Jeffrey Lewis is an American singer/songwriter and comic-book artist, part of the Anti-folk movement. Several of his musical influences have been acknowledged in his songs such as The Chelsea Hotel Oral Sex Song, concerning the song by Leonard Cohen, and The History of The Fall. Like Cohen, Lewis' lyrics are complex and literate, often combining a depressing world-view with a hopeful message and sharp wit. Born in New York City and growing up on the Lower East Side of Manhattan Island his songs are also highly informed by his home surroundings, with songs namechecking places such as Williamsburg, the FDR Drive and the East River.
Jeffrey Lewis was born in New York in November 1975. He attended State University of New York at Purchase College and graduated in 1997; his final thesis was on the Alan Moore graphic novel "Watchmen".
After being signed by the British record label Rough Trade in 2001, Lewis released his first official album The Last Time I Did Acid I Went Insane, and in 2003 he released the album It's the Ones Who've Cracked That the Light Shines Through. Lewis later released the album City & Eastern Songs, in the U.K. in November 2005. All three albums also include his brother, Jack Lewis, who wrote and sang a number of the songs. He has also performed and collaborated with fellow New York Anti-folk singers Kimya Dawson and Diane Cluck.
His latest album, 12 Crass Songs was released on Rough Trade in Europe in September of 2007. As the title suggests, it is 12 covers of the British anarchist punk band Crass. It features vocals, keyboard and recorder from Helen Shriner, bass by both John Kessel and brother Jack Lewis, drums by David Beachamp (live drummer/The Bloodugars) and Raphi Gottesman (who often plays with Jack Lewis). Shwervon's Nan Turner also contributes vocals to various tracks.
Jeffrey Lewis is a Welsh composer. After graduating from University College, Cardiff, he studied composition with Stockhausen, Ligeti, and Boguslaw Schaffer, and electronic composition with Don Banks. His early career was spent as a pianist with the Paris Chamber Ensemble; after his return to the U.K, in 1973 he joined the Department of Music at the University College of North Wales, Bangor.
Did I Mention
Jeffrey Lewis Lyrics
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Why did I eat the acid? I don't know
I wasn't thinking and I wasn't scared
Why did I eat the acid? I wasn't prepared
The last time I did acid I went insane
I was hanging with some
Friends just getting loaded
When all of a sudden my mind exploded
I had a flash that I was
Gay and I got paranoid
I was sitting on the floor
Listening to Pink Floyd
The last time I did acid I went insane
And I was drawing crazy pictures
And before I was done
The pictures started pulsing like
An alien lung
And I said "oh my god this is just begun"
And it was twelve more hours
Before I was done
We were up on the rooftop and
I'll tell you the truth
I was convinced I'd already fallen
Off of the roof
And these weird metal things rolling
Around in outta space
Were teleporting me from place to place
The last time I did acid I went insane
So we ran back downstairs where
It was better to be but I was trapped in
Spiral staircase infinity
And when we got to the
Door I couldn't go inside
Cos it was the gates of heaven and I had died
The last time I did acid I went insane
And this kid named Graham he punched
A cat in the head he could read my thoughts
That's what he said
And he described what it was like
But I didn't believe it
Like lifting a rug and
Seeing stars beneath it ooo ooo
And the first rule of tripping was
Don't be with people you don't trust
The second rule of LSD
The rooftop is not a good place to be
The third rule is to be prepared
The fourth rule is to not get scared
The fifth rule is to stay serene
Turn off your mind and float downstream
The sixth rule's have a good friend at hand
The seventh rule, I hope that you understand
Is not to look too deep into your soul
Or you might find a hideous, hopeless hole
Of hatred, hunger, infinite, idiot
Mindless, meaningless, nothingness
Nothingness
Nothingness, nothingness, nothingness
Nothingness
Nothingness, nothingness, nothingness
Nothingness nothingness
And that's what I did
And every aspect of life that I selected
Was instantly and brutally dissected
I saw the horrible emptiness within
The reasons behind everything
And it was at that moment that I went insane
Cos I figured why bother doing anything again
I didn't understand my thoughts
Revealing themselves to be
The truth behind everything I'd
Ever wanted and believed
Revealed it'self to be unwinding
I Stood up i brushed
My head i turned
To my right all in my eye
And I said
There are things which we feel
To be so terrifically true
That what were all but madness
For any good man in his own proper character
To utter or even hint of them
I've just discovered the meaning of life
I've just discovered the meaning of life
I've just discovered the meaning of life
I've just discovered the meaning of life
The lyrics to Jeffrey Lewis's song "Don" are an interesting representation of modern culture and the way that we communicate with one another. The opening lines, "Mane I'm show hungry too, Yeah I know they gone have some more beef sausages," suggest a sense of anticipation and excitement over something as simple as food. The lyrics then shift to the main point of the song, which is the singer's realization that he has locked his keys in the car with the engine still running.
The singer's initial reaction is to laugh it off, suggesting a sense of apathy towards his situation. However, the seriousness of the situation eventually sets in, as he frantically calls for his friends and Triple A to come to his rescue. The line "But you grabbed your radio face" suggests that his friend is more interested in the drama of the situation than actually helping.
Overall, the lyrics of "Don" are a commentary on our relationships with our peers and the ways we interact with technology. The singer's reliance on his phone and the way his friend uses the situation to entertain himself both highlight the ways we have become disconnected from our surroundings and the people around us.
Line by Line Meaning
Mane im show hungry too
I am really hungry as well
Yeah I know they gone have some mo beef sausages
I am aware that there will be more beef sausages available
Or something mane they probably gonna have everything
They will probably have a wide variety of food options available
Welp I don did it y'all... whats that?
Uh oh, I made a mistake... what did I do?
I done locked my keys in the car with the car runnin
I accidentally locked my keys in the car while the engine was still on
Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha
I am laughing, but not because the situation is actually funny
Mane it aint funny mane
This is not a humorous situation
Mane Larry, Sherm, mane call triple A
Larry and Sherm, please call AAA for me
But you grabbed your radio face
You look hesitant or unsure about helping me
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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