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.
How Can It Be
Jeffrey Lewis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
How can it be you still love him and not me?
Does it really add up mathematically?
How? How can it be?
Because I'm thinking of how I made you laugh
And I'm thinking of the love that we had
And I'm saying it's a matter of time
It don't make it true just cause its where you've been sighted It don't make it true just cause its what you've decided
Oh its a logic that wrong
Why are you there for so long?
I just can't see nothing else
Except from you and myself
How? How can it be?
How can it be you love him and not me?
Does it really make sense logically?
And does it really make you happy to see?
That now I'm with someone beautiful and cool
And she seems to think the world of me too
And we're laughing as we stroll down the street
Until I'll take her to the joint where I eat
Why are here now in my restaurant
And you're with the only one that you want
So I wont be eating here
Anywhere else I fear
And the girl that on my arm is gonna have to see tears
More tears
Because I see her face and it's still my own
How can I ever think of something that's gone
It's just a fact that we're a match that make sense
I'll go insane if you still claim we'll be friends
And I know you think I'm crazy
And the world thinks it too
But I'm not crazy it's just dumb to be alive without you
I know you love is what you love is what you love his family
But is that really any reason to love him instead of me?
I can't see
Oh how can it be?
And does it really add up mathematically?
Or should I say it more emphatically
Consistently or sporadically?
Oh is it really just the way it will be?
In Jeffrey Lewis's song How Can It Be, he is trying to understand how his ex-girlfriend could still love someone else instead of him. He questions the logic in her decision and wonders if it really makes sense mathematically or logically. He reminisces on their relationship and the love that they shared, believing that it's only a matter of time until she remembers her real feelings for him. He argues that just because someone has been sighted somewhere or made a decision, it doesn't necessarily make it true.
Lewis's lyrics point out the irrationality of love and how it can lead people to make unexpected decisions. He reflects on the pain of seeing his ex-girlfriend with someone else and how it makes him feel like he's losing his mind. He can't help but think that they were always meant to be together and questions why she would choose someone else over him. Towards the end of the song, he becomes more emphatic and begs for an explanation for why things had to turn out the way they did.
Line by Line Meaning
How? How can it be?
Questioning how the situation came to be
How can it be you still love him and not me?
Asking how it's possible to love someone else instead
Does it really add up mathematically?
Asking if there is a logical reason for it
How long till you remember your mind?
Asking how long it will take to realize the truth
It don't make it true just cause its where you've been sighted
Just because you've been with someone, it doesn't mean it's true love
It don't make it true just cause its what you've decided
Just because you've decided to love them, it doesn't make it true
Oh its a logic that wrong
Pointing out the flawed logic in the situation
Why are you there for so long?
Wondering why the situation is still ongoing
I just can't see nothing else, except from you and myself
Only seeing the potential of a relationship between the two
Does it really make sense logically?
Asking again if there is a logical reason for the love
And does it really make you happy to see?
Questioning if the happiness is derived from the relationship
Why are here now in my restaurant?
Questioning why the person is there in that moment
And you're with the only one that you want
Stating that they are with the one they truly love
So I wont be eating here anywhere else I fear
Deciding not to visit that restaurant again
And the girl that on my arm is gonna have to see tears
Feeling emotional and overwhelmed by the situation
Because I see her face and it's still my own
Seeing similarities between the new girl and the past love
It's just a fact that we're a match that make sense
Believing that they are meant to be together
I'll go insane if you still claim we'll be friends
Feeling unable to continue a friendship in love with the other person
But I'm not crazy it's just dumb to be alive without you
Feeling that it's pointless to keep living without the other person
Is that really any reason to love him instead of me?
Questioning the reasoning behind choosing someone else over themselves
Oh how can it be?
Repeating the first line, still questioning how it is possible
Or should I say it more emphatically?
Considering if a stronger approach is necessary
Consistently or sporadically?
Asking if the love is consistent or infrequent
Oh is it really just the way it will be?
Questioning if this is the reality of the situation
Contributed by Charlotte L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.