confusion
I do not desire any chaos
But it tends to follow me
But somehow it seems to find me
You can come into my house, she said
She told me that I could come into her home
If you do it quietly
As long as I enter discreetly
But I said
But I responded
There ain't no chance in that, no
That is highly unlikely
'Cause I am missin' into what you got
I am envious of what you possess
Put up your hands if you want me to stop
Raise your hands if you desire me to halt
And I turn around but I think I'm crazy
I spin around, but I imagine I am delusional
If you think this happens a lot
If you believe this occurs frequently
Do you like this?
Do you enjoy this?
Do you need someone to cover you
Do you require someone to shield you?
Just to show you what you miss?
Only to reveal to you what you are overlooking?
Wounded, I well go if you go first
Injured, I will accompany you if you lead the way
But I ain't gonna wait around
But I am not willing to linger
Tell me how much is your damn worth
Inform me how much you are worth
We got then minutes to get there
We have ten minutes to arrive
We got ten minutes to go
We have ten minutes to proceed
Throw this one in for the money
Include this one to earn some cash
'Cause the next one's for the next show
Because we will use the next one for the following performance
Hey eh hay hay hay hay
Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey
And we comin' around again
And we are returning again
So hey, where you going?
So, hey, where are you headed?
Do you need somebody, somewhere
Require someone, someplace
To help you get on by?
To assist you to continue?
'Cause I think, you know who I am
Because I believe you know who I am
And I'm gonna make this
And I am going to accomplish this
As fast as I can
As rapidly as possible
Some people call me
Some individuals refer to me as
The push-up man
The guy who does push-ups
I promise it won't take
I assure it will not require
No no no no no no
No, no, no, no, no, no
Just close your eyes, yeah
Just shut your eyes, yes
And get in the van
And board the van
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Bradley Joseph Corrigan, Chad Stokes Urmston, Peter Francis Heimbold
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@onebigholiday42
This song still rules. I discovered this by chance right around the time it came out, still as awesome as it was then.
@federicodavila7900
Great, great band.
Listening from Uruguay
@mrporkchops7284
Nice bro. Hope you're still doing well
@reginaldtodd6736
headphones and loud, maybe my favorite song
@micahrandall1344
love this album!!!
Thank you so much for having a youtube channel