Ball And Chain
Holding Company the Lyrics


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Sitting down by my window,
Whoa, whoa, looking at the rain.
Whoa, down by my window, baby,
And all around me,
I said suddenly I felt the rain.
Somethin' grabbed a hold of me, darling,
Honey, it felt to me, honey like, yeah, a ball and chain.
Oh honey, you know what I mean,
It just hurts me.

Say, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, honey, it can't be
Whoa, it can't be, babe,
Said no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, hey.
Whoa, baby, it just can't be
Every time I want to reach out my hand.
No, no, no, no, no, babe, baby, never, no, no,
Never, never, no, no, no.
Here you gone today, but I wanted to love you, darling,
Oh, till the end of time,
Yeah! All right!

Love's got a hold on me baby
Feels like a ball and chain.
Oh, love just draggin' me down, yeah yeah yeah,
Feels like, honey sometimes it feels honey like a ball, yeah like a ball and a chain
Wonder why when I did the very best I could to love you
You wanted to leave me here, honey in so much pain
Come on, honey, I want you to tell me, please, yeah.

Say oh, oh, oh, oh,
Honey this can't be
No, no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no yeah.
Whoa, whoa, whoa
Honey, this can't be just because I want to want you
Does this mean I have to hide to cry, cry all the time?
I just wanted to love you, darling,
Every day, oh, whoa, 'till the, to the very end, to the end of time,
Yeah, no no no no no, hit it!

Love's got a hold on me, baby,
Feels like a ball and chain.
Oh, love's holdin' on to me,
Feels to me, oh like a ball and a chain
Honey somethin' will grab around the knees, grab me in my heart,
Feels to me like a ball and a chain now,
Yeah, alright, yeah!

Say oh, oh oh oh,
Honey this can't be
Tell me please what am I askin' now,
It can't be babe
I know it just can't be, darling, no no.
Whoa whoa whoa, whoa darling don't you feel me reachin' out
Tell me, tell me, darling please
Tell, tell, tell me darling please, I'm gonna need it,
I want you to hear me baby
Tell me why, sometimes darling
I said sometimes I feel I got to know why
Sometimes I feel, honey, honey that I need to know why
I said baby when I ask you
I could use a little help sometime
When I say, I say tell me, come on man,
Tell me, tell me, babe,
Honey I never understood, why when I want to work my hands out,
I want to wear my hands out, I try the very best I can, babe
Why you always want to go, honey and let me down baby.
I said why I always want to go, honey drag me around.
Seems like anything, it could be the telephone company man,
it could be the man I love, I always got something else going, you know what I mean ?
Over on the other side, say, not quite got it right this very minute.
I'm so sorry babe, I said I'm so very sorry babe,
But I never did promise you nothing, right ? I see what you mean.
Come on, man, now come on, that ain't the name of it,
And that ain't the end of it, you know what I mean.
Sometimes, it feels just about breaking things, you know what I mean.
Just like, just like a grave, just like a grave to call
Just like a cry to call.
Honey I never understood and I said please
Lord, I swear I never understood and I say please
I want you to help me, fill it up baby,
I want you to help me, I said allow me to hear
Please, please, please, please, please, please, please,
Honey make me understand why love just feels so heavy on me, darling,
Feels so bad on my back, babe,
Feels just like a ball,




Feels like a ball, ball, oh daddy feels like a ball,
And a chain.

Overall Meaning

The song "Ball and Chain" by Janis Joplin's former band Big Brother and the Holding Company is a powerful blues rock anthem that explores the pain and frustration of being trapped in a bad relationship. The lyrics describe the feeling of being weighed down by a ball and chain, symbolizing the emotional burden of someone who refuses to reciprocate the singer's love. The rain outside the singer's window creates a melancholy atmosphere, and the repetition of the phrase "tell me" emphasizes the singer's pleading for answers and understanding.


Line by Line Meaning

Sitting down by my window, Whoa, whoa, looking at the rain.
The singer is sitting by the window and looking outside at the rain.


Somethin' grabbed a hold of me, darling, Honey, it felt to me, honey like, yeah, a ball and chain.
The singer suddenly feels trapped and weighed down by a feeling of intense emotional attachment, like a ball and chain.


Love's got a hold on me baby Feels like a ball and chain.
Love is weighing the singer down and causing emotional pain, like a ball and chain.


Wonder why when I did the very best I could to love you You wanted to leave me here, honey in so much pain
The artist is confused and hurt because they tried their best to love someone, but that person still left them in emotional pain.


Sometimes I feel, honey, honey that I need to know why
The artist wants to understand why they are experiencing so much emotional pain and attachment.


Honey make me understand why love just feels so heavy on me, darling, Feels so bad on my back, babe, Feels just like a ball, Feels like a ball, ball, oh daddy feels like a ball, And a chain.
The singer is requesting the help of their partner to understand why their love is causing so much emotional weight and pain, feeling like a ball and chain tying them down.




Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ELTON JOHN, GARY ANTHONY OSBORNE

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Most interesting comment from YouTube:

@wizardcat9194

lyrics

Sittin' down by my window
Honey, lookin' out at the rain
Lord, Lord, Lord, sittin' down by my window
Baby, lookin' out at the rain
Somethin' came along, grabbed a hold of me
And it felt just like a ball and chain
Honey, that's exactly what it felt like
Honey, just dragging me down

And I say, oh, whoa, whoa, now hon', tell me why
Why does every single little tiny thing I hold on goes wrong?
Yeah it all goes wrong, yeah
And I say, oh, whoa, whoa, now babe, tell me why
Why does every thing, every thing
Hey, here you gone today, I wanted to love you
Honey, I just wanted to hold you, I said, for so long
Yeah! Alright! Hey!

Love's got a hold on me, baby
Feels just like a ball and chain
Now, love's just draggin' me down, baby, yeah
Feels like a ball and chain
I hope there's someone out there who could tell me
Why the man I love wanna leave me in so much pain
Yeah, maybe, maybe you could help me, come on, help me!

And I say, oh, whoa, whoa, now hon', tell me why
Now tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me why, yeah
And I say, oh, whoa, whoa, whoa, when I ask you
When I need to know why, c'mon tell me why, hey hey hey
Here you've gone today
I wanted to love you and hold you
Till the day I die
I said whoa, whoa, whoa!

And I say oh, whoa, whoa, no honey
It ain't fair, daddy it ain't fair what you do
I see what you're doin' to me and you know it ain't fair
And I say oh, whoa whoa now baby
It ain't fair, now, now, now, what you do
I said hon' it ain't fair what, hon' it ain't fair what you do
Oh, here you gone today and all I ever wanted to do
Was to love you
Honey an' I think there can be nothing wrong with that
Only it ain't wrong, no, no, no, no, no

Sittin' down by my window
Lookin' at the rain
Lord, Lord, Lord, sittin' down by my window
Lookin' at the rain, see the rain
Somethin' came along, grabbed a hold of me
And it felt like a ball and chain
Oh this can't be in vain
And I'm gonna tell you one just more time, yeah, yeah!

And I say oh, whoa whoa, now baby
This can't be, no this can't be in vain
And I say no no no no no no no no, whoa!
And I say whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa
Now now now now now now now now now no no not in vain
Hey, hope there is someone that could tell me
Hon', tell me why
Hon', tell me why love is like
Just like a ball
Just like a ball
Baaaaaaalllll
Oh daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy
And a chain
Yeah!



All comments from YouTube:

@dianaruth8143

People who say that Big Brother & the Holding Company were lousy musicians weren't there.

@michaelkucinski4021

I wasn't there. I was too young. But, I know that they were great!

@WolfShenda

Is there anyone ever saying this?...

@lrwguitar

Easily best band she had

@thomasmulroney2065

In Vietnam, we used to listen to this all the time, but especially after s bad mission. Her screams were exactly how we felt

@mmmm-uy2se

Make love not war

@squeezepanda1

Where did you listen (if I may ask) ? I always thought those reconnaissance were a little like hiking trips and you'd sleep out in the jungle....

@rogerhjalmar5770

Thanks for your service.

@rosa7236

@@mmmm-uy2se it wasn't like they had a choice!

@filomenamauti9617

Fake? Fake subman? Fake little fish? Fake. Neanche sa.dov'è il Vietnam. Orrido.

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