The group initally formed to compete in the National Campus Band Competition in 1997. Temperley and Quartermain were already in a band at the time, Freud's Pillow, but had met with little success and asked Temperley's childhood friend MacLeod to form a new band, which became Eskimo Joe. The band ended up winning the competition prize: a slot at the 1997 Livid Festival and a session in a studio to record their first EP, Sweater. The title track became so successful on national broadcaster Triple J, it gained much airplay and featured in the Hottest 100 of 1998. A second EP Eskimo Joe followed up in 1999.
Later in 1999, Eskimo Joe was signed on to Modular and in 2001, their debut album Girl, which went gold. After splitting with Modular, they signed a new contract with Mushroom in 2002, releasing sophomore album A Song is a City in 2004. The album went double-platinum and earned the group Best Artist the following year.
Settling down for six weeks over Christmas in 2005, the noticeably darker album Black Fingernails Red Wine, was recorded and released the following June, debuting at number one on the ARIA charts and later going platinum. The band (jokingly) described the album as their "stadium rock" record and headed out on extensive touring around the country, including a stint at Live Earth in Sydney.
The band eventually went on to tour the globe, with trips around the US and Europe, before recording their fourth album, Inshalla, in Byron Bay. The album was released in May 2009 and topped the charts at number one in the ARIA album charts. It explores a very different sound for Eskimo Joe, with lead singer Temperley saying the band were a stage where they wanted to do something different musically and also in their personal lives.
Car Crash
Eskimo Joe Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In a car crash with you
Tonight
Tonight
The roads are wet
And you're asleep at the wheel
Open your eyes
Can't you try and wait
Till I'm wide awak
Or will it never come
And if it was a dream
Did you hear me scream
While you watched me sleep
The nighttime roads
Feel like we're floating away
Keep me safe
Kepp me safe
And if we make it home
Then I will know
I'm still asleep
Still asleep
Can't you try and wait
Till I'm wide awake
Or will it never come
And if it was a dream
Did you hear me scream
While you watched me sleep
I'm almost home
I can't make it on my own
Almost home
Baby don't go
Out on the roads
Tonight
I had a terrible dream
But it was only a dream
So don't worry about me
The song "Car Crash" by Eskimo Joe is a hauntingly beautiful tale of fear and uncertainty. It begins with the singer expressing a fear of dying in a car crash with someone, possibly a lover, and desperately pleading with them to stay alert and wait until they are both wide awake before driving. The singer is clearly deeply afraid and worried about their safety. They feel like they are floating away, in danger of slipping into a dream-like state that could lead to their demise.
The second verse is filled with more bleak imagery as the singer wonders if their pleas are falling on deaf ears, and if they will ever be truly safe. They ask their companion if they heard them scream in their dream, a sign of the singer's deep-seated fears that are not fully acknowledged or understood by their partner. The singer eventually makes it home, relieved but still scared, and assures their companion in the final verse that it was all just a dream, but the fear lingers on.
The song may be interpreted as a metaphor for relationships where one person feels more vulnerable or exposed than the other. The fear of being hurt, of not being understood, of being ignored or neglected, all these emotions bubble up to the surface in the song. The car crash becomes a symbol for the dangers and perils of love, and the need for reassurance and trust in relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
I don't wanna die
Expressing fear of death
In a car crash with you
Death involving the person addressed
Tonight
Imminent fear of death
The roads are wet
Describing the hazardous conditions
And you're asleep at the wheel
Stating the cause of the danger
Open your eyes
Urging the addressed person to awake from sleep
Can't you try and wait
Requesting consideration for the addressed person's safety
Till I'm wide awake
Emphasizing the need for alertness
Or will it never come
Questioning the addressed person's regard for safety
And if it was a dream
Musing about an imaginary scenario
Did you hear me scream
Questioning the addressed person's awareness in the imaginary scenario
While you watched me sleep
Highlighting the potential danger that could occur in the imaginary scenario
The nighttime roads
Describing the conditions of the roads
Feel like we're floating away
Expressing a feeling of lack of control
Keep me safe
Asking for protection
And if we make it home
Expressing hope for survival
Then I will know
Stating the consequence of survival
I'm still asleep
Imagining an alternate reality
Can't you try and wait
Repeating the request for safety
Till I'm wide awake
Reiterating the importance of alertness
Or will it never come
Rephrasing the question of regard for safety
And if it was a dream
Repeating the imaginary scenario
Did you hear me scream
Repeating the question of awareness
While you watched me sleep
Repeating the potential danger
I'm almost home
Expressing proximity to destination
I can't make it on my own
Admitting inadequacy
Baby don't go
Asking for companionship
Out on the roads
Describing the environment
Tonight
Emphasizing the fear of the environment
I had a terrible dream
Revisiting the imaginary scenario
But it was only a dream
Denying the reality of the scenario
So don't worry about me
Reassuring the addressed person
Lyrics © WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@schpoogie
lyrical genius
@bendangerfield1163
My mother was killed in a car accident when I was 7 and this song speaks the Lang of such heart break yet a very sad reality