The initial impulse behind McMahon’s new project Jack’s Mannequin was "Locked Doors", a song he recorded in December 2003, which he felt was too different from previous Something Corporate material to be one of their songs. He realized that, if he would ever decide to release it, it would be on a solo album rather than a Something Corporate record. The idea seemed to be off the table, until in late summer 2004 both McMahon and his band mates were exhausted from months of touring. They decided to take a temporary break. During his time off, McMahon started writing songs, knowing they would not see the light of day as Something Corporate songs. These songs were a more therapeutic approach McMahon took, and therefore a more personal and intimate testament of his songwriting.
Over the next couple of months, McMahon began recording the newly written songs with producer Jim Wirt, who would play guitar and bass over sampled drum tracks, while McMahon contributed vocals and piano. They later brought in additional musicians such as Bobby Anderson (formerly of River City High) and Tommy Lee to add to the mix. In March 2005, Jack’s Mannequin (now consisting of McMahon, Jon Sullivan on bass, Anderson and Jacques Brautbar on guitar and Jay McMillan on drums) played their first live show at Molly Malone’s Irish pub in Los Angeles, California.
Their debut album, Everything in Transit, was released on August 23, 2005 debuting at #37 of the Billboard 200 with over 22,000 copies scanned within its first week.
Everything in Transit received a positive response from fans and critics alike. A summer tour was scheduled to support the record release, but was canceled after McMahon was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and had a bone marrow transplant. The band began recording their second album in the summer of 2007. In August 2007, McMahon posted the lyrics to the song “Cellular Phone” on his blog,which the band played live at several shows in 2007 and 2008. Also, in February 2008, videos of live performances of two songs off the new record (“Caves” and “Suicide Blonde”) were uploaded onto YouTube for public viewing. McMahon appears on the cover of Alternative Press’s January 2008 issue, which contains an interview with him.
Their second album, The Glass Passenger, was released on September 30th, 2008, and is their first album with Sire Records. Despite numerous delays (the album was originally slated for release in April 2008) it has been well-received, and debuted #8 on the Billboard 200.
Previously, in August of 2008, The Ghost Overground EP was released exclusively on iTunes to promote the album, containing the songs "The Resolution", "Bloodshot", and two live performances of tracks from Everything in Transit. After the release of the EP, "The Resolution" topped the Billboard "Hot Singles Sales" charts.
Songfacts reports that "My Racing Thoughts," the first single from their third album People and Things, was released on August 2, 2011. People and Things was released October 4, 2011.
On the evening of the 24th August 2012, the official Jack's Mannequin website & official Twitter account were changed to www.andrewmcmahon.com & "amslingshots" respectively. A blog post on the official Andrew McMahon website confirmed that Jack's Mannequin were no longer & that Andrew would be working on solo material.
God
Jack's Mannequin Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
By which we measure our pain
I'll say it again
God is a concept
By which we measure our pain
I don't believe in magic
I don't believe in I Ching
I don't believe in Tarot
I don't believe in Hitler
I don't believe in Jesus
I don't believe in Kennedy
I don't believe in Buddha
I don't believe in Mantra
I don't believe in Gita
I don't believe in Yoga
I don't believe in Kings
I don't believe in Elvis
I don't believe in Zimmerman
I don't believe in Beatles
I just believe in me, Yoko and me, that's reality
The dream is over
What can I say?
The dream is over
Yesterday
I was the dreamweaver
But now I'm reborn
I was the Walrus
But now I'm John
And so dear friends
You'll just have to carry on
The Dream is over
The song "God" by Jack's Mannequin featuring Mick Fleetwood is a reflection on the concept of God and its role in human life. The opening lines, "God is a concept by which we measure our pain," suggests that God is a way for human beings to cope with pain and suffering. The repeated assertion of this point emphasizes the importance of the concept of God in our lives.
The lyrics then move on to a list of things that the singer does not believe in, including various religious beliefs, historical figures, and cultural icons. The purpose of this list seems to be to distance the singer from any specific belief system or ideology. Instead, the singer asserts that they only believe in themselves and a loved one, Yoko.
The final lines of the song suggest that the singer has undergone a transformation, from being a "dreamweaver" to being "reborn" and "John," a reference to John Lennon. This transformation marks a realization that the "dream" is over, and that life is not always what we wish it to be. The message of the song is that we must carry on, even when our dreams do not come true.
Line by Line Meaning
God is a concept
God is a tool we use to measure our suffering
By which we measure our pain
God is a way of understanding how much we are hurting
I'll say it again
Reiterating that God is a concept for measuring pain
I don't believe in magic
I don't believe in supernatural power
I don't believe in I Ching
I don't believe in Chinese divination system
I don't believe in Bible
I don't believe in Christianity's holy book
I don't believe in Tarot
I don't believe in card reading
I don't believe in Hitler
I don't believe in Nazi ideology
I don't believe in Jesus
I don't believe in Christianity's prophet and son of God
I don't believe in Kennedy
I don't believe in John F. Kennedy's leadership qualities
I don't believe in Buddha
I don't believe in Buddhism's founder
I don't believe in Mantra
I don't believe in sacred chants
I don't believe in Gita
I don't believe in Hinduism's holy book
I don't believe in Yoga
I don't believe in Hindu exercise and meditation practices
I don't believe in Kings
I don't believe in monarchy
I don't believe in Elvis
I don't believe in Elvis Presley's music
I don't believe in Zimmerman
I don't believe in Bob Dylan's real name
I don't believe in Beatles
I don't believe in The Beatles' music
I just believe in me, Yoko and me, that's reality
I only believe in myself and my partner Yoko, that's what's real to me
The dream is over
The idealistic time has come to an end
What can I say?
What else should I express?
Yesterday
In the past
I was the dreamweaver
I was a visionary creator
But now I'm reborn
But now I have a new beginning
I was the Walrus
I was the symbol of good fortune
But now I'm John
But now I am simply myself, John Lennon
And so dear friends
And so, my friends
You'll just have to carry on
You must continue without me
The Dream is over
The time for dreaming is ended, now it's time for acceptance
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: John Winston Lennon
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@BasketballMusic13
God is a concept
By which we measure our pain
I'll say it again
God is a concept
By which we measure our pain
I don't believe in magic
I don't believe in I Ching
I don't believe in Bible
I don't believe in Tarot
I don't believe in Hitler
I don't believe in Jesus
I don't believe in Kennedy
I don't believe in Buddha
I don't believe in Mantra
I don't believe in Gita
I don't believe in Yoga
I don't believe in Kings
I don't believe in Elvis
I don't believe in Zimmerman
I don't believe in Beatles
I just believe in me, Yoko and me, that's reality
The dream is over
What can I say?
The dream is over
Yesterday
I was the dreamweaver
But now I'm reborn
I was the Walrus
But now I'm John
And so dear friends
You'll just have to carry on
The Dream is over
@gtrdoc911
awesome! the piano on the original was by billy preston and the drums by ringo and bass by klaus voorman. i liked how they kept the lyrics exactly the same on this cover.
@eleanorrigby7246
love this song .. fabulous cover ... thanks for sharing !!!!
@morningglorify
We must believe in ourselves. Everything else that is good and filled with love follows.
@ryanliewer3416
A cover of the best song of all time; why not? Lol. Love Jack's Mannequin, make sure you listen to "Dark Blue" before you die....
@angelesdelparaiso6922
Awesome...!!!
@ESTRELLAABRIL
SI ES VERDAD la original era de Billy Preston y la batería de Ringo UN CAPITO EL CAPO D LA BATA BUENA ONDA PREGUNTA ALGUIEN TIENE LA LETRA DEL TEMA ESTE EN ESPAÑOL BIEN TRADUCIDO AVISEN
@aowrya
i don't like this song but the style and the piano are amazing!
@EphemeralProductions
These guys look like they're freakin young enough to be Mick's kids! LOL
@brianvincentdoucet4273
The first time I ever heard this song was back in early October 1988; when I watched "John & Yoko: A Love Story". I've also heard Lennon's version of this song, too.
@nickpro11
THe campaign behind the album was one that should've gathered more popularity