The original Urge lineup debuted in 1989 with the cassette-only Bust Me Dat Forty, followed a year later by the LP Puttin' the Backbone Back. After the addition of trombonist Matt Kwiatkowski, the group released 1992's Magically Delicious; later the group added trombonist/keyboardist Todd Painter and saxophonist/keyboardist Bill Reiter, and in 1993 recorded the live LP Fat Babies in the Mix. After Herschel and Malecek left the band in 1994, guitarist Jerry Jost and drummer John Pessoni joined the lineup, and subsequent touring with 311 helped The Urge win a number of new fans. The 1995 release of Receiving the Gift of Flavor was so successful that it brought the band to the attention of Epic's Immortal imprint, which reissued the LP in 1996.
After constant touring with the likes of labelmates Korn and Incubus, Master of Styles was released in 1998, containing the hit "Jump Right In" which featured singer Nick Hexum of 311.
Following the release of Too Much Stereo in mid 2000, the band toured for nearly a year before calling it quits. After the annual St. Louis Christmas shows, the Urge disbanded for the first time since they formed in 1987.
The band played several Midwest reunion shows from 2003-2005 that included a headlining spot at Pointfest, a large semi-annual outdoor rock festival in St. Louis. Frontman Steve Ewing has made several solo records while guitarist Jerry Jost formed LucaBrasi, featuring former members of Adair and Helmet. The other members still resided in St. Louis and are involved in several musical projects.
On July 15, 2011, St. Louis' KPNT 105.7 FM proclaimed that the Urge would be headlining Pointfest XXIX on September 10, 2011, marking their sixth festival appearance. The Urge also confirmed that they are once again an active band and they have been recording new music in the studio for several months.
Too Much Stereo
The Urge Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I didn't even see it coming.
Whoa.
The bad part: it was reality
Though something connecting
The nothing of you and me
You were sounding kind of scratchy,
So I checked the connection.
Can't speak to highly on the subject
Of high fidelity
Turn up! Not hearing a word you say
Turn down.
Listen to what I play
Burn up!
When tempers are running high
Burn down everything we built last night
Last night was a bitch for me.
I didn't even see it coming.
Whoa.
The bad part and no apologies
Though something connection the nothing
Bring the left to the center
And the right to the middle.
We ever come together to find
The answer to the riddle?
Don't want to fight no more.
Bring the left to the center
And the right to the middle.
We ever come together to find
The answer to the riddle?
Get back to hearing my note
Too much stereo.
Whoa.
Living on the left side of the conversation
Maybe I turned my back on this humiliation
You're always wrong.
I'm always right.
I'm on the left and you're on the right.
Turn up (Check the connection!) (HA!)
Burn up (Hearing correction!) (YEH!)
Last night was a bitch for me
I didn't even see it coming.
Whoa!
The bad part: it was reality.
Though something connecting the nothing
Bring the left to the center
And the right to the middle
We ever come together to find
The answer to the riddle?
Don't want to fight no more.
Bring the left to the center
And the right to the middle.
We ever come together to find
The answer to the riddle?
Get back to hearing my note
Too much stereo
I'm selfish I know, you saved me
The effort of being for real
As long as you stand there
And listen to reason, our colors won't show
No one will ever know...will ever know
Yeh!
Last night oh Last night oh Last night.
Last night oh Last night
Bring the left to the center
And the right to the middle
We ever come together to find
The answer to the riddle?
Don't want to fight no more
Bring the left to the center
And the right to the middle
We ever come together to find
The answer to the riddle?
Can't live a life on my dough
Bring the left to the center
And the right to the middle
We ever come together to find
The answer to the riddle?
Get back to hearing my note
Too much stereo.
Whoa oh
Whoa oh.
Whoa oh.
The song Too Much Stereo by The Urge describes a conversation between two people that has gone wrong. The singer did not see the bad part coming, as he describes it. Despite the connection between the two people, who are represented by the left and the right, there is something that is not working: "Though something connecting, the nothing of you and me." The singer tells his counterpart to "bring the left to the center and the right to the middle" to find the answer to their riddle and stop fighting.
