The band originated with vocalist Stephen Holt (vocals) and guitarist Graham Lambert. Another uncredited founding member, was basist Glenn Chesworth. His partnership with the band lasted only a couple of years. The band emerged alongside The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays from the indie scene of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Bassist, Martyn Walsh, and drummer, Craig Gill, joined in 1984. Playing garage rock, they were joined by keyboardist, Clint Boon, who changed their sound based around harmonic (and often psychedelic) keyboards and jangly guitars.
After a couple of singles on a local indie label, Holt left the group and was replaced by Tom Hingley. The band were propelled to fame after being 'discovered' by the Radio 1 DJ John Peel and had their greatest chart success in the UK with a single entitled This is How it Feels, which is a song about loneliness and unemployment.
At the time of their initial success, the band earned some notoriety for their squiggly-eyed cow 'Cool as Fuck' T-shirts; a student at Oxford Polytechnic was prosecuted on obscenity charges for wearing one. One of their roadies, Noel Gallagher, went on to great success with the band Oasis. The band is named after an Inspiral Carpets tour poster which included the venue Swindon Oasis.
They reworked their single Find Out Why as the theme tune to early 90's kids TV show 'The 8:15 From Manchester'. Another release I Want You was used by Sony to advertise their in-car entertainment systems on this advert ; an early example of advertising agencies co-opting and promoting non-mainstream music to add kudos to mainstream brands (a trend that has increased significantly).
After the release of their 4th studio album, Devil Hopping, they started to record new, more darker-sounding demos in 1995 which their label, Mute Records rejected. An amicable split followed but they re-formed in 2003 for a tour and new compilation. For the next several years, they played gigs on and off, until Hingley could no longer give his 100% commitment so original vocalist, Stephen Holt, rejoined in March 2011.
It's Only a Paper Moon
Inspiral Carpets Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She sits in the room with the lights turned low
She won't tell you her age, she won′t think of the past
Why, look who's here
My ticket out of here
Why, look who's here
My ticket out of here
(It′s only a paper moon) Her mouth watering
Like a caged bird (over a cardboard sea)
(It′s only a paper moon) She shone like a bright sun
On a world that had been covered in darkness (over a cardboard sea)
This is where he took her against her will on the kitchen floor
(It's only a paper moon)
Crushed the life out of her like a rare orchid
(Over a cardboard sea) Crushed the life out of her like a rare orchid
(It′s only a paper moon)
She sits in the room with the light turned low
Na na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It′s only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It′s only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na na (It′s only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It′s only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
(It's only a paper moon) Here he stands, an angel of her destruction
But it′s his liquor she's drinking (over a cardboard sea)
(It′s only a paper moon) She thinks of the seventeen-year-old boy
Who took her out to some casino dancing
(Over a cardboard sea) and shot himself by the lake
(It's only a paper moon)
Watching the constellations set out against the night sky
(Over a cardboard sea)
A leaf falls in the jungle, the gun against his head (it′s only)
Na na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na na (It′s only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It′s only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It′s only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It′s only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
(It's only a paper moon) Why, look who′s here, my ticket out of here
(Over a cardboard sea) Why, look who's here, my ticket out of here
(It's only a paper moon) Adios, adios (over a cardboard sea)
(It′s only a paper moon) He walks through your days like a ghost
(Over a cardboard sea) He says, I′m no Polack, I'm an American
(It′s only a paper moon)
We hear the flower seller call, it's a premonition of your death
(Over a cardboard sea) He walks through your days like a ghost, adios
Na na na na na na (It′s only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na na (It′s only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It′s only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na na (It′s only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Na na na na na (It′s only)
(It's only a paper moon) Why, look who′s here, my ticket out of here
(Over a cardboard sea) Why, look who is here, my ticket out of here
(It's only a paper moon) The Hotel Flamenco, or the Hotel Tarantula
(Over a cardboard sea) Where she pulled the legs off her victims
(It′s only a paper moon over a cardboard sea)
(It's only a paper moon over a cardboard sea)
(It's only a paper moon)
(It′s only a paper moon)
(It′s only a paper moon)
(It's only a paper moon)
(It′s only a paper moon)
(It's only a paper moon)
(It′s only a paper moon)
(It's only a paper moon)
(It′s only a paper moon)
The lyrics of Inspiral Carpets's song It's Only a Paper Moon are intense and poetic, with a story that can be difficult to decipher. The song describes a woman sitting in a dimly lit room in the Southern US, singing like a caged bird over a cardboard sea, dreaming of escaping her past. She has been a victim of violence, and the man in the song is an angel of destruction, who crushes the life out of her like a rare orchid. The woman drinks his liquor as he walks through her days like a ghost. She remembers a boy who took her to a casino, then shot himself by a lake. The song ends with a flower seller's call as a premonition of her death.
