The Psychedelic Furs is an English rock band that was founded in London in … Read Full Bio ↴The Psychedelic Furs is an English rock band that was founded in London in the late 70s. They came together in England's burgeoning punk scene of 1977 and initially consisted of Richard Butler (vocals), Tim Butler (bass guitar), Duncan Kilburn (saxophone), Paul Wilson (drums), and Roger Morris (guitars). By 1979, this line-up had expanded to a sextet due to the addition of John Ashton on guitar and Vince Ely replacing Wilson on drums.

The Furs initially used Martin Hannett as a producer, but their initial self-titled album from 1980 was eventually produced by Steve Lillywhite. The LP quickly established the band on radio and was a top 20 hit in the UK. The album also found success in Germany, Italy, France, Spain and Australia. The US version of the album was re-sequenced, but failed to have as strong a commercial impact.

The Furs found success in the U.S. market with the 1981 release, titled 'Talk Talk Talk', which made its impact on the US album charts and received critical acclaim worldwide. In the UK, the album was a solid hit which spun off two charting singles, "Dumb Waiters" and the original version of "Pretty in Pink". The latter song served as inspiration for the 1986 John Hughes film of the same name, and was re-recorded for the platinum-selling soundtrack.

In 1982, the band was reduced to a four-piece with the departures of Morris and Kilburn. (Ex-Birthday Party drummer Phill Calvert would briefly join the group around this time.) The band's remaining members moved permanently to New York, where they recorded the album Forever Now with producer Todd Rundgren. This album contained "Love My Way", a breakthrough Top 40 hit in both the US and the UK. Ely left the band after this release, though he would return for the 1988 single "All That Money Wants" and the 1989 album Book of Days.

The Furs' 1984 release Mirror Moves was produced by Keith Forsey, and featured the songs "The Ghost in You" and "Heaven". Both charted in the UK, and "Heaven" became the band's highest charting UK hit at the time -- but inexplicably, "Heaven" was never released as a single in America. Instead, Columbia Records opted for "Here Come Cowboys", despite both international success and heavy MTV airplay on "Heaven." "Here Come Cowboys" failed to chart, but "The Ghost In You" was a hit on the US pop charts. The band had become popular in Canada as well, CFNY, Toronto's new wave radio station, listed Mirror Moves as the #1 LP of 1984.

By this time, the band had become somewhat of a staple on US college and modern rock radio stations. As well, they were building mainstream success, fairly consistently placing singles in the pop charts on both sides of the Atlantic, though they would "have more impact on future musicians than they ever did in the marketplace." In 1986, the band re-recorded a version of "Pretty in Pink", which was their biggest hit to that time in the US, and their biggest-ever UK hit.

Richard Butler later claimed that the success of "Pretty in Pink" caused the band to be pressured into entering the studio to record a follow-up release before they were ready. The result was Midnight to Midnight, an album which Butler characterized as "hollow, vapid and weak". A more overtly commercial effort than the Furs had ever recorded before, the album also featured the single "Heartbreak Beat", which was their highest charting top 40 US hit.

However, the Furs were dissatisfied with their new commercial direction, and subsequently returned to a rawer sound with "All That Money Wants", a 1988 track especially recorded for a 'best-of' collection. 1989's Book of Days saw a return to the old-school style and the temporary return of Vince Ely. 1991's World Outside was similarly more of a "back to basics" approach.

From 1988 on The Furs' chart success continued with three #1 hits on the US Modern Rock chart between 1988 and 1991.

The band splintered in 1991, with the Butler brothers going on to found Love Spit Love. After spending most of the decade apart, Butler, Butler and Ashton re-formed The Psychedelic Furs in 2000, and released a live album Beautiful Chaos: Greatest Hits Live, which also featured a new studio recording, "Alive (For Once In My Lifetime)." A DVD version of the performance included live versions of "Alive" and three other previously unreleased songs: "Anodyne (Better Days)," "Cigarette" and "Wrong Train."

Since then the Furs continue to tour the world along with former Love Spit Love drummer Frank Ferrer, ex-Information Society and World Party keyboardist Amanda Kramer and saxophonist Mars Williams who returned to the band after a stint in the late 1980s.

