Formed in 1985, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones started playing in Boston clubs in the mid-1980s. After a brief period of inactivity due to the schooling commitments of its members, they reformed and released their album Devil's Night Out on Taang! Records. The Bosstones toured relentlessly throughout the 1990s, playing hundreds of shows a year, releasing albums and spinning off the popular rock radio hit "Someday I Suppose". They were eventually signed to Mercury Records. The band appeared in the movie Clueless. In 1997, the success of their single "The Impression That I Get" and its follow up, "The Rascal King" earned them mainstream recognition. In 2000 they put out their critically acclaimed disk Pay Attention. The Mighty Mighty Bosstones released their last album on Side One Dummy Records. They officially went on hiatus in 2003, citing too much time on the road and desire to branch out and do different things. In 2007, the Bosstones announced that they were reforming. They played their 10th Hometown Throwdown in Boston and released a new album, Medium Rare, which consists of rare B-sides, and 3 new songs, including the single, "Don't Worry Desmond Dekker".
The band announced their split in early 2022.
The Skeleton Song
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I knew where they were coming from
Hung by a rope I volunteered
And I never thought the day would come
Some boundaries I once overstepped
Shortcomings I must now accept
Secrets that could not be kept
I wish my skeletons had slept
You're not being honest really
You're really not and ought to be
Take an honest look at yourself
Try a little honesty
To further add to my demise
Demons never exorcised
Appeared before my very eyes
To no one's just my own suprise
A scenario just so surreal
Demons once so well concealed
Were now throughout my whole ordeal
So real and painfully revealed
You're not being honest really
You're really not and ought to be
Take an honest look at yourself
Try a little honesty
You're not being honest really
And honestly you've never been
You ought to take a look at yourself
Let the honesty begin
In flew the accusations, the razor-toothed insinuations
Each ghost my own creation, and every monster my invention
Beasts they came to burden, hell I let whatever stirred in
And I couldn't get a word in, at this unearthly intervention
They let up when they knew they got through
They knew I'd never be the same
With little left to say or do
They left as quickly as they came
The life was scared half out of me
Some way somehow I survived
A part of me was proud of me
The day my skeletons arrived
You're not being honest really
You're really not and ought to be
Take an honest look at yourself
Try a little honesty,try a little honesty
The first verse of the song sets the scene for the appearance of the skeletons. The skeletons represent the singer's hidden past, secrets, and mistakes. The use of the metaphor of skeletons in the closet refers to hidden secrets and shameful or embarrassing things that one tries to keep hidden from others. The singer is saying that he knew deep down that his past would come back to haunt him but did not expect it to happen so soon. He then highlights that he must now confront his past mistakes and accept his shortcomings. He wishes that his secrets could have stayed hidden, but it is now too late.
The second verse is a call to honesty. The singer is acknowledging that he has not been truthful and honest with himself and others. He encourages himself to take a hard look at himself and try to be truthful. The demons and beasts that he had created and buried deep inside him were now surfacing, making him confront his past head-on. It's a painful process, but it's necessary if he wants to move on with his life.
The final verse shows the singer going through the process of confronting the skeletons in his closet. The singer is scared and vulnerable, but he knows that he must face his past. The accusations and insinuations keep coming until they finally get through to him, and he realizes that he can no longer hide from his past. By the end of the song, he has managed to confront his past mistakes, and he feels much better, even feeling proud of himself for facing the skeletons in his closet.
Line by Line Meaning
One day my skeletons appeared
My secrets and past mistakes came to light
And I knew where they were coming from
I recognized the root cause of my issues
Hung by a rope I volunteered
I willingly faced my consequences
And I never thought the day would come
I never expected to face the truth
Some boundaries I once overstepped
I crossed lines that I shouldn't have
Shortcomings I must now accept
I have to acknowledge my flaws
Secrets that could not be kept
My hidden truths couldn't remain hidden forever
I wish my skeletons had slept
I wish I could have avoided facing my past
You're not being honest really
You need to be more truthful with yourself
You're really not and ought to be
You need to make an effort to be honest
Take an honest look at yourself
Take a hard and truthful look at your actions and motives
Try a little honesty
Make an effort to be more honest
To further add to my demise
To make things worse for me
Demons never exorcised
The issues I never dealt with still haunted me
Appeared before my very eyes
My inner demons became visible to me
To no one's just my own suprise
It was a shock to me despite it being my own doing
A scenario just so surreal
It was a strange and unbelievable situation
Demons once so well concealed
The things I hid from others were now exposed
Were now throughout my whole ordeal
My inner demons were present throughout my struggles
So real and painfully revealed
It was painful to face the truth about myself
And honestly you've never been
You have never been completely honest with yourself
You ought to take a look at yourself
You need to examine your actions and motives honestly
Let the honesty begin
Start being truthful with yourself
In flew the accusations, the razor-toothed insinuations
Negative thoughts and accusations flooded my mind
Each ghost my own creation, and every monster my invention
The negative thoughts and inner demons were a result of my own actions
Beasts they came to burden, hell I let whatever stirred in
My inner demons became overwhelming because I didn't confront them
And I couldn't get a word in, at this unearthly intervention
I couldn't find a way to cope with my inner struggles
They let up when they knew they got through
The negative thoughts stopped when I finally faced the truth
They knew I'd never be the same
I knew my life would be changed by this experience
With little left to say or do
I was at a loss for what to do next
They left as quickly as they came
My inner demons left just as suddenly as they appeared
The life was scared half out of me
This experience terrified me
Some way somehow I survived
Despite my struggles, I managed to get through it
A part of me was proud of me
I felt a sense of accomplishment for facing my inner demons
The day my skeletons arrived
The day I confronted my past and inner truths
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: DICKY BARRETT, JOSEPH GITTLEMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind