God
Duran Duran Lyrics


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Oh, the paper gods in the sky of gray
All the fools in town are ruling today
Today
Bow to the paper gods in a world that is paper thin (oh, the paper gods)
Fools in town are ruling now (in the sky of grey)
Bleeding from paper cuts, money for headshots (all the fools in town are ruling today)
Fools leading (today)
Who needs it?

"Hey, you're gonna want it all" the talking man declares
Go running to be first in line for what, nobody cares
The next thing you must have
Find peace with matching bag
It's nothing to be glad about or sad when you forget about it
And while the race is on the rats will run the street
The slaver in a sweatshop putting trainers on your feet
And walking through the rain, oblivious to pain
To shelter from the blame without a reason to complain about it
(Oh, oh, oh) don't complain about it
(Oh, oh, oh) don't complain about it
(Oh, oh, oh) forget about it
(Oh, oh, oh, oh)
Bow to the paper gods in a world that is paper thin (all the paper gods)
Fools in town are ruling now (all the fools in town)
Bleeding from paper cuts, money for head shots (are ruling today)
Fools leading
Who needs it?

She's staring out in underwear from your computer screen
It's all on sale for dirty cash, we can wash it clean
So hang it out online, confess and you'll feel fine
And if you got the time to spare we want to know which name you're wearing
And when the final curtain finally comes down
We'll all be in the party room, no wiser as to how
The total human race became a basket case
It's nothing to lose face about, it's really not our place to doubt it
Bow to the paper gods in a world that is paper thin (all the paper gods)
The fools in town are ruling now (all the fools in town)
Bleeding from paper cuts, money for head shots (are ruling today)
Fools leading
Who needs it?

(Paper walls falling down)
(Paper house, paper town)
(Paper gods falling down)
(Paper world just falling down)
(Paper walls falling down)
(Paper house, paper town)
(Paper gods falling down)
(Paper world just falling down)
(Falling down, falling down)
(Falling down, falling down)
(Falling down)

Bow to the paper gods in a world that is paper thin (all the paper gods)
Fools in town are ruling now (in the sky of grey, all the fools in town)
Bleeding from paper cuts, they go for the money shots (are leading today)
The fools leading
Who needs them?
All the paper gods in the sky of grey




All the fools in town are ruling today
Today

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Duran Duran's song "Paper Gods" talks about the obsession with money and material possessions and how it has led to a world that is shallow and paper-thin. The "paper gods" in the sky of gray refers to those who hold power due to wealth and the "fools in town" are those who blindly follow them. The song emphasizes the negative effects of consumerism and the lack of care for anything else but money. The line "bleeding from paper cuts, money for headshots" suggests that people are hurting themselves in pursuit of money and fame.


The talking man in the song represents the media or the marketing industry that always insists that we need the next new thing. He urges us to go out and buy the latest product even if we don't need it. The line "confess and you'll feel fine" suggests that society today is obsessed with social media and the desire to show off material possessions to gain social status. The song imagines a bleak future where humanity has lost its sense of purpose and direction, living only for the moment without a thought for the consequences.


Overall, "Paper Gods" is a commentary on the nature of modern society and our worship of money and material possessions. The song urges us to look beyond our possessions and recognize the importance of true connections with each other.


Line by Line Meaning

Oh, the paper gods in the sky of gray
The people in power who control our world are just like paper-thin gods in the sky, without substance or real power.


All the fools in town are ruling today Today
Even though we call them paper-thin, the fools in our town are the ones in charge today, which is a tragedy.


Bow to the paper gods in a world that is paper thin (oh, the paper gods)
We must all bow to the paper gods in this paper-thin world, even though they are weak and powerless.


Fools in town are ruling now (in the sky of grey)
The foolish people in charge are ruling over us right now, which makes everything seem cloudy and grey.


Bleeding from paper cuts, money for headshots (all the fools in town are ruling today)
We are all suffering from small cuts caused by the paper-thin gods and the foolish people in charge, who only care about making money and gaining power.


Fools leading (today)
Today, the fools who are in charge are leading our society towards disaster.


