The band's sound is diverse, utilizing elements of skate punk, hardcore punk, reggae, and other music genres. Their lyrics generally satirize issues such as politics, society, various subcultures, racism, the music industry, and religion, often using a large amount of comedy.
NOFX's first recording was a demo from 1983, produced by The Germs drummer Don Bolles, which did not sell any copies. They released their self-titled debut EP on Mystic Records in 1985, which was later re-released in 1992 as part of the Maximum RocknRoll CD. For a year, Erik Sandin left the band and was replaced by Scott Sellers, then Scott Aldahl. Dave Allen was in the band for about four months, until he died in a car accident. In 1986, the band released So What if We're on Mystic!. Dave Casillas joined the band on second guitar in 1987 and was featured on the EP The P.M.R.C. Can Suck on This!, attacking the PMRC's call for censorship of music. The original cover was an edited S&M photo, but the re-released version was changed to a photo of Eric Melvin.
Eric Sandin returned and they recorded Liberal Animation in 1988 (before Dave was replaced by Steve) with Brett Gurewitz of Bad Religion. Although the title and some lyrics mocked vegetarianism and animal rights, Fat Mike says that he became a vegetarian after he wrote Liberal Animation. 'If a big enough animal had a chance it would eat you up!' The album was re-released in 1991 on Gurewitz's label Epitaph. Dave then left the band and was replaced by Steve Kidwiller. NOFX had signed to Epitaph by 1989, releasing their second album, titled S&M Airlines. 1990 saw the release of Ribbed. By 1991, Aaron Abeyta (aka El Hefe), joined to round out the group. White Trash, Two Heebs and a Bean was released in 1992, which originally had the title White Trash, Two Kikes, and a Spic. The original title was changed because Eric Melvin's grandmother was upset about the racial epithets.
It was not until the 1994 release of Punk in Drublic that the band had a commercial breakthrough, with the album going gold. In the same year, pop punk entered the mainstream with the success of The Offspring's Smash and Green Day's Dookie.
In 1996 they released Heavy Petting Zoo, which wasn't very popular among its fans because it showed a different sound in some tracks. Their 1997 record So Long and Thanks for All the Shoes was faster, with more ska and reggae, and was well received by the public, although its title shocked everybody because it seemed as it was going to be their last album. They soon stated it wasn't true.
In 1999, the band released The Decline, a fiery and pessimistic social commentary. Having a duration of 18 minutes and 23 seconds, it is nearly the longest punk song to date, second only to "Yes Sir, I Will" by Crass, which spans more than 22 minutes.
The coming of a new century marked the end of NOFX in Epitaph Records. In 2000 they released Pump Up the Valuum, which in many people's opinion is a good record but still is missing something.
In 2003, NOFX released War on Errorism, and launched their anti-George W. Bush campaign. Fat Mike organized the website Punkvoter.com, compiled two chart-topping Rock Against Bush compilations, and kicked off a Rock Against Bush United States tour. The band has released many EPs (i.e. Fuck the Kids, The Longest Line) on Fat Mike's own label Fat Wreck Chords. In February 2005, they launched the NOFX 7" of the Month Club, a subscription-based service which saw the release of one new EP almost monthly, from February 2005 to March 2006 (a total of 12 releases). The cover art for these EPs were chosen from fan-submitted entries. The first 3000 subscribers to the club received all of their records on colored vinyl. Fat Wreck Chords later released full sets of the EPs.
On March 14, 2006, an EP entitled Never Trust a Hippy was released. The EP was followed on April 18 by the album Wolves in Wolves' Clothing. On September 12, 2006, the video game EA Sports NHL07 was released, featuring the title track of the latter album on its soundtrack.
The band recorded three nights of shows in San Francisco, California for the live album, They've Actually Gotten Worse Live! that was released on November 20, 2007.
NOFX aired in 2008 a reality show on Fuse TV called NOFX: Backstage Passport, chronicling their recent worldwide tour full of mishaps and fun stuff.
NOFX released their eleventh full length, Coaster, on April 28, 2009.
NOFX released their twelfth full length, Self/Entitled, on September 11th, 2012.
Official site: http://nofxofficialwebsite.com
Fleas
NOFX Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You sleep with dogs the next day
You'll wake up in the bed scratching
Those inevitable fleas
At ten years old
You listen to what you're told
But I never felt the itch
I never would
My mother had forbidden me
To waste away my life
I want you to have all the things
I could never buy you
So don't stop what I'd begun
You're my one and only son
Follow what I say, not what I've done
Follow what I say, not what I've done
Shower, scrub, and shave
Cleanly boys don't misbehave
Follow what I say, not what I've done
The above lyrics are from NOFX's song "Fleas." The song is about growing up, the things our parents teach us, and the things they don't. The father's advice is that if you sleep with dogs, you'll wake up with fleas. This can be interpreted as a metaphor for making bad decisions or associating with the wrong crowd. The father is cautioning his child to be careful about who they associate with, because negative influences can have long-term ramifications.
