Shattered
Rolling Stones [www.musikaki.blogspot.com] Lyrics

Shattered, shattered
The singer is feeling completely broken and defeated.

Love and hope and sex and dreams are still surviving on the streets
Despite the difficult circumstances of life, people on the streets still cling to their desires and aspirations.

And look at me, I'm in tatters
The singer is also struggling and feels like they have been torn apart.

I'm shattered
The repetition of this line emphasizes how completely broken and hopeless the singer feels.

Friends are so alarming, my lover's never charming
The singer's relationships are failing and they feel let down by the people close to them.

Life's just a cocktail party on the street, Big Apple
Life in the city is superficial and frivolous, like a party that never ends.

People dressed in plastic bags (Shadoobie, shattered)
People on the street are so poor they have to improvise clothing, which is a symbol of their struggles and poverty.

Directing traffic, some kind of fashion
The way people dress and act is strange and meaningless.

Laughter, joy, and loneliness and sex and sex and sex and sex
People try to escape their loneliness and depression through sex, which is a fleeting pleasure.

All this chitter-chatter, chitter-chatter, chitter-chatter 'bout
People talk about shallow things that don't matter.

Shmatta, shmatta, shmatta, I can't give it away on 7th Avenue (Shadoobie, shattered)
The singer has clothing to give away, but no one cares or wants it, which highlights the excess and wastefulness of consumer culture.

This town's been wearing tatters, uh-huh
The degradation of the city is obvious and undeniable.

Work and work for love and sex
People work hard to find and keep love and sex, but it's not easy.

And ain't you hungry for success, success, success, success
People are desperate for success and recognition, but it's a never-ending cycle of wanting more.

Does it matter?
The singer questions whether all this striving for success and pleasure is really worth it in the end.

Ah look at me, I'm shattered
The singer is broken and defeated.

Pride and joy and greed and sex, that's what makes our town the best
The city is driven by selfish and superficial desires, which is why it's considered the best.

Pride and joy and dirty dreams and still surviving on the street (Tatters)
Despite the poverty and struggle, people still hold onto their dreams and desires, even if they are dirty or immoral.

And look at me, I'm in tatters
The singer is still struggling.

I've been battered (Shattered)
The singer has suffered and is in pain (this line is also a play on words, as 'battered' and 'shattered' sound similar).

What does it matter? (Shattered)
The singer questions whether anything in life really matters anymore.

Uh-huh, does it matter?
This repetition reinforces the singer's feeling of hopelessness.

Mmm, shattered
The singer is still completely broken and defeated.

Don't you know the crime rate's going up, up, up, up, up (Shadoobie, shattered)
The city is becoming more dangerous, which adds to the struggles of living there.

To live in this town, you must be tough, tough, tough, tough, tough, tough, tough (Shadoobie, shattered, shadoobie, shattered, shattered)
The singer emphasizes that to survive in this city, you have to be incredibly strong and resilient.

You got rats on the west side, bed bugs uptown (Shadoobie, shattered)
The city is infested with vermin, which is a symbol of its decay and degradation.

What a mess, this town's in tatters, I've been shattered (Shadoobie, shattered)
This repetition emphasizes the chorus's message that the city is a complete mess and the singer is completely broken.

My brain's been battered, splattered all over Manhattan (Shadoobie, shattered)
The singer's mind has been broken and scattered throughout the city, which highlights how affected they are by their struggles and hardships.

My friends they come around they (Shadoobie, shattered)
Even though the singer is struggling, their friends still come around.

Flatter, flatter, flatter, flatter, flatter, flatter, flatter (Shadoobie, shattered)
The singer's friends are insincere and just trying to make them feel better without really helping.

Pile it up, pile it up, pile it high on the platter (Shadoobie, shattered, shattered)
Even though the singer's friends are insincere, they still try to make them feel better by piling up compliments and attention.