The Flaming Lips are known for their lush, multi-layered arrangements, spacey lyrics and bizarre song titles. They are also acclaimed for their elaborate live shows, which typically feature animal suits, puppets, streamers, video projections and complex stage light configurations.
In 2002, Q magazine named The Flaming Lips one of the "50 Bands to See Before You Die". In 2006, Oklahoma City named a street Flaming Lips Alley in their honor.
The group recorded several albums and EPs for Restless Records in the 1980s and early 1990s. After signing to Warner Brothers, they scored a #9 hit on the Billboard Alternative charts (and #55 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart) in 1994 with "She Don't Use Jelly". Although it would be their only hit single, the band has maintained critical respect and, to a lesser extent, commercial viability with sonically majestic albums such as 1995's Clouds Taste Metallic, 1999's The Soft Bulletin, 2002's Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots and 2006's At War with the Mystics. The Flaming Lips' 12th studio album, Embryonic, was released in October of 2009. A complete cover of Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon was released in May 2010. The Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends, their collaborative album which features artists like Ke$ha, Bon Iver, Nick Cave and Erykah Badu, was released on Record Store Day, April 2012.
Their next studio album, tentatively titled The Terror, will be released in January 2013.
Their song "Do You Realize??" is the official State Rock Song of Oklahoma.
www.flaminglips.com
Rainin' Babies
The Flaming Lips Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If I breathe, you know, I'm gonna lose it
It's just a drop in the biggest ocean I know I've ever seen
And in a moment it's big enough to drown the whole world
This is my present to the world
And I want you to take it
This is my present to the world
Take it from me, please please take it from me
All I know is I don't know it
It's rainin' babies from the sky down on me
Tiny drops on my windshield
And in a second it's rainin' rainin' all over the whole world
The lyrics of "Rainin' Babies" by The Flaming Lips describe a delicate thought that is so easily lost if it is breathed out. The thought is like a drop in a vast ocean, but in an instant, it has the potential to drown the entire world. The singer emphasizes the importance of the thought or idea and wants to share it with the world as a present. The metaphorical meaning behind the lyrics could be interpreted in a few different ways, but it seems to suggest that even small ideas or thoughts can have a significant impact if they are shared and amplified.
The second verse of the song continues with the metaphorical imagery of rain, as babies rain down from the sky onto the singer. The tiny drops are like bits of inspiration or ideas that may seem insignificant on their own, but when combined, they form a powerful force that can transform the entire world. The lyrics suggest that the singer doesn't fully understand the significance of what is happening, but they are aware that something transformative is taking place. Overall, the song seems to be about the power of a single thought, idea, or inspiration, and how it can have a ripple effect on the world if it is shared and cultivated.
Line by Line Meaning
What I'm thinkin' is so delicate
The idea in my mind is fragile and easily lost
If I breathe, you know, I'm gonna lose it
Taking a breath could cause me to forget or lose the idea
It's just a drop in the biggest ocean I know I've ever seen
The idea seems small in comparison to the vastness of the knowledge I possess
And in a moment it's big enough to drown the whole world
The idea has the potential to become so all-consuming that it would dominate everything
This is my present to the world
I wish to share my idea with the world
And I want you to take it
I hope that someone will accept my idea
Take it from me, please please take it from me
I implore someone to accept my idea and make it their own
All I know is I don't know it
I am uncertain about the validity of my idea
It's rainin' babies from the sky down on me
New ideas are constantly appearing in my mind
Tiny drops on my windshield
The ideas may seem small and insignificant at first
And in a second it's rainin' rainin' all over the whole world
These ideas have the potential to spread and influence the entire world
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: MICHAEL IVINS, RICHARD ENGLISH, WAYNE COYNE, ELAYNE NATHAN, Jonathan Donahue
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind