Prior to the release of his 1989 debut album March, Penn performed the song "This & That" with his band The Pull on a 1987 episode of Saturday Night Live. Before that, he was a member of the Los Angeles band Doll Congress and had appeared as an extra on a few television series, including St. Elsewhere.
March, particularly the first single, "No Myth," brought Penn attention, as well as the 1990 MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist. Penn's follow-up albums Free-for-All (1992), Resigned (1997) and MP4: Days Since a Lost Time Accident (2000) weren't able to match the success of March, although critics praised his songcraft.
Penn met fellow singer-songwriter Aimee Mann in the late 1980s, and during the recording of her album I'm With Stupid (to which Penn contributed vocals), the two struck up a friendship, which blossomed into romance and their 1997 marriage. Together with manager Michael Hausman they formed United Musicians, which is based on the idea of allowing artists to keep copyright ownership of their works and to assist with their promotion and distribution. Penn and Mann live in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles. They have no children, but Penn has a son from a previous marriage.
He moved into film scoring after repeated requests from director Paul Thomas Anderson, who had apparently listened to Free-for-All extensively while writing his first feature Hard Eight and wanted Penn to score the film. Penn also scored Anderson's follow-up Boogie Nights (in which he appeared briefly as a recording engineer), The Anniversary Party, Melvin Goes to Dinner and the documentary The Comedians of Comedy.
His fifth album, Mr. Hollywood Jr., 1947, was released August 2, 2005, on Mimeograph Records (Penn's own label) and SpinART Records. Penn has said that the album, which may be the first of two parts, is set after World War II and involves "the trauma that a war brings to a person's psychology." [1]
Penn's music "Walter Reed" was used in the fifth episode of House MD's third season, "Fools For Love".
Two Of Us
Michael Penn Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Spending someone´s hard earned pay
You and me Sunday driving
Not arriving on our way back home
We´re on our way back home
We´re on our way home
We´re going home
Writing letters on my wall
You and me burning matches
Lifting latches on our way back home
We´re on our way home
We´re on our way home
We´re going home
You and I have memories
Longer than the road
That stretches out ahead
Two of us wearing raincoats
Standing solo in the sun
You and me chasing paper
Getting nowhere on our way back home
We´re on our way back home
We´re on our way home
We´re going home
You and I have memories
Longer than the road
That stretches out ahead
Two of us wearing raincoats
Standing solo in the sun
You and me chasing paper
Getting nowhere on our way back home
We´re on our way back home
We´re on our way home
We´re going home
We´re going home
The lyrics of Michael Penn's song "Two of Us" hark back to an era of simpler times, of youthful escapades and unsullied love. The song paints a picture of two souls riding aimlessly somewhere, without a care in the world, not worried about the future or the past; all that matters is the present. The lyrics talk about two people spending someone else's hard-earned pay in pursuit of happiness, driving on weekends with no particular destination in mind, not arriving anywhere, and standing solo in the sun wearing raincoats. They are burning matches, sending postcards, and writing letters on walls. The duo is getting nowhere while chasing paper, and that's alright because it's all part of the journey.
The song speaks of the undeniable bond between two people who've shared memories, and how those memories are longer than the road that stretches ahead. Despite not accomplishing much, the bond between the two of us is indeed deep with intense feelings of intimacy, sincerity, and purity that comes with honesty. This song captures the restless, carefree, and chaotic feeling of young love, and the sense of comfort that comes from having someone else to share the journey with.
Line by Line Meaning
Two of us riding nowhere
The two of us are aimlessly traveling without a destination in mind.
Spending someone´s hard earned pay
We are using someone else's money to finance our journey.
You and me Sunday driving
We are casually driving around on a leisurely Sunday.
Not arriving on our way back home
We are not in a rush to return home and may take a longer route.
We´re on our way back home
We are making our way back to our place of residence.
We´re on our way home
We are heading towards our permanent place of residence.
We´re going home
We are eagerly traveling back to our place of residence.
Two of us sending postcards
We are both sending postcards to friends or family.
Writing letters on my wall
We are writing letters or notes and placing them on a wall for memories.
You and me burning matches
We are using up matches, perhaps for warmth or entertainment.
Lifting latches on our way back home
We are opening and closing latches on the way back to our place of residence.
You and I have memories
We share experiences and events that have left lasting impressions.
Longer than the road
That stretches out ahead
Our memories are numerous and extensive, more significant than the future ahead of us.
Two of us wearing raincoats
The two of us are both wearing raincoats, perhaps to protect ourselves from bad weather.
