The one permanent fixture amidst the Fall's ever-changing line-up was Mark E. Smith (1957 – 2018). Smith's lyrics are free, unboxed and unpredictable, touching on an extremely wide range of subjects and places, and caring little for being tied down to easily digestible messages.
Smith's singing could put off some people, but others find it a uniquely expressive instrument. Smith was not a conventionally great vocalist, but his keen sense of rhythm, his energy and personality more than made up for this.
The Fall's music changed depending on the line-up at a given time. Always experimental, Mark E. Smith claimed to invent several musical genres, including house music; "we were doing that years ago" and even the internet. "He told me I didn't understand, that we were from the bleak industrial wastes of North England, or something, and that we didn't understand the Internet. I told him Fall fans invented the Internet. They were on there in 1982." One thing that is for sure is that The Fall (and their fans) always pushed the boundaries, and were never afraid to experiment.
The Fall were a favorite group of DJ John Peel, recording 24 sessions for his BBC1 radio program over the years.
The Fall's back catalogue consists of 29 studio albums, and is very fragmented with a seemingly endless number of compilations and semi-official live albums.
In 2006, British music-critic Dave Simpson published an entertaining account of a journalist's attempt to track down all 43 former members of The Fall in the Guardian. Many previous members have been fired, often with little or no notice. Simpson's ongoing effort was subsequently described at greater length in his book "The Fallen" (2008). His effort to track down the final unaccounted stragglers of at least 50 previous members of The Fall - including drummer Karl Burns - continues in his blog. Having decried Simpson's book as a "hatchet job" in the pages of Pseud. Mag., a Fall fan-mag, Mark E. Smith countered in short order with his autobiography "Renegade: The Lives and Tales of Mark E. Smith" (Viking, 2008/Penguin 2009).
Mark E. Smith died on 24 January 2018, aged 60.
Key Albums include:
# Live At the Witch Trials (debut)
# Dragnet
# Totale's Turns (It's Now Or Nevr)
# Grotesque (after the Gramme)
# Perverted By Language
# Hex Enduction Hour
# This Nation's Saving Grace
# Middle Class Revolt
# Bend Sinister
# Extricate
# The Infotainment Scan
# Country on the Click aka The Real New Fall LP
# Fall Heads Roll
# Reformation Post TLC (new)
Compilations/Singles/B-Sides:
# 50,000 Fall Fans Can't Be Wrong: 39 Golden Greats
# The Complete Peel Sessions 1978-2004
# Totally Wired: The Rough Trade Anthology (disc 1) and Totally Wired: The Rough Trade Anthology (disc 2)
# 458489 A-Sides
# 458489 B-Sides
Your Heart Out
The Fall Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A time of great depression
Fade out of reason
Bad time's in season
Don't shut your heart out
Don't cry your eyes out
Or savage pencil
I'm nearly healthy
And they try to take my eyes out
Friends try to work my soul out
But I don't sing, I just shout
Heavy clout, heart out
Now here's a joke
to cheer you up:
Old times no surgeon
Just magicians and dungeons
There they take your heart out
With a sharp knife
It wasn't fake
They had no anesthetic.
That joke's pathetic.
Just look at me
Too much speed
But very plain
You're lucky, friend.
You've got one to take out
You know what I'm talking about!
I don't sing I just shout
All on one note.
Sing, sing, sing, sing
Look at me, I just ding
Heart is out, out, it's out
The song "Your Heart Out" by the British rock band The Fall features lyrics that speak of difficult times and emotional vulnerability. The opening lines, "Just take for instance, a time of great depression, fade out of reason, bad time's in season" set the tone for the song's first half, urging the listener not to give up and shut their heart out even if times are difficult. Mark E. Smith's lyrics also touch on themes of physical and emotional suffering, as he sings "And they try to take my eyes out, friends try to work my soul out." He declares his own resilience, however, singing "I don't sing, I just shout, heavy clout, heart out" suggesting that he doesn't let these hardships defeat him.
The second half of the song takes a different direction, mixing in some absurdity and humor. Smith suggests an old joke about the dangers of early surgery, singing "Old times no surgeon, just magicians and dungeons, there they take your heart out, with a sharp knife, it wasn't fake, they had no anesthetic, that joke's pathetic." The chorus also repeats the phrase "heart out" several times, in a way that feels both cathartic and self-aware. By the end of the song, Smith seems to be embracing his own eccentricity, declaring "sing, sing, sing look at me, I just ding, heart is out, out, it's out."
Overall, the lyrics of "Your Heart Out" are about perseverance, resilience, and the need to stay open despite difficult circumstances.
Line by Line Meaning
Just take for instance
Let's start with this example
A time of great depression
During a period of severe sadness
Fade out of reason
Losing touch with common sense
Bad time's in season
It's a difficult time
Don't shut your heart out
Don't close yourself off emotionally
Don't cry your eyes out
Don't cry excessively
Don't cry for me, Mexico
Don't cry for me, things will be fine
Or savage pencil
Or a harsh critic
I'm nearly healthy
I'm almost well
And they try to take my eyes out
People attempt to harm me
Friends try to work my soul out
Friends try to help me emotionally
But I don't sing, I just shout
But I don't express my emotions in a traditional way
Heavy clout, heart out
Strong impact, vulnerability
Now here's a joke to cheer you up:
Now I'll tell you a joke to make you feel better
Old times no surgeon
In the past, there were no doctors
Just magicians and dungeons
Instead, people relied on magic and dark places for healing
There they take your heart out
They would remove your heart for healing
With a sharp knife
Using a dangerous tool
It wasn't fake
It was a real procedure
They had no anesthetic.