Who needs it?
The world would be better off without these paper-thin gods and foolish leaders.


"Hey, you're gonna want it all" the talking man declares
A salesman or advertiser is promising us that we need everything, even though we don't.


Go running to be first in line for what, nobody cares
We rush to buy something that we don't really need, while nobody really cares or benefits from it.


The next thing you must have Find peace with matching bag
We are told that we need something new to be happy, even if it's just a matching bag that doesn't really bring us peace or happiness.


It's nothing to be glad about or sad when you forget about it
When we forget about these material possessions, we realize that they weren't really important or meaningful in the first place.


And while the race is on the rats will run the street
While everyone is busy competing for material possessions, the greedy people and corporations will take advantage of us and gain more control.


The slaver in a sweatshop putting trainers on your feet
While we enjoy our new shoes, someone is being exploited in a sweatshop and forced to work long hours without fair pay or rights.


And walking through the rain, oblivious to pain
We are so distracted by our material possessions that we don't even notice the pain and suffering of others around us.


To shelter from the blame without a reason to complain about it
We use our possessions as an excuse to avoid blame and complaints, even though they are the source of our problems.


(Oh, oh, oh) don't complain about it
We are urged not to complain or speak out against the system that we know is flawed and unjust.


(Oh, oh, oh) forget about it
Instead, we are told to forget about the problems caused by our materialistic society, even if it means ignoring those who suffer because of it.


She's staring out in underwear from your computer screen
A woman is being objectified and exploited online for the pleasure of others, without regard for her feelings or dignity.


It's all on sale for dirty cash, we can wash it clean
Everything is available for sale, even the exploitation and objectification of others, and we pretend that we can make it acceptable and ethical by buying it.


So hang it out online, confess and you'll feel fine
We are encouraged to share our exploits and material possessions online, and pretend that it will make us feel better or more accomplished.


And if you got the time to spare we want to know which name you're wearing
We are encouraged to share our status symbols and the brands we wear, to show off our wealth and success to others.


And when the final curtain finally comes down
When our lives come to an end, and all is said and done, what will really matter and what will we have achieved?


We'll all be in the party room, no wiser as to how
We will all die together, without ever understanding the true meaning of our materialistic and greedy lives.


The total human race became a basket case
Humanity has become a failure and a disaster, because of our obsession with material possessions and greed.


It's nothing to lose face about, it's really not our place to doubt it
We shouldn't be embarrassed or ashamed of the failure of our society, and we shouldn't question the status quo.


(Paper walls falling down)
The paper walls and structures of our society are starting to collapse and fail.


(Paper house, paper town)
Our world is just a paper-thin façade, built on greed and materialism, and it is starting to crumble.


(Paper gods falling down)
The paper gods are losing their power and control, and we are starting to see through their lies and manipulations.


(Paper world just falling down)
The paper-thin world that we have built is starting to fall apart, and we are powerless to stop it.


(Falling down, falling down)
Everything is falling apart, and we are losing control.


Bow to the paper gods in a world that is paper thin (all the paper gods)
Even though they are losing their power, we still bow to the paper gods and submit to their will, because we don't know any better.


Fools in town are ruling now (all the fools in town)
The foolish people in charge are still ruling over us, even though their grip on power is slipping.


Bleeding from paper cuts, they go for the money shots (are ruling today)
We are still suffering the consequences of the paper-thin world that we have created, where greed and materialism rule over all else.


The fools leading
The foolish people who are in charge are leading us towards our own destruction.


Who needs them?
We don't need the paper gods or the foolish leaders who are in charge, we need to find a better way forward for humanity.


All the paper gods in the sky of grey
The paper gods are still there, even if they are losing their power, and they are still causing the sky to seem grey and cloudy.


All the fools in town are ruling today
The foolish leaders are still in charge, even if their grip on power is slipping, and they are still causing chaos and destruction in our world.




Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BEN HUDSON MCILDOWIE, JOHN TAYLOR, NICK RHODES, ROGER ANDREW TAYLOR, SIMON JOHN CHARLES LE BON

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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