The band drew upon a variety of stylistic influences over the course of their career, including 1960s beat music, soul, rhythm and blues and psychedelic rock, as well as 1970s punk and new wave. The trio was known for its melodic pop songs, its distinctly English flavour and its mod image. The band launched the career of Paul Weller, who went on to form The Style Council and later had a successful solo career. Weller wrote and sang most of The Jam’s original compositions, and he played lead guitar, using a Rickenbacker. Bruce Foxton provided backing vocals and prominent basslines, which were the foundation of many of the band’s songs, including the hits "Down in the Tube Station at Midnight", "The Eton Rifles", "Going Underground" and "Town Called Malice".
For artists called "Jam", please see http://www.last.fm/music/+noredirect/Jam.
Absolute Beginners
The Jam Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I looked across this world, there was no one to be seen
This empty feeling turned and quietly walked away
I saw no warmth in life, no love was in my eyes
I stared a century thinking this will never change
As I hesitated, time rushed onwards without me
Too scared to break the spell, too small to take a fall
But the absolute luck is, love is in our hearts!
I lost some hours thinking of it
I need the strength to go and get what I want
I lost a lifetime thinking of it
An' I lost an era daydreaming like I do
I stared a century thinking this will never change
As I hesitated, time rushed onwards without me
Too scared to break the spell, too small to take a fall
But the absolute luck is, love is in our hearts!
In echoed steps you walk across an empty dream
But look around this world, there's millions to be seen
Come see the tyrants panic, see their crumbling empires fall
Then tell 'em we don't fight for fools 'cause love is in our hearts!
I lost some hours thinking of it
I need the strength to go and get what I want
I lost a lifetime thinking of it
An' I lost an era daydreaming like I do
You can lose some hours thinking of it
You need the strength to go and get what you want
You can lose a lifetime thinking of it
And lose an era daydreaming like I do
The Jam's "Absolute Beginners" is a song about the realization of the emptiness that comes with a lack of love or warmth in life. The lyrics describe the singer's feelings of walking alone in an "empty dream" and seeing no one around them. They feel as though they are staring into a century of emptiness, unable to break the spell of loneliness they feel. However, the song's ultimate message is one of hope, as the singer acknowledges the presence of love in their heart and in the world around them, encouraging listeners to seek it out and to not let the fear of failure hold them back.
Throughout the song, the theme of time and its ever-increasing pace is prevalent. The singer watches as time rushes by without them, too scared to take a chance and too small to handle potential failure. This further emphasizes the idea of the importance of not wasting one's time and taking risks to find love and fulfillment in life.
The chorus repeats the phrase "but the absolute luck is, love is in our hearts," driving home the idea that even in times of loneliness and despair, we all possess the ability to love and be loved. Through this reminder, the song encourages listeners to overcome their fears and find the happiness they deserve.
Line by Line Meaning
In echoed steps I walked across an empty dream
I walked aimlessly with no direction or purpose.
I looked across this world, there was no one to be seen
I looked for someone or something but found nothing.
This empty feeling turned and quietly walked away
The feeling of emptiness that I had slowly faded away.
I saw no warmth in life, no love was in my eyes
I couldn't find any happiness or love in life.
I stared a century thinking this will never change
I felt stuck in this feeling for a long time and thought it would never go away.
As I hesitated, time rushed onwards without me
I wasted time and missed out on opportunities because I was too hesitant or scared.
Too scared to break the spell, too small to take a fall
I was too afraid to take risks or make changes in my life.
But the absolute luck is, love is in our hearts!
However, the one thing that can make us truly happy is love, which is always within us.
You can lose some hours thinking of it
You can waste time thinking about things.
You need the strength to go and get what you want
But you need the courage to go after what you want.
You can lose a lifetime thinking of it
Otherwise, you'll miss out on the best moments in life and spend it thinking about missed opportunities.
And lose an era daydreaming like I do
And waste your life daydreaming and not taking action.