Showing the band's significant influence as a part of the new wave and post-punk movements, their songs have been covered by numerous other artists. Examples include Annie Lennox, Buffalo Tom, Icehouse, Powderfinger, Regenerator, and Robyn Hitchcock.

Goodbye
The Psychedelic Furs Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Hello to you hello to me
I've somewhere else to be
Excuses I get all the time
Your answers I don't see
Today is easy isn't it so?
I sit and watch the radio
There's nothing coming on at all
Hello to you hello to me

Ah yeah I really care
I'll see you all around sometime
I hope that I'm not there
Today's news is yesterday's news
You don't remember you forget
That's the way the stories all go
Hello to you hello to me
And yes I really care
I'll see you all around sometime
If I ever go back there
Goodbye to you goodbye again
I've got to get this train
It's nine o' clock already
And I'm twenty minutes late
Goodbye to you goodbye again
Problems don't exist
I'll see you at the station
You'll be standing in the rain
Today is easy isn't it so?
The man says stop
The clock says now
It's exit time for me
Goodnight to you goodnight again
I've somewhere else to be
I'll see you all around sometime
I hope you don't miss me
Goodbye to you good bye to you
Goodbye goodbye goodbye goodbye

Goodbye to you
Goodbye

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of The Psychedelic Furs song "Goodbye" appear to be a conversation between two people who are parting ways. The singer is seemingly in a hurry, trying to make excuses and justify his departure. He doesn't seem to want to be there, wants to leave and move on. He appears apathetic towards the conversation and mentions that he hopes he isn't there when he sees them next. As the song progresses, he starts saying goodbye to the people he is with, leading to a rather melancholic ending where he repeats "goodbye" multiple times.

The lyrics are a reflection of the singer's disconnection, loneliness and aimlessness. He doesn't belong where he is and struggles to connect emotionally with those around him. The line "problems don't exist" is an interesting one, suggesting the singer does not want to face any personal or interpersonal issues. It is a harsh goodbye and at the same time, it has an undertone of introspection about it, as if the singer is questioning the trajectory of his life.

Line by Line Meaning

Hello to you hello to me
Starting the conversation between two people

I've somewhere else to be
One person telling the other that they need to leave

Excuses I get all the time
The other person responds with an excuse for why they need to leave

Your answers I don't see
The first person is not convinced by the excuse

Today is easy isn't it so?
A rhetorical question about how the day is going

I sit and watch the radio
The first person is bored and not finding anything interesting to do

There's nothing coming on at all
The radio is not providing any entertainment

Ah yeah I really care
Sarcasm from the first person, expressing a lack of interest

I'll see you all around sometime
Parting words, expressing the possibility of meeting again

I hope that I'm not there
The first person hopes to avoid the other person in future meetings

Today's news is yesterday's news
The news is not important or relevant anymore

You don't remember you forget
People don't always remember things that are not important

That's the way the stories all go
It's common for things to be forgotten or lose their importance

If I ever go back there
The first person is uncertain if they will return to the same place

Goodbye to you goodbye again
Parting words, expressing that the first person is leaving again

I've got to get this train
The first person has a specific mode of transportation to catch

It's nine o'clock already
The first person is running late

And I'm twenty minutes late
The first person is expressing how late they are

Problems don't exist
The first person is trying to avoid any problems or complications

You'll be standing in the rain
The other person is left in a bad situation

The man says stop
An external authority is telling the first person to leave

The clock says now
The time is indicating that the first person needs to leave

Goodnight to you goodnight again
Parting words, expressing that it is nighttime and the first person is leaving

I hope you don't miss me
The first person is not expecting to be missed

Goodbye to you good bye to you
Repeating the parting words, emphasizing the finality of the goodbye

Goodbye goodbye goodbye goodbye
Repeating goodbye four times, emphasizing the emotional weight of the departure

Goodbye to you
Final parting words

Lyrics © DistroKid, BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: STEVEN NARVAEZ, WILLIAM NOON, THOMAS WILLIAMS, GREGORY R COLLINS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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