The song is an analogy for stereo audio equipment, which has a left and a right speaker. The singer is saying that the two speakers need to be brought together in the middle for the music to sound good, just as the two people need to come together to find a solution to their disagreements. The lyrics also touch on the theme of selfishness in a relationship, with the singer admitting that he is selfish and that his partner saved him the effort of being real by listening to his side of the story.
Overall, the song Too Much Stereo by The Urge is about miscommunication and the need to find common ground and come together to reach a solution.
Line by Line Meaning
Last night was a bitch for me.
I had a tough night last night.
I didn't even see it coming.
I didn't anticipate the problems that occurred.
Whoa.
Expresses surprise or shock.
The bad part: it was reality
The situation was unpleasant, but it was real.
Though something connecting The nothing of you and me
Despite there being no real connection between us, something held us together.
You were sounding kind of scratchy, So I checked the connection.
Your communication was unclear, so I made sure our connection was good.
Maybe I checked the doctor for hearing correction.
Perhaps I need to get my hearing checked.
Can't speak to highly on the subject Of high fidelity
I don't have much to say about the quality of sound.
Turn up! Not hearing a word you say Turn down. Listen to what I play
I want you to turn up the volume, so you can hear my music instead of what you're saying.
Burn up! When tempers are running high Burn down everything we built last night
When we're angry, we destroy everything we had built together the previous night.
Bring the left to the center And the right to the middle. We ever come together to find The answer to the riddle?
We need to unify, put aside our differences and work together to solve our problems.
Don't want to fight no more. Bring the left to the center And the right to the middle. We ever come together to find The answer to the riddle?
I'm tired of fighting, we need to work together to find a solution.
Get back to hearing my note Too much stereo.
You need to listen to my music and not be distracted by other sounds.
Living on the left side of the conversation Maybe I turned my back on this humiliation You're always wrong. I'm always right. I'm on the left and you're on the right.
I have been ignoring the embarrassment of being on the losing side of the argument, but now I realize that I am not always right.
I'm selfish I know, you saved me The effort of being for real As long as you stand there And listen to reason, our colors won't show
I acknowledge that I can be selfish, and I appreciate you sparing me the trouble of facing reality. As long as you listen to me, we can avoid revealing our true feelings.
No one will ever know...will ever know Yeh!
Our true feelings will never be revealed to anyone else.
Can't live a life on my dough Bring the left to the center And the right to the middle We ever come together to find The answer to the riddle?
I can't live life on my own, we need to come together to solve our problems.
Whoa oh Whoa oh. Whoa oh.
Expresses surprise or shock.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Bethie M.
It's a fucking crime that these guys aren't more popular outside of St. Louis. One of the best live bands I've ever heard.
madmanDoctorwatson
Sincerely from stl ❤ I will agree the greatest group to exist out of Missouri
Panwall
PTMFUS
OmniTriforce3
these guys are good, i think its cool a black guy is a rock musician. doesnt have to be a stereottpe
Joey Bones
From upstate NY and I love these guys. Used to play them on my College radio show all the time
Nugie Nugraha
I'm a random dude from Jakarta (Indonesia), just passing by.
Dontbeweakvato
My friends would listen that's how I first heard them. Then I realized I live in the same city as the lead singer Steve. Ive been to his very fine restaurant Steve's hot dogs which used to be a Hot dog stand down town. The food is beyond excellent, and Steve is the nicest person and a true humanitarian. He always has the biggest smile and looks happy, which seems increasingly rare nowadays.
Steven Scherer
Why is this music video so amazing?!?
Steve Salarano
Just played in Affton MO at 9 Mile Garden, June 2022, rocked it! It's such a shame they aren't more appreciated!
JEdmund27
These guys just rocked Lawrence, KS over the weekend! So fun to see them again. They sounded fantastic.