Standing solo in the sun
Even though we are together, we are each standing alone in the sun.
You and me chasing paper
We are futilely chasing something without any gain or success.
Getting nowhere on our way back home
We are not making any progress towards returning home.
We´re going home
We are eager to return to our place of residence.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: John Lennon, Paul McCartney
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ganggapamadya3398
Two of us riding nowhere
Spending someone's
Hard earned pay
You and me Sunday driving
Not arriving
On our way back home
We're on our way home
We're on our way home
We're going home
Two of us sending postcards
Writing letters
On my wall
You and me burning matches
Lifting latches
On our way back home
We're on our way home
We're on our way home
We're going home
You and I have memories
Longer than the road that stretches out ahead
Two of us wearing raincoats
Standing solo
In the sun
You and me chasing paper
Getting nowhere
On our way back home
We're on our way home
We're on our way home
We're going home
You and I have memories
Longer than the road that stretches out ahead
Two of us wearing raincoats
Standing solo
In the sun
You and me chasing paper
Getting nowhere
On our way back home
We're on our way home
We're on our way home
We're going home
@user-bf5bd4ex3f
Two of us riding nowhere
Spending someone's
Hard earned pay
Two of us Sunday driving
Not arriving
On our way back home
We're on our way home
We're on our way home
We're going home
Two of us sending postcards
Writing letters
On my wall
You and me burning matches
Lifting latches
On our way back home
We're on our way home
We're on our way home
We're going home
You and I have memories
Longer than the road that stretches out ahead
Two of us wearing raincoats
Standing so low
In the sun
You and me chasing paper
Getting nowhere
On our way back home
We're on our way home
We're on our way home
We're going home
@contramitodealgun5026
Dos de nosotros cabalgando a ninguna parte
gastar el dinero de alguien
Pago duramente ganado
Tu y yo el domingo manejando
no llegar
En nuestro camino de regreso a casa
estamos de camino a casa
estamos de camino a casa
Estamos yendo a casa
Dos de nosotros enviando postales
Escribiendo cartas
En mi pared
tu y yo quemando fósforos
Pestillos de elevación
En nuestro camino de regreso a casa
estamos de camino a casa
estamos de camino a casa
Estamos yendo a casa
tu y yo tenemos recuerdos
Más largo que el camino que se extiende por delante
Dos de nosotros usando impermeables
De pie solo
En el sol
tu y yo persiguiendo papel
llegar a ninguna parte
En nuestro camino de regreso a casa
estamos de camino a casa
estamos de camino a casa
Estamos yendo a casa
tu y yo tenemos recuerdos
Más largo que el camino que se extiende por delante
Dos de nosotros usando impermeables
De pie solo
En el sol
tu y yo persiguiendo papel
llegar a ninguna parte
En nuestro camino de regreso a casa
estamos de camino a casa
estamos de camino a casa
Estamos yendo a casa
@Jessieheels77
My partner has been in hospital for the last month after suffering from a traumatic brain injury. He's coming home tomorrow. I went for a drink in a local pub of mine and after about five minutes, the musicians started this, which is a song I love anyway. But that last "We're going home" sent the onion chopping ninjas right my way. Cried my eyes out, but happy tears ❤️
@parkeranderson7086
I hope it's been a good year for you.
@paulfroelich1024
God bless Jessica
@brenda6497
Beautiful
@black_sheep_nation3572
I had the I Am Sam CD when it first came out, and listened so many times, I wore it out. Yet I never bothered to look at who was singing this duet. 🤭😧The soundtrack was a ginormous hit, the film, not so much.
What extraordinarily gifted brothers!
@mpmajer
This is the best Beatle Cover I have heard.
@my_tube9405
Got to see Michael Penn long ago in Charlotte, NC with about 25 or so people. Ten feet away. Hung out with him for a little while between sets. It was him and Patrick Warren. They sounded fantastic. Best artist I've seen live that intimately that wasn't work in the studio (I'm a guitarist). All the interesting parts to his arrangement and the sound effects, etc were all there on the keyboard and his singing and acoustic and electric playing was great of course. Everyone there was just amazed how small the crowd was and knew we were all getting a special treat but I felt bad in that he should have a much larger audience.
@cabaverdo
I am SAM what a moovie, we love it!
@doodooman7053
I was at the Atlanta airport in 2002 about to join the Army, listening to this on the headphones in the music store, thinking about my baby brother, and crying
@MrTitaniumFox
The "We're going home" part makes me cry uncontrollably, Sam and Lucy are now living happily :)