Blues Run the Game
Janileigh Cohen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Maybe to Spain,
Wherever I have gone,
Wherever I've been and gone,
Wherever I have gone
The blues are all the same.
Send out for whisky, baby,
Me and room service, honey,
Me and room service, babe,
Me and room service
Well, we're living a life of sin
When I'm not drinking, baby,
You are on my mind,
When I'm not sleeping, honey,
When I ain't sleeping, mama,
When I'm not sleeping
Well you know you'll find me crying.
Try another city, baby,
Another town,
Wherever I have gone,
Wherever I've been and gone,
Wherever I have gone
The blues come following down.
Living is a gamble, baby,
Loving's much the same,
Wherever I have played,
Wherever I throw them dice,
Wherever I have played
The blues have run the game.
Maybe tomorrow, honey,
Someplace down the line,
I'll wake up older,
So much older, mama,
Wake up older
And I'll just stop all my trying.
Catch a boat to England, baby,
Maybe to Spain,
Wherever I have gone,
Wherever I've been and gone,
Wherever I have gone
The blues are all the same.
The lyrics "Blues Run the Game" by Janileigh Cohen describe the feeling of melancholy and despair that comes with being constantly on the move, never finding permanent happiness or a sense of belonging. The singer of the song has traveled to various places, but wherever they go, they find themselves engulfed in the same underlying emotion - the blues. The lyrics suggest that the blues are a universal feeling that cannot be escaped, regardless of location or circumstance.
The first verse talks about the singer's travels, symbolized by catching a boat to England and maybe to Spain. The second verse describes their attempts to alleviate sorrow by sending out for whiskey and gin, but ultimately succumbing to a life of sin. The third verse reflects on the singer's love interest, knowing they are always on their mind, but still feeling lonely and crying when they cannot be together. The fourth verse suggests that no matter where they go, the blues will always follow, and the final verse expresses the singer's hopelessness and resignation to their fate.
Overall, "Blues Run the Game" is a song about the universal nature of sadness and the inability to escape it, no matter where we go or what we do.
Line by Line Meaning
Catch a boat to England, baby,
I'll leave the country, maybe to Spain.
Wherever I have gone,
No matter where I go,
Wherever I've been and gone,
No matter where I've visited,
Wherever I have gone
No matter where I travel
The blues are all the same.
I'm always feeling melancholy.
Send out for whisky, baby,
Order some whiskey for us,
Send out for gin,
Request some gin for us,
Me and room service, honey,
It's just you and me in this room,
Me and room service, babe,
It's only you and me and the alcohol.
Me and room service
It's just us stuck in this hotel room.
Well, we're living a life of sin
We're wallowing in bad habits.
When I'm not drinking, baby,
When I'm sober,
You are on my mind,
I'm constantly thinking of you,
When I'm not sleeping, honey,
When I can't get any rest,
When I ain't sleeping, mama,
When insomnia bites me,
When I'm not sleeping
When I can't get any rest
Well you know you'll find me crying.
I'll be weeping when I can't escape my thoughts.
Try another city, baby,
Let's explore a different city,
Another town,
A different place to live,
Wherever I have gone,
No matter where I've gone,
Wherever I've been and gone,
No matter where I've been,
Wherever I have gone
No matter where I go
The blues come following down.
The sadness always catches up.
Living is a gamble, baby,
Life is a big gamble,
Loving's much the same,
Loving can be just as unpredictable,
Wherever I have played,
In whatever situation I'm in,
Wherever I throw them dice,
No matter what risks I take,
Wherever I have played
Wherever I place my bets
The blues have run the game.
The melancholy always wins in the end.
Maybe tomorrow, honey,
Perhaps one day in the future,
Someplace down the line,
At some point down the road,
I'll wake up older,
I'll open my eyes a little more wizened,
So much older, mama,
Aged even more,
Wake up older
Finally realizing that I'm tired of the emotional shenanigans.
And I'll just stop all my trying.
And I'll give up on trying to escape blues.
Catch a boat to England, baby,
I'll book a boat to England, maybe Spain.
Maybe to Spain,
Or maybe just Spain,
Wherever I have gone,
No matter where I go,
Wherever I've been and gone,
No matter where I've been,
Wherever I have gone
No matter where I travel
The blues are all the same.
I'm always feeling melancholy
Contributed by Kaitlyn E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@abhishekmehta3577
Verse 1]
Catch a boat to England, baby
Maybe to Spain
Wherever I have gone
Wherever I've been and gone
Wherever I have gone
The blues are all the same
[Verse 2]
Send out for whisky, baby Send out for gin Me and room service, honey Me and room service, babe Me and room service Well, we're living a life of sin
[Verse 3]
When I'm not drinking, baby
You are on my mind
When I'm not sleeping, honey
When I ain't sleeping, mama
When I'm not sleeping
You know you'll find me crying
[Verse 4]
Try another city, baby Another town Wherever I have gone Wherever I've been and gone Wherever I have gone The blues come following down
[Verse 5]
Living is a gamble, baby Loving's much the same Wherever I have played Whenever I've thrown them dice Wherever I have played The blues have run the game
[Verse 6]
Maybe tomorrow, honey
Someplace down the line
I'll wake up older
So much older, mama
I'll wake up older
And I'll just stop all my tryin'
[Verse 1/Outro]
Catch a boat to England, baby
Maybe to Spain
Wherever I have gone
Wherever I've been and gone
Wherever I have gone
The blues are all the same
@desireevaughn1796
"This Is Us" brought me here.. your voice is beautiful & your version of this song is amazing!
@geetumohnani4518
Same
@kapilsurira3553
Same here😊
@maimoonaahmed8614
Same 🤣
@ritikaranjan3795
Sameeeee
@ansharyunus3724
Yes, especially in the episode called Memphis on season 2, damn it makes me cry a lot, what beautiful rendition of this song
@cheerydan
How do you manage to simultaneously make it sound so effortless, and yet make it feel like you gave us a piece of your soul? Lovely version of a super song. Thank you!
@JanileighCohen
Dan Hoy thank you for your kind words means a lot to me x
@AyoubThaifa
BEST Comment EVER !!
@locoben400
There is an incredible amount of emotion in her voice at 0:19