By the Way
Red-Hot Chili Peppers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And there's a light on, heavy glow
By the way, I tried to say
I'd be there, waiting for
Dani the girl is singing songs to me
Beneath the marquee, overload
Steak knife, card shark
Skin that flick, she's such a little DJ
Get there quick by street but not the freeway
Turn that trick to make a little leeway
Beat that nic, but not the way that we play
Dogtown, blood bath
Rib cage, soft tail
Standing in line to see the show tonight
And there's a light on, heavy glow
By the way, I tried to say
I'd be there, waiting for
Black jack, dope dick
Pawn shop, quick pick
Kiss that dyke, I know you want to hold one
Not on strike but I'm about to bowl one
Bite that mic, I know you never stole one
Girls that like a story, so I told one
Song bird, main line
Cash back, hard top
Standing in line to see the show tonight
And there's a light on, heavy glow
By the way, I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
Dani, the girl, is singing songs to me
Beneath the marquee, oversold
By the way, I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah
Standing in line to see the show tonight
And there's a light on, heavy glow
By the way, I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
Dani, the girl, is singing songs to me
Beneath the marquee, oversold
By the way, I tried to say
I know you from before
Standing in line to see the show tonight
And there's a light on, heavy glow
By the way, I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
The lyrics of Red-Hot Chili Peppers' song By The Way, tell a story of a person standing in line to see a show, possibly a rock concert, with a girl named Dani singing songs to them underneath the marquee. The singer uses a variety of phrases and metaphors to describe the various aspects of the scene, such as the "light on heavy glow," the "con job boot cut," and the "pawn shop quick pick." The song has a highly poetic quality, with the lyrics painting a surreal picture of a gritty urban landscape.
The third verse of the song seems to turn toward social commentary, with the singer describing the plight of workers and laborers. The metaphors here are more overt, referring to "not on strike but I'm about to bowl one" and "beat that nic but not the way that we play." These lines seem to indicate frustration with the way social and economic systems work, and a desire to break free from the constraints of the system.
Overall, the lyrics of By The Way are highly abstract and open to interpretation. They seem to be more about capturing the essence of a particular moment or feeling, rather than conveying a concrete message or idea. The song is a testament to the power of poetic language and the ability of music to evoke emotion and create a sense of atmosphere.
Line by Line Meaning
Standing in line
Waiting patiently in queue
To see the show tonight
Attending the concert scheduled for tonight
And there's a light on
The venue is all lit up
Heavy glow
Intense luminance
By the way I tried to say
Incidentally, earlier I attempted to communicate
I'd be there, waiting for
I assured her I will be waiting for her
Dani the girl
Dani, a female
Is singing songs to me
She's performing for me
Beneath the marquee, overload
Under the signpost, too many people
Steak knife card shark
Person skilled at winning card games using covert methods
Con job boot cut
Using deceit to sell boot cut jeans
Skin that flick
Remove the film cover
She's such a little DJ
She's an expert in music mixing
Get there quick
Hurry to the destination
By street but not the freeway
Use the side streets instead of the highway
Turn that trick
Employ a clever technique
To make a little leeway
To gain a small advantage
Beat that nic
Overcome the addiction
But not the way that we play
Don't follow our unhealthy habits in doing so
Dog town blood bath
A place of violence
Rib cage soft tail
A type of motorcycle
Black jack dope dick
One addicted to gambling and drugs
Pawn shop quick pick
Fast purchase from a pawnshop
Kiss that dyke
Share a kiss with a lesbian
I know you want to hold one
I know you desire a woman
Not on strike
Not picketing/protesting
But I'm about to bowl one
But I'm about to smoke some marijuana
Bite that mic
Hold onto the microphone tightly
I know you never stole one
I know you never robbed someone
Girls that like
Girls who want
A story, so I told one
A narrative, which I narrated
Song bird, main line
A talented singer, the main section
Cash back, hard top
Referring to specific car features
Of her soul
Her inner self
I know you from before
I am familiar with you
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Exclamation of surprise that something wasn't sincere
Standing in line to
Waiting patiently in queue to
Dani the girl
Dani, a female
Singing songs to me
She's performing for me
Oversold
More tickets were sold than could be accommodated
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Written by: Anthony Kiedis, Michael Balzary, John Frusciante, Chad Smith
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ceeessy
LETRA/LYRIC
Standing in line to see the show tonight
And there's a light on, heavy glow
By the way, I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
Dani, the girl, is singing songs to me
Beneath the marquee, overload
Steak knife, card shark
Con job, boot cut
Skin that flick, she's such a little DJ
Get there quick by street, but not the freeway
Turn that trick to make a little leeway
Beat that nic, but not the way that we play
Dogtown, blood bath
Rib cage, soft tail
Standing in line to see the show tonight
And there's a light on, heavy glow
By the way, I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
Black Jack, dope dick
Pawn shop, quick pick
Kiss that dyke, I know you want to hold one
Not on strike, but I'm about to bowl one
Bite that mic, I know you never stole one
Girls that like a story, so I told one
Song bird, main line
Cash back, hard top
Standing in line to see the show tonight
And there's a light on, heavy glow
By the way, I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
Dani, the girl, is singing songs to me
Beneath the marquee, oversold
By the way, I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
Oh, ah, guess you never meant it
Oh, ah, guess you never meant it
Oh, ah, guess you never meant it
Oh, ah, guess you never meant it
Oh, ah, guess you never meant it
Oh, ah, guess you never meant it
Oh, ah, guess you never meant it
Oh, ah
Standing in line to see the show tonight
And there's a light on, heavy glow
By the way, I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
Dani, the girl, is singing songs to me
Beneath the marquee, oversold
By the way, I tried to say
I know you from before
Standing in line to see the show tonight
And there's a light on, heavy glow
By the way, I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
@burdenthrive3204
Standing in line
To see the show tonight
And there's a light on
Heavy glow
By the way I tried to say
I'd be there, waiting for
Dani the girl
Is singing songs to me
Beneath the marquee, overload
Steak knife card shark
Con job boot cut
Skin that flick
She's such a little DJ
Get there quick
By street but not the freeway
Turn that trick
To make a little leeway
Beat that nic
But not the way that we play
Dog town blood bath
Rib cage soft tail
Standing in line
To see the show tonight
And there's a light on
Heavy glow
By the way I tried to say
I'd be there, waiting for
Black jack dope dick
Pawn shop quick pick
Kiss that dyke
I know you want to hold one
Not on strike
But I'm about to bowl one
Bite that mic
I know you never stole one
Girls that like
A story, so I told one
Song bird, main line
Cash back, hard top
Standing in line to
See the show tonight
And there's a light on
Heavy glow
By the way I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
Dani the girl is
Singing songs to me
Beneath the marquee
Oversold
By the way I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah, guess you never meant it
Ooh, ah
Standing in line to
See the show tonight
And there's a light on
Heavy glow
By the way I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
Dani the girl
Is singing songs to me
Beneath the marquee
Of her soul
By the way I tried to say
I know you
From before
Standing in line to
See the show tonight
And there's a light on
Heavy glow
By the way I tried to say
I'd be there waiting for
@RedHotChiliPeppers
It has been confirmed that the Red Hot Chili Peppers will embark on a world tour in 2022! Sign up on https://redhotchilipeppers.com for more information.
@Myrrsito
It has been confirmed that i'll be there no mather what.
@albertmontero8729
yes
@tamandua9271
FINALLY
@damianrodriguez2866
Yuhhh
@JB-eg9jc
WOOO
@RedHotChiliPeppers
On this day in 2002, the music video for “By The Way” was released. Directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris.
@miriamvazquezxD
<3
@autumwilliams7949
This is one of my favorite RHCP'S songs none stop head banging!! I'm talking
major brain DAMAGE!! [?]
@Liquidmax1
again cant wacth, supouse to be my favorite band and they block my country