Miller grew up in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia near the Potomac River. "There are three or four little towns I know well that make up the region," he says, name-checking places like Martinsburg, Shepherdstown, Hedgesville, and Keyes Gap. "It's a haunted place. In some ways it's frozen in time. So much old stuff has lingered there, and its history is still very present." As much as Miller loves where he's from, he's always had a complicated relationship with home and never could figure out what to do with himself there. "I just wanted to make music, and there's no real infrastructure for that there. We had to travel to play regularly and as teenagers, most of our gigs were spent playing in old church halls or Ruritan Clubs." He was raised "kinda sorta Catholic" and although he gave up on that as a teenager, he says "it follows me everywhere, still."
His family was not musical—his father worked odd jobs and was a paramedic before Miller was born, while his mother was a nurse—but he was drawn to music at an early age, which was essential to him since he says school was "an exercise in patience" for him. "Music was the first thing to turn my brain on. I'd sit by the stereo for hours with a blank audio cassette waiting to record songs I liked," he says. "I was into a lot of whatever was on the radio until I was in middle school and started finding out about punk music, which is what I gravitated toward and tried to play through high school." Not long after a short and aimless attempt at college, I was introduced to old time and traditional fiddle music, particularly around West Virginia, and my whole musical world started to open up." Around the same time he discovered John Prine and says the music of Steve Earle sent him "down a rabbit hole". From there he found the 1970s Texas gods like Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt, Jerry Jeff Walker, Billy Joe Shaver, and Blaze Foley, the swamp pop of Bobby Charles, and the Tulsa Sound of J.J. Cale, who is probably his biggest influence.
As much as the music buoyed him, it also took its toll. "I always prioritized being a touring musician above everything, and my attempts at relationships suffered for it," he says. Miller was also often fighting depression and watching many of his friends "go off the rails on occasion." He says that for a long period he did a lot of self-medicating. "I used to go about it by drinking vodka from morning to night for months on end," he says. "I shouldn't have made it this far. I'm lucky, I think." Ultimately, the music won out and Depreciated is the hard-won result of years of self-education provided by life experiences that included arrests, a drunken knife-throwing incident, relationships both lost and long-term, and learning from the best of the singer-songwriters by listening.
Borrowed Time
John R. Miller Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Soon as you drive it off the lot, it′s in decline
Borrowed time, borrowed time
Give me some of yours, I'll give you some of mine
It′s fortune you've been after
No fortune have you found
Some'll say to cut your losses
Maybe you got someone to hold you
But can you hold them in kind?
You can′t compromise with borrowed time
Borrowed time, borrowed time
Everybody needs a little somethin′ they can leave behind
Borrowed time, borrowed time
You're gonna have to give it back somewhere down the line
Gotta watch your hypertension
The heavy heart wears the crown
Don′t be too hard on your suspension
As you roll over the ground
They're gonna want their percentage, boy
Set aside some to unwind
There just ain′t enough borrowed time
Borrowed time, borrowed time
It wasn't God who gave Noah the rainbow sign
Borrowed time, borrowed time
Just listen to that eternal engine whine
Now the minutes turn to hours
And the hours turn into days
Some days, I go to bed feelin′ like I just woke up
It seems like it's meltin' away
Lord, make me an offer I can′t refuse
We were born to win and bound to lose
All of these bad uses of borrowed time
Borrowed time, borrowed time
Depreciatin′ like a double-wide trailer on top of a salt mine
Borrowed time, borrowed time
Give me some of yours, I'll give you some of mine
Give me some of yours, I′ll give you some of mine
John R. Miller's song "Borrowed Time" paints a picture of the melancholic reality of life where we borrow time and everything else that comes with it. The opening lines "Borrowed time, borrowed time, soon as you drive it off the lot, it's in decline" highlights the transience of time and how it diminishes from the moment we acquire it. Life is unpredictable, and we never know when our "borrowed time" will be over. The lyrics also suggest that we can share and exchange our "borrowed time" but ultimately, we all have to give it back. The lines, "You're gonna have to give it back somewhere down the line" remind us that time moves in only one direction and we can't hold on to it forever.
The second verse highlights the different attitudes towards life and fortune. While some people suggest cutting our losses, others suggest doubling down to make the most of our time. The lyrics also refer to love by asking whether we can hold someone we love when we are limited by borrowed time. The chorus further emphasizes that we need to make the most of our time as we are all on borrowed time. The line "It wasn't God who gave Noah the rainbow sign" suggests that the time we have is not divine but a limited resource that we need to use optimally.
Line by Line Meaning
Borrowed time, borrowed time
Life is like a loan with a fixed time limit
Soon as you drive it off the lot, it's in decline
As soon as you start living, you start aging and moving towards death
Give me some of yours, I'll give you some of mine
Sharing experiences and moments with others can enrich our lives
It's fortune you've been after
You've been chasing success and riches
No fortune have you found
You haven't achieved financial success so far
Some'll say to cut your losses
Some advise to give up on your pursuit of wealth
Others say to double down
Others suggest doubling efforts to achieve success
Maybe you got someone to hold you
Maybe you have someone to support you emotionally
But can you hold them in kind?
But can you offer them the same kind of support that they offer you?
You can't compromise with borrowed time
We cannot negotiate with fate, we must make the most of the time we have
Everybody needs a little somethin' they can leave behind
We all seek to make a lasting impact on the world in some way
You're gonna have to give it back somewhere down the line
We must eventually give up our earthly possessions and legacy
Gotta watch your hypertension
We must be mindful of our health and stress levels
The heavy heart wears the crown
Emotional turmoil and responsibility can wear on us
Don't be too hard on your suspension
Don't push yourself too hard and take care of your body
They're gonna want their percentage, boy
Others will want a piece of what you've earned
Set aside some to unwind
Take time to relax and recharge in the midst of work and effort
There just ain't enough borrowed time
Time is a limited resource and cannot be borrowed or regained
It wasn't God who gave Noah the rainbow sign
Luck and opportunity do not come from divine intervention
Just listen to that eternal engine whine
We can hear time passing and life moving forward around us
Now the minutes turn to hours
Time seems to speed up as we get older
And the hours turn into days
Days blend together and pass quickly
Some days, I go to bed feelin' like I just woke up
Time can feel like it's slipping away too quickly
Lord, make me an offer I can't refuse
Asking for a chance to live life to the fullest
We were born to win and bound to lose
We strive for success but are inevitably limited and temporary
Depreciatin' like a double-wide trailer on top of a salt mine
A metaphor for the constant decline of our physical and mental faculties as we age
Writer(s): John R Miller
Contributed by Sophia R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@erink3289
“Depreciating like a double-wide trailer on top of a salt mine”
I spit out my beer. This man has a way with words!
@jawakening2043
🔥
@coltonmurrell2
Thank you John
@mitchevans8968
Way to go brother John!
@j.johnson2792
Underrated