The Teenagers' first single, 1956's "Why Do Fools Fall in Love", was also their biggest. After Lymon went solo in mid-1957, both his career and those of the Teenagers fell into decline. Lymon eventually fell into heroin addiction, and died in 1968 at the age of twenty-five.
These Foolish Things
Frankie Lymon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh! Will you never set me free?
The ties that bound us
Are still around us
There's no escape that I can see
And still those little things remain
That bring me happiness or pain
An airline ticket to romantic places
And still my heart has wings
These foolish things remind me of you
A tinkling piano in the next apartment
Those stumbling words that told you what my heart meant
A fair ground's painted swings
These foolish things remind me of you
You came you saw you conquer'd me
When you did that to me
I knew somehow this had to be
The winds of March that make my heart a dancer
A telephone that rings but who's to answer?
Oh, how the ghost of you clings!
These foolish things remind me of you
First daffodils and long excited cables
And candle lights on little corner tables
And still my heart has wings
These foolish things remind me of you
The park at evening when the bell has sounded
The "Ile de France" with all the gulls around it
The beauty that is Spring's
These foolish things remind me of you
How strange how sweet to find you still
These things are dear to me
They seem to bring you near to me
The sigh of midnight trains in empty stations
Silk stockings thrown aside dance invitations
Oh, how the ghost of you clings!
These foolish things remind me of you
Gardenia perfume ling'ring on a pillow
Wild strawb'ries only seven francs a kilo
And still my heart has wings
These foolish things remind me of you
The smile of Garbo and the scent of roses
The waiters whistling as the last bar closes
The song that Crosby sings
These foolish things remind me of you
How strange how sweet to find you still
These things are dear to me
They seem to bring you near to me
The scent of smould'ring leaves, the wail of steamers
Two lovers on the street who walk like dreamers
Oh, how the ghost of you clings!
These foolish things remind me of you
The song "These Foolish Things" is sung from the perspective of someone who is still holding onto memories of a past love. The first two lines of the song express the singer's frustration and feeling of being trapped by the memories: "Oh! Will you never let me be? Oh! Will you never set me free?" The ties that once bound the two people together, although physically severed, still linger in the memories and emotions of the singer.
The song then goes on to list a series of little things that trigger memories of the past love: a cigarette with lipstick on it, an old airline ticket, the sound of a piano, the beauty of nature during spring, and the perfume on a pillow. These little things serve as reminders of the person the singer used to love, bringing both happiness and pain.
The singer is amazed at how these small things can still have such a powerful effect on the person. They remark, "How strange how sweet to find you still, These things are dear to me, They seem to bring you near to me." The person is still in love with their past lover and can't help but to think of them when these little things come to mind.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh! Will you never let me be?
Can't you give me some space and let me be?
Oh! Will you never set me free?
Can't you let me go and set me free?
The ties that bound us
Our relationship is still holding us together
Are still around us
We can't seem to escape the connection we have
There's no escape that I can see
I can't find a way out of this situation
And still those little things remain
The memories of our time together still linger
That bring me happiness or pain
These memories can bring me joy or heartache
A cigarette that bears a lipstick's traces
The remnants of your lipstick on a cigarette reminds me of you
An airline ticket to romantic places
The ticket we shared to a romantic destination brings back memories
And still my heart has wings
My heart still feels light and free
These foolish things remind me of you
Even though they may seem insignificant, they trigger my memories of you
A tinkling piano in the next apartment
Hearing a piano playing in a nearby apartment brings back memories of us
Those stumbling words that told you what my heart meant
My hesitant confession of my love for you is still fresh in my mind
A fair ground's painted swings
The time we spent together at a fair and rode painted swings is still with me
You came you saw you conquer'd me
You won my heart when we first met
When you did that to me
I knew that this was meant to happen
I knew somehow this had to be
I had a feeling that we were meant to be together
The winds of March that make my heart a dancer
The spring breeze makes me feel alive and joyful
A telephone that rings but who's to answer?
I hear the phone ring but there's no one there to answer it
The park at evening when the bell has sounded
The sound of the bell in the park at night reminds me of you
The "Ile de France" with all the gulls around it
The sight of the Ile de France with the sound of the gulls takes me back to a memory with you
The beauty that is Spring's
The beauty of spring reminds me of our time together
How strange how sweet to find you still
It's amazing and comforting to have you still present in my life through my memories
These things are dear to me
These memories are precious and hold a special place in my heart
They seem to bring you near to me
These memories make me feel as though you are still close to me
The sigh of midnight trains in empty stations
The sound of trains passing by in the middle of the night reminds me of our past adventures
Silk stockings thrown aside dance invitations
The sight of silk stockings on the floor where we danced together is still vivid in my mind
Gardenia perfume lingering on a pillow
The scent of gardenia on a pillow reminds me of a night we shared together
Wild strawberries only seven francs a kilo
The taste of wild strawberries reminds me of a time we spent in France
The smile of Garbo and the scent of roses
The memory of Garbo's smile and the scent of roses takes me back to a special moment with you
The waiters whistling as the last bar closes
The sound of the waiters whistling as the bar closes reminds me of a fun night we had
The song that Crosby sings
The sound of Bing Crosby's voice reminds me of our time together
The scent of smould'ring leaves, the wail of steamers
The smell of burning leaves and the sound of steamers passing by brings back memories of us
Two lovers on the street who walk like dreamers
Seeing two lovers walking down the street with dreamy eyes takes me back to our own love story
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BOB STANLEY, PETER STEWART WIGGS, SARAH CRACKNELL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind