Grandaddy are an American indie pop band formed in Modesto, California in 1… Read Full Bio ↴Grandaddy are an American indie pop band formed in Modesto, California in 1992 by singer/guitarist/keyboardist Jason Lytle, bassist Kevin Garcia, and drummer Aaron Burtch; although a noisy, lo-fi approach characterized early recordings like 1994's Complex Party Come Along Theories, with the 1995 additions of guitarist Jim Fairchild and keyboardist Tim Dryden the group's sound expanded exponentially over the course of subsequent efforts including the unreleased Don't Sock the Tryer and the 1996 EP A Pretty Mess by This One Band. Originally issued on indie label Will Records, 1997's acclaimed full-length Under the Western Freeway proved Grandaddy's creative breakthrough, and the following year the album was reissued on major-label V2, with "Summer Here Kids" earning Single of the Week honors in the pages of the NME. The Broken Down Comforter Collection, a compilation of singles tracks, preceded the 1999 Signal to Snow Ratio EP, which heralded a movement toward the vintage electronic textures further in evidence on 2000's superb The Sophtware Slump. In 2002, the group released another odds-n-sods collection, Concrete Dunes, which paved the way for a busy 2003: that spring, Grandaddy released the Floating Debris EP and their fourth full-length, Sumday, and spent the rest of the year touring, making appearances at festivals such as Glastonbury. In 2005, they resurfaced with the Excerpts from the Diary of Todd Zilla EP and a full-length album (Just Like the Fambly Cat) followed in 2006. It was to be their last, though Jason Lytle continues to tour, playing Grandaddy songs as well as his own solo works.

Additional Info:

Under the name Arm of Roger, Grandaddy recorded a joke album entitled The Ham and its Lily in 2002.

A.M. 180, which was released as a single, is featured prominently in the British film 28 Days Later.

On the 27th January 2006, Jason Lytle confirmed that the band would split following the release of their final album, Just Like The Fambly Cat.

Jason Lytle has since toured the US as a solo artist, playing Grandaddy songs from the last album and others. He is said to plan a solo career of new material.

On March 2, 2012, Grandaddy announced their reunion with news of a headline slot at the End of the Road Festival in Dorset, England on 2 September. Further dates are expected.

Away Birdies W-Special Sounds
Grandaddy Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I woke up in the morning
And they were gone
I look around for them
But they're nowhere

I woke up in the morning
And I looked everywhere
But I think they've gone away

I think they gone away

I looked everywhere for them
But they've gone
I do not know why they've gone away
I do not want them to go away

I woke up in the morning

And they were gone
And I do not want them to go away

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "Away Birdies w/ Special Sounds" by Grandaddy are about the feeling of loss and the desire to hold on to something that has already slipped away. The singer wakes up in the morning and realizes that something, presumably the birds, is missing. He looks around and searches for them but cannot find them. The repetition of the lines "I woke up in the morning and they were gone" emphasizes a feeling of disbelief and shock at the sudden disappearance. The singer is desperate to locate the birds and longs for their presence, expressing the sentiment "I do not want them to go away" over and over.

The metaphor of the birds is open to interpretation, but it conveys a sense of loss and mortality. One interesting interpretation is that the birds represent the singer's lost youth, innocence, or freedom. The song may be seen as a reflection on the transience of life and the inevitability of change. The use of "special sounds" in the title evokes a sense of nostalgia, pointing to a time when the singer could hear the sounds that are now missing. In summary, the song is a poignant representation of human experiences such as longing, loss, and the struggle to hold on.

Line by Line Meaning

I woke up in the morning
The singer starts the song by saying they woke up in the morning

And they were gone
The singer notices that something/someone is missing when they woke up

I look around for them
The singer tries to search for the missing thing/person

But they're nowhere
But the missing thing/person is not found, they're not in the artist's surroundings

And I looked everywhere
The artist tries to search for the missing thing/person, in different places

But I think they've gone away
But the singer believes that the missing thing/person has left or moved away

I think they've gone away
The singer restates that they believe the missing thing/person has left

I looked everywhere for them
The artist makes an effort to locate the missing thing/person

But they've gone
But despite the effort, the missing thing/person is still not found

I do not know why they've gone away
The artist is unsure why the missing thing/person left or moved away

I do not want them to go away
The singer expresses sadness or loss, wanting the missing thing/person to come back