J. Smith was the first song to be released from Travis' sixth studio album … Read Full Bio ↴J. Smith was the first song to be released from Travis' sixth studio album Ode to J. Smith, regardless of the fact that it was not released as an official single. The song was released as a vinyl LP limited to 1000 copies, along with the tracks Get Up and Sarah on 30 June 2008. The song reached #1 in the BBC UK Indie charts on July 6, something unprecedented due to the low amount of vinyls pressed.

Fran Healy, the lead singer of Travis explained on Travis' official website about the writing of J. Smith. He says, "[The riff] came from nowhere. The strange thing was, I knew immediately these chords were important in some way... When Neilly [[artist]Neil Primrose, the band's drummer] arrived I played the chords and he played along and instantly played the pattern. It is the best drum line Neilly has ever done... Dougie, [[artist]Dougie Payne, bassist] then picked up the bass line like he'd been practising it all week... There isn't a bit of fat on the song. Every note, every beat, is perfect." He also adds that Paul McCartney and Luke Pritchard both complimented the song when they first heard it.

J Smith
Travis Lyrics

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There's a man on the street,
And he looks at his feet form his window.
And he swears at the sun,
And he curses the moon for its shadow.

Take a leaf from his book
Take a thread from his suite
He's a new man

And he prays to his god
That he reaps his reward
For his new plan

Oh, the mold has been cast
The radio's in the bath
Yeah yeah yeah

Labor tuus nunc ad terminum
Sed per deos, vade retro
Nomen nusquan video

Carbo in culo in aeternitatem
Placet satanae te vedere

Overall Meaning

In Travis's song J. Smith, it seems as though the lyrics are describing a man who is feeling downtrodden and defeated. The opening lines paint a picture of a man looking down at the ground, seething with anger and frustration towards the world around him. He feels as though things are just not going his way - even the moon, which typically has a calming effect on us all, is casting shadows that seem to haunt him.

However, despite all of this negativity, the chorus takes a bit of a different direction. It suggests taking inspiration and learning from this man's experiences - to "take a leaf from his book" and a "thread from his suit". The idea here seems to be that even when life is throwing us a curveball, we can take solace in knowing that there are others out there who have faced similar struggles. And indeed, the final lines of the song suggest that the man in question may be taking matters into his own hands - he is praying for a "reward" for his "new plan".

Overall, J. Smith is a complex song with some difficult-to-interpret lyrics. On the surface, it may seem like a song about a man feeling lost and hopeless, but upon closer inspection, there are moments of hope and empowerment. It encourages listeners to take heart in the face of adversity and to look for ways to take control of their lives.

Line by Line Meaning

There's a man on the street,
There is someone outside on the street

And he looks at his feet from his window.
The man is looking at his own feet while standing outside his window

And he swears at the sun,
The man is cursing the sun

And he curses the moon for its shadow.
The man is unhappy with the moon's shadow

Take a leaf from his book
Learn something from his actions

Take a thread from his suite
Imitate his fashion style

He's a new man
He has changed and improved

And he prays to his god
He is praying to his deity

That he reaps his reward
He hopes to gain something in return for his actions

For his new plan
For the strategy he has devised

Oh, the mold has been cast
A decision has been made and cannot be changed