On the other hand, the mother is encouraging her child to pursue their dreams and not waste their life. She recognizes that she may not have had the resources and opportunities to achieve everything she wanted, but she wants her child to have those things. She advises her child to follow what she says, not what she has done – implying that she may not have lived up to her own potential.
Overall, the song is about the complex advice and guidance parents offer their children, and the importance of weighing those lessons against our own experiences and desires.
Line by Line Meaning
My father used to say
My dad told me something that stuck with me
You sleep with dogs the next day
If you surround yourself with bad influences, you'll suffer the consequences
You'll wake up in the bed scratching
Your mistakes will haunt you and cause discomfort in the long run
Those inevitable fleas
The negative outcomes that result from bad choices cannot be avoided
At ten years old
Even as a child, I was warned about the dangers of poor choices
You listen to what you're told
I followed the advice of my parents and elders
But I never felt the itch
Despite being warned, I never personally experienced the negative effects of poor choices
I never would
I intend on avoiding the pitfalls of poor choices in the future
My mother had forbidden me
My mom made it clear that certain behaviors were not acceptable
To waste away my life
She didn't want me to squander opportunities and throw my potential away
I want you to have all the things
My mom desires for me to have every opportunity and experience that she was never able to provide
I could never buy you
Due to circumstances outside her control, she was unable to financially provide everything she wanted to for me
So don't stop what I'd begun
She wanted me to continue following her advice, because she believed it was in my best interest
You're my one and only son
As her only child, I held a special place in her heart
Follow what I say, not what I've done
She acknowledges that she's made mistakes and wants me to learn from them, without experiencing the consequences firsthand
Shower, scrub, and shave
Good hygiene is important, and a reflection of your character
Cleanly boys don't misbehave
Maintaining cleanliness can lead to a more disciplined and respectable lifestyle
Follow what I say, not what I've done
The message from my mother to follow her guidance without repeating her mistakes is repeated once more for emphasis
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: MIKE BURKETT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Yesika
My father used to say
You sleep with dogs the next day
You'll wake up in the bed scratching
Those inevitable fleas
At ten years old
You listen to what you're told
But I never felt the itch
I never would
My mother had forbidden me
To waste away my life
I want you to have all the things
I could never buy you
So don't stop what I'd begun
You're my one and only son
Follow what I say, not what I've done
Follow what I say, not what I've done
Shower, scrub, and shave
Cleanly boys don't misbehave
Follow what I say, not what I've done
Badministrator
Actual Lyrics:
Father used to say
Sleep in dogs next day
Wake in the night scratching those inevibuttal fleas
At ten years old
You listen to what you're told
I never had the itch
I never would
Mother had forbidden me to waste away my life
Wanted to have all the things I could never buy you
Don't stop what I'd begun
You're my one and only son
Follow what I say not what I done
Follow what I say not what I done
Shower, scrub, and shave
Cleanly boys don't misbehave
Follow what I say not what I done
Weapon's Arcade
This song will always remind me of my mom's " Do as I say, not as I do" attitude of raising me. Love it
Serge de Mat
Reminds me so on my adolescence. Love it.
Brian DiVincenzo
Same man ... This album broke down alot of doors for me when I was 10, I'm 33 now lol
Serge de Mat
@Brian DiVincenzo 40 man…last week…my break down was with GnR AFord :)
devious187
Not a punk fan per se... but this is one of my favorite albums, and this is a great tune... follow what I say not what I've done
SalDOWN
yes, one of the very first songs I heard from the NOFX :-)
Jonas Ltp
Beautiful song
Yesika
My father used to say
You sleep with dogs the next day
You'll wake up in the bed scratching
Those inevitable fleas
At ten years old
You listen to what you're told
But I never felt the itch
I never would
My mother had forbidden me
To waste away my life
I want you to have all the things
I could never buy you
So don't stop what I'd begun
You're my one and only son
Follow what I say, not what I've done
Follow what I say, not what I've done
Shower, scrub, and shave
Cleanly boys don't misbehave
Follow what I say, not what I've done
Badministrator
Actual Lyrics:
Father used to say
Sleep in dogs next day
Wake in the night scratching those inevibuttal fleas
At ten years old
You listen to what you're told
I never had the itch
I never would
Mother had forbidden me to waste away my life
Wanted to have all the things I could never buy you
Don't stop what I'd begun
You're my one and only son
Follow what I say not what I done
Follow what I say not what I done
Shower, scrub, and shave
Cleanly boys don't misbehave
Follow what I say not what I done
jeff Chavarria
Temazo... Saludos desde Costa Rica 🇨🇷