The lyrics of It's Only a Paper Moon are powerful and often ambiguous, allowing for multiple interpretations. The cardboard sea can be seen as the woman's confinement or her escape, while the paper moon represents her dreams and illusions. The song explores themes of violence, escape, and the struggle to survive.
Line by Line Meaning
With the music beating, it’s another sweaty humid Southern night
In a sultry, hot Southern night with lively music, signaling a good time
She sits in the room with the lights turned low
She is sitting alone in a dimly lit room, withdrawn from outside world
She won’t tell you her age, she won’t think of the past
She avoids discussing her age and personal history
Why, look who’s here. My ticket out of here
A person who can provide her an escape from her current situation
(It's only a paper moon) Her mouth watering
Her mouth is watering, anticipating something that may not be real
She sings like some mad old bird
She sings like a crazy old bird, trapped and yearning to be free
Like a caged bird (over a cardboard sea)
As a bird confined in a cage, dreaming of liberation, over an artificial, make-believe world
(It's only a paper moon) She shone like a bright sun
She appeared radiant like a bright sun in a world previously dark and gloomy
On a world that had been covered in darkness (over a cardboard sea)
She provided hope and brightness in an artificial, illusory world
This is where he took her against her will on the kitchen floor
This is where he forced her into sexual submission on the kitchen floor against her will
Crushed the life out of her like a rare orchid (over a cardboard sea)
He took away her vitality and spirit like crushing a rare flower, in an unreal, imaginary world
(It's only a paper moon) She sits in the room with the light turned low
She remains in her dark room, hiding from the world
Na na na na na na (It's only a paper moon over the cardboard sea)
Repeating the idea that her pursuit of escape is based on an artificial world, where nothing is real
(It's only a paper moon) Here he stands, an angel of her destruction
He stands as the cause of her ruination, despite appearing angelic
But it's his liquor she's drinking (over a cardboard sea)
She is drinking his liquor in a pretend world with no real consequence or meaning
(It's only a paper moon) She thinks of the seventeen-year-old boy
She reflects on a past romance with a teenage boy
Who took her out to some casino dancing (over a cardboard sea)
The boy once took her out to a night of dancing in an artificial world
and shot himself by the lake
The boy committed suicide by the lake
Watching the constellations set out against the night sky (over a cardboard sea)
The boy watched the stars in an imaginary world before taking his own life
(It's only a paper moon) A leaf falls in the jungle, the gun against his head (it’s only)
Life and death seem meaningless in a pretend world, as a leaf falls and a gun points to his head
Why, look who’s here, my ticket out of here (over a cardboard sea)
Another repeating line suggesting that escape from the fake world is possible with the right opportunity
Adios, adios (over a cardboard sea)
A farewell to the unreal world
(It's only a paper moon) He walks through your days like a ghost
He haunts her days, making a recurring appearance
He says, I’m no Polack, I'm an American
He identifies himself as an American, denying any Polish heritage
We hear the flower seller call, it's a premonition of your death (over a cardboard sea)
The flower seller's voice brings a sense of danger and death in an imaginary world
He walks through your days like a ghost, adios
Repeating that he haunts her days, but she bids farewell to this life
Na na na na na (It’s only)
Continuing to emphasize the idea that everything is pretend and meaningless
(Over a cardboard sea) Why, look who is here, my ticket out of here
Another line repeating the hope for an escape from illusion
(It's only a paper moon) The Hotel Flamenco, or the Hotel Tarantula
Naming two different hotels, both with negative connotations
(Over a cardboard sea) Where she pulled the legs off her victims
Hinting at a violent past of the singer killing her victims in a pretend world
(It’s only a paper moon over a cardboard sea)
Final repeating line summarizing the theme of the song - a meaningless attempt at escape from reality
Writer(s): Thomas Hingley, Craig Gill, Martyn Walsh, Clinton Boon, Graham Hingley
Contributed by Mackenzie E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.