My British Tour Diary
of Montreal Lyrics


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On our trip to England I noticed something obscene
People still actually give a shit about the Queen
Though London girls aren't snobs at all
and Brighton's lovely in the Fall
Left alone to drive ourselves on the opposite side
Man it was a miracle that nobody died
Hanging out with Steven Drew, Theo,
Paul and Sorrel too
Eating at Welcome Breaks daily
We danced in Leeds with Brit Pop Haley

Performing with the Apples
and then crashing at the Wrights
Bitching because Steven booked us
on such early flights
Always in a foggy haze
because we hadn't slept for days
Every single one of our London cabbies played
The most truly repellent techno music ever made
But they'll drop you without hesitation if you try changing the station





Up to our necks in crisps and litter
in the van we dubbed the Gary Glitter

Overall Meaning

In the song "My British Tour Diary" by of Montreal, the lyrics describe the experiences of the band on their trip to England. The first verse expresses the singer's surprise at the continued reverence to the Queen in modern-day England, despite the country's necessary evolution. The second and third lines of the verse, however, imply a more positive note for England, complimenting the women in London as not being pretentious, and describing the loveliness of Brighton in the Fall. The second verse describes the band's drive through England, stunned they were all still alive, having driven on the opposite side of the road. The next couple of lines describe who the band hung out with while in England.


The song then devolves into the band's experiences while touring England, including performing with an Apples band and "crashing at the Wrights." The lyrics express frustration at being booked on early flights and being in a "foggy haze" due to lack of sleep. The song ends with a description of being in a van dubbed the Gary Glitter, filled with litter and crisps, and an observation that all their London cab drivers played "the most truly repellent techno music ever made." Despite this, the song ends on an amusing note, that the drivers will not tolerate someone trying to change the station.


Line by Line Meaning

On our trip to England I noticed something obscene
During our travels to England, I observed something disturbing


People still actually give a shit about the Queen
It surprised me that people still have a strong interest in the Queen


Though London girls aren't snobs at all
Despite common stereotypes, the girls in London were not snobby


and Brighton's lovely in the Fall
Brighton was beautiful during autumn


Left alone to drive ourselves on the opposite side
We had to drive on the opposite side of the road by ourselves


Man it was a miracle that nobody died
It was surprising that we did not get into any accidents while driving in this situation


Hanging out with Steven Drew, Theo, Paul and Sorrel too
We spent time with Steven, Theo, Paul, and Sorrel


Eating at Welcome Breaks daily
We ate at Welcome Breaks on a daily basis


We danced in Leeds with Brit Pop Haley
We danced in Leeds with Brit Pop Haley


Performing with the Apples
We performed with the Apples


and then crashing at the Wrights
We stayed at the Wrights' place after the performance


Bitching because Steven booked us on such early flights
We complained because Steven scheduled our flights too early


Always in a foggy haze because we hadn't slept for days
Our lack of sleep resulted in a constant state of cloudy-mindedness


Every single one of our London cabbies played The most truly repellent techno music ever made
All of our cab drivers in London played music that we found extremely unpleasant


But they'll drop you without hesitation if you try changing the station
However, they would immediately leave you stranded if you tried changing the music


Up to our necks in crisps and litter in the van we dubbed the Gary Glitter
We were buried in trash and chips in the van that was named after Gary Glitter




Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: KEVIN BARNES

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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