McPherson grew up in rural southeastern Oklahoma, on a cattle ranch near the town of Talihina. His father was a farmer and ex-army while his mother was a church minister. He took up the guitar at age 13. In high school he played in a number of local punk rock bands and began writing his own songs. He has stated that he has never not been in a band of some sort since he was 16 years of age.
During this time, McPherson also developed a strong interest in 1950s rock and roll after being exposed to the music of Buddy Holly. This went on to shape his song writing and sound for bands he was in such as The Poison Okies and The Starkweather Boys.
He studied visual arts in college, earning a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Tulsa, and later worked as an art and technology teacher. After deciding to pursue music more seriously, McPherson sent a demo to Jimmy Sutton of the small independent record label Hi-STYLE Records, which specialized in roots music. Sutton agreed to produce McPherson's debut album: this became 2010's Signs and Signifiers. On 19 November 2012, Rolling Stone labelled McPherson an "Artist to Watch" in a 3½ star (out of 5) review of Signs and Signifiers after its wider release through Rounder Records.
The band played the acoustic stage at the Glastonbury Festival 2015 on Friday June 26, before continuing their European tour in the Netherlands.
In October 2015, JD McPherson and band appeared (in animated form) as musical guests performing a new and original song "Crazy Horse" for the DreamWorks animated TV series, The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show on Netflix.
It's All Over But The Shouting
JD McPherson Lyrics
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It's all done but the deed
It's all healed but the hurting
It's all taken but the heed
It's all over but the shouting
It's all gone but the need
She let me be all alone and discarded
Like a rusty watercan in the garden
That's all about that's left of me
It's all over but the shouting
It's all done but the deed
It's all healed but the hurting
It's all gone but the need
There's a voice in my head that's a-calling
Time moves at a puzzling speed
If I don't get some quiet, if I don't get it right
Then I might start to wonder why I put up a fight
It's all over but the shouting
It's all done but the deed
It's all healed but the hurting
It's all gone but the need
There's a song in my head this morning
There's a chance it'll be about you
If I wait, I'll forget or if I overcommit
There's a fighting good chance it'll never get writ
It's all over but the shouting
It's all done but the deed
It's all healed but the hurting
It's all gone but the need
The song "It's All Over But the Shouting" by JD McPherson is a melancholic reflection on the end of a relationship. The first verse establishes that everything is over except for the shouting, meaning that there is nothing left to say or do except to express feelings of anger or frustration. The second verse continues in this vein, with the singer comparing himself to an old, discarded machine or rusty watercan. He feels useless and abandoned, left to rust away in the weeds.
The third verse introduces a theme of time moving too quickly, with a voice in the singer's head calling out to him. He realizes that if he doesn't find some peace and quiet, he may begin to question why he even tried to hold onto the relationship. The final verse brings the focus back to songwriting, with the singer acknowledging a song in his head that may be about the former lover. However, he realizes that if he waits too long or tries too hard to write it, it may never come to fruition.
Overall, the lyrics paint a picture of a man trying to come to terms with the end of a relationship and questioning his own sense of self-worth. The phrase "It's all over but the shouting" is repeated throughout the song, acting as a reminder that sometimes endings are final and there is no going back.
Line by Line Meaning
It's all over but the shouting
Everything is finished except for the celebration
It's all done but the deed
Everything that needed to be done has been completed
It's all healed but the hurting
The pain has subsided and the wounds are gone
It's all taken but the heed
All that was required has been received, but not necessarily acted upon
It's all gone but the need
Everything has been lost, except for what is still required
She let me be all alone and discarded
The subject has been abandoned and left to fend for themselves
An old machine choking out in the weeds
The subject has become outdated and forgotten
Like a rusty watercan in the garden
The subject is only a remnant of what used to be
That's all about that's left of me
The subject's identity has been lost
There's a voice in my head that's a-calling
The subject is being beckoned by their inner voice
Time moves at a puzzling speed
The passage of time is difficult to comprehend
If I don't get some quiet, if I don't get it right
Unless the subject can find peace and clarity, they will not succeed
Then I might start to wonder why I put up a fight
Without the desired outcome, the subject may question the effort they have put forth
There's a song in my head this morning
The subject is inspired to write a song
There's a chance it'll be about you
The song may be related to a particular person
If I wait, I'll forget or if I overcommit
If the subject waits too long, they may lose inspiration. If they get too involved, they may lose focus.
There's a fighting good chance it'll never get writ
There's a significant possibility that the song will never be written
Contributed by Layla A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.