In echoed steps you walk across an empty dream
You might be walking around aimlessly with no direction or purpose.
But look around this world, there's millions to be seen
But if you look around, there's so much to see and experience.
Come see the tyrants panic, see their crumbling empires fall
You can see powerful people lose their grip on their positions and crumble.
Then tell 'em we don't fight for fools 'cause love is in our hearts!
And in the end, we fight not for foolish things but for love, which is the most important thing.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: PAUL JOHN WELLER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@mitsos3789
Lyrics
In echoed steps I walked across an empty dream
I looked across this world, there was no one to be seen
This empty feeling turned and quietly walked away
I saw no warmth in life, no love was in my eyes
I stared a century thinking this will never change
As I hesitated, time rushed onwards without me
Too scared to break the spell, too small to take a fall
But the absolute luck is, love is in our hearts!
I lost some hours thinking of it
I need the strength to go and get what I want
I lost a lifetime thinking of it
An' I lost an era daydreaming like I do
I stared a century thinking this will never change
As I hesitated, time rushed onwards without me
Too scared to break the spell, too small to take a fall
But the absolute luck is, love is in our hearts!
In echoed steps you walk across an empty dream
But look around this world, there's millions to be seen
Come see the tyrants panic, see their crumbling empires fall
Then tell 'em we don't fight for fools 'cause love is in our hearts!
I lost some hours thinking of it
I need the strength to go and get what I want
I lost a lifetime thinking of it
An' I lost an era daydreaming like I do
You can lose some hours thinking of it
You need the strength to go and get what you want
You can lose a lifetime thinking of it
And lose an era daydreaming like I do
@awayoflife4110
In echoed steps I walked across an empty dream
I looked across this world, there was no one to be seen
This empty feeling turned and quietly walked away
I saw no warmth in life, no love was in my eyes
I stared a century thinking this will never change
As I hesitated, time rushed onwards without me
Too scared to break the spell, too small to take a fall
But the absolute luck is, love is in our hearts!
I lost some hours thinking of it
I need the strength to go and get what I want
I lost a lifetime thinking of it
An' I lost an era daydreaming like I do
I stared a century thinking this will never change
As I hesitated, time rushed onwards without me
Too scared to break the spell, too small to take a fall
But the absolute luck is, love is in our hearts!
In echoed steps you walk across an empty dream
But look around this world, there's millions to be seen
Come see the tyrants panic, see their crumbling empires fall
Then tell 'em we don't fight for fools 'cause love is in our hearts!
I lost some hours thinking of it
I need the strength to go and get what I want
I lost a lifetime thinking of it
An' I lost an era daydreaming like I do
You can lose some hours thinking of it
You need the strength to go and get what you want
You can lose a lifetime thinking of it
And lose an era daydreaming like I do
@subtlebluntduality5997
I definitely love The Jam. I wish they were more well known in the US but for those of us who know this band, we REALLY love them!
@chewybunz
There was a radio episode I listened to back in '82 that examined why the band never broke big here.
@ottomanfred2473
🤔 to be honest ' it's almost better that they didnt make it big here in the USA. That would made them change their style to fit the us market. The Jam speaks of issues that only the UK or Europeans would understand. Long live the Jam. The UK and Europe. Thank you for sharing your great bands and talent with the world.. 🙏😊👽🍻
@captainkttyhwk
Loved them for decades...now retired to 49777 and still listening!!
@johncronin1082
Absolutely love this song ...never gets the air time it deserves
@jlmagoya
Bruce’s most melodic bass line ever. Long, sustained notes pushing the melody on from start to finish.
@houmm08
One of our greatest bands, incredible song writing and musical ability. Just amazing
@a.lee713
My generation may have crappy music, but at least we've got access to amazing stuff like this.
@spinningmonkey2358
Exactly mate 🤝
@ARyan-nf5my
Music scene’s finished kids’ve swapped it for identity politics.