The core members were Josh Clayton-Felt and Michael Ward who would play club dates in Los Angeles, California as a duo accompanied by programmed drums and bass. The band signed with Capitol Records in 1990, and released their first single on that same year on 7-inch vinyl. Their self-titled debut, School of Fish, was released in March 1991, followed by their first single, Three Strange Days. Also during the same year, they appeared on a KROQ concert disc called the Acoustic Christmas. Their second album, Human Cannonball, was released in 1993. The album did not sell very well and was not as successful as the self-titled album. Shortly thereafter, the band broke up.
Singer Josh Clayton-Felt died on January 19, 2000 at 32 of testicular cancer. In the six years after School of Fish, he had released solo albums entitled Inarticulate Nature Boy (1995), Felt Like Making a Live Record (1996), Beautiful Nowhere (1999), Spirit Touches Ground (2002), and Center of Six (2003).
Guitarist Michael Ward went on to play with John Hiatt and eventually became a member of The Wallflowers. Chad Fischer went on to form the band Lazlo Bane, most known for original opening credits of the TV show Scrubs. He also performed music in the Garden State movie soundtrack. Christopher MacDonald, who played bass with the band on tour, but did not play on any School of Fish recordings, records synthesizer space music under the name Telomere (label Evenfall).
Jump Off The World
School Of Fish Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Holds you to something you don't understand
Staring for hours at the spot on the ceiling
It needs to be painted but it's out of your hands
And I don't want to be soul free
And that we can't even get on
Everything I should have never thought have has finally come
So don't paint my candles red again
[Chorus:]
Jump off the world
Jump off the world
Jump off the world
Stuck in a hit in a staircase around you
Waiting for all of the trust in the sky
Write up on pictures you should have avoided
You gladly trade your mind for a write but
[Chorus]
For many lines of action
Will follow you forever and ever
[Chorus]
School of Fish’s “Jump Off The World” is a song that speaks to the frustration that can come with feeling stuck in a rut. The first few lines of the song set the groundwork for this feeling, discussing how something, perhaps the city the singer is living in, is “holding” them but they don’t understand why. They find themselves staring upwards for hours, fixated on something as simple as a spot on the ceiling that needs to be painted. This detail might appear inconsequential, but it’s an example of how small things can begin to consume a person when they feel like they are stuck in their situation. The singer goes on to express how they don’t want to be “soul free” and that whatever is happening between them and whoever “can’t even get on.” Essentially, they are frustrated and don’t see a way out.
The chorus of the song, “Jump off the world,” is repeated throughout the song and seems to be a call to action for the singer - something they are telling themselves or someone else to do to try and break free from their current disposition. The last few lines of the song mention “many lines of action will follow you forever” which could be interpreted as saying that even small steps can have a long-lasting impact on a person. In summary, the song “Jump Off The World” is a reflection on feeling stuck and the desire to break free from that feeling of isolation and frustration.
Line by Line Meaning
3000 miles underneath the pavement
Underneath the surface, hidden from plain sight, lies a distance hard to comprehend
Holds you to something you don't understand
This unknown force is keeping you anchored to something you can't grasp
Staring for hours at the spot on the ceiling
Gazing aimlessly for extended periods of time at a ceiling that needs attention, but nothing can be done about it
It needs to be painted but it's out of your hands
The ceiling requires painting, yet it's a task beyond your control
And I don't want to be soul free
I don't wish to be entirely free from constraints binding me to who I am
And that we can't even get on
Unfortunately, even with this in mind, we can't agree or find a common ground to proceed from
Everything I should have never thought have has finally come
A culmination has been reached where all my worst fears and doubts have come to fruition
So don't paint my candles red again
Don't make the same mistakes again and again, refusing to see a different outcome
Don't crawl into my head again
Stop delving deep into my thoughts, causing undue anxiety and distress
Jump off the world
Escape the confines of this world, leave everything behind
Stuck in a hit in a staircase around you
Trapped in an endless cycle of movements, going up and down with no real direction
Waiting for all of the trust in the sky
Seeking some semblance of security and faith, hoping for it to be found in the heavens
Write up on pictures you should have avoided
Regretting the decisions made, wishing that some choices were revised, avoiding the repercussions of those actions
You gladly trade your mind for a write but
You're willing to give up your own thoughts and beliefs to follow some doctrine or rules, even if it doesn't make sense entirely
For many lines of action
Numerous paths lie ahead
Will follow you forever and ever
These paths will have a lasting impact, trailing behind you for the rest of your life
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JOSHUA B. CLAYTON-FELT, MICHAEL B. WARD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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