They didn't use pain relief
That joke's pathetic.
That joke is sad or depressing
Just look at me
Take a good look at me
Too much speed
I'm moving too quickly
But very plain
But I'm nothing special
You're lucky, friend.
You're fortunate, my friend
You've got one to take out
You also have emotions you need to express
You know what I'm talking about!
You understand what I'm saying
I don't sing I just shout
I don't express myself in a conventional way
All on one note.
I shout with the same intensity
Sing, sing, sing, sing
Express yourself, express yourself, express yourself, express yourself
Look at me, I just ding
I just make noise
Heart is out, out, it's out
My feelings are exposed and vulnerable
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: CRAIG ANTHONY SCANLAN, MARK RILEY, MARK EDWARD SMITH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
amira netoi
Just take for instance
A time of great depression
Fade out of reason
That time's in season
Don't shut your heart out
Don't cry your eyes out
Don't shut your heart out
Don't cry for me, Mexico
Or Savage Pencil
I'm nearly healthy
And they try to take my eyes out
Friends try to work my soul out
But I don't sing, I just shout
Heavy clout, heart out
Now here's a joke
To cheer you up:
Old times no surgeon
Just magicians and dungeons
There they take your heart out
With a sharp knife
It wasn't fake
They had no anesthetic
That joke's pathetic (3)
Just look at me
Too much speed
But very plain
You're lucky, friend
You've got one to take out
You know what I'm talking about!
I don't sing I just shout
All on one note.
Sing, sing, sing, sing
Look at me, I just ding
Heart is out, out, it's out
d. elso
"look at me I just sing.''Whoa! What a tune to be lingering amid the cobwebs upon waking!
amira netoi
Just take for instance
A time of great depression
Fade out of reason
That time's in season
Don't shut your heart out
Don't cry your eyes out
Don't shut your heart out
Don't cry for me, Mexico
Or Savage Pencil
I'm nearly healthy
And they try to take my eyes out
Friends try to work my soul out
But I don't sing, I just shout
Heavy clout, heart out
Now here's a joke
To cheer you up:
Old times no surgeon
Just magicians and dungeons
There they take your heart out
With a sharp knife
It wasn't fake
They had no anesthetic
That joke's pathetic (3)
Just look at me
Too much speed
But very plain
You're lucky, friend
You've got one to take out
You know what I'm talking about!
I don't sing I just shout
All on one note.
Sing, sing, sing, sing
Look at me, I just ding
Heart is out, out, it's out
Elizabeth Hann
This is a great joke-song, one of the Fall's more self-consciously jokey songs. I love the jibe at "Don't Cry For Me Argentina" ("Don't cry for me, Mexico,/Or Savage Pencil..."), the riffs on stock-phrases ending in out("and they try to take my eyes out,/Friends try to work my soul out", et cetra) and of course, Mark's definitive deprecation of himself as a frontman: "I don't sing, I just shout.../Jus look at me, too much speed, but very plain.../I just sing sing sing, all on one note..." Perfect! Always kind of good to hear the Fall summing themselves up like that: I suspect, only semi-facetiously, between the self-defining lyrics and the chipper drumming and the super-catchy springy garage-rock riff, this could be "Hey! Hey! We're the Fall!" Except for the sarcasm, and the speed, and the bit about Medieval surgeons hacking people's hearts out with sharp knives and no anaesthetic. Which really means, I suppose, that it couldn't really be "Hey! Hey! We're the Fall!" at all. Never mind.
This is a great song, but I'm not sure if it's my favorite Fall song, or anything like that. I think that, when I want chipper catchy garage-rock, I'll just go back and listen to NUGGETS again. This isn't quite what i listen to the Fall FOR; I much prefer them when they're being occultist and oracular. Right now at this point in my life, I think my favorite Fall song is "New Puritan", both the version on TOTALE'S TURNS and the version on the 1980 Peel Session (the two different versions are so different as to be almost two different songs, and they're both essential, of course). With few exceptions, I listen to the Fall not for rock'n'roll fun, but for visions and manifestos. Right now at this point in my life, I'm trying to get a bit more of the Puritan ethic into myself, because people have been saying I need it. I'm trying to take inspiration from Mark, who could be a hard and rigorous man when he wanted to be.
But anyway, this is still pretty good.
animatiz
Elizabeth Hann don’t cry for me i’m a sicko
Steven Champion
Elizabeth Hann ... naw, just a hiatus. Am well thanks. Indeed, I’ve listened to and enjoyed your poetry.
Shame about MES eh.
Steven Champion
Elizabeth Hann y’orrite?
Elizabeth Hann
Thanks for telling me what you listen to (and don't listen to). I really love Altered Images (especially their early stuff, like "Insects" and "Dead Pop Stars"), and the Sugarcubes and Cyndi Lauper. I used to listen to XTC (and I've always thought that the Fall's "Industrial Estate" sounds like a rubbed-raw version of XTC's early single "Science Friction"; like "Science Friction" with every bit of kitsch and glamour rubbed off and with the fury showing through the raw exterior). I've been meaning to give Dr Feelgood a listen, and I've always loved Squeeze, especially "Cool for Cats."
I know that things could always be worse; I get what you mean. I feel pretty good right now of course, because I'm writing to you. By tomorrow, I'll know if my life is going to change for the better or change for the worse. Wish me luck.
Jonathan Brown
new favorite fall song
Ross Gilmore
Bravo
steorm
That joke always cheers me up.