Song of the Day - Day 780

Today's song is...


You Don't Like Me

There are so many possibilities to explore when trying to explain what is going on it this song. I personally choose to believe that the narrator is a bit crazy and has just decided that some random stranger doesn't like him. And in his mind he believes he does know the other person. It's also possible that he has become somewhat obsessed with this person he believes doesn't like him and has determined that they really do like all the random things the song lists. Regardless, I feel like the fact that is narrator isn't liked is all in his own head. How's that for song interpretation from a person who doesn't generally enjoy interpreting songs?

This song also holds the distinction of being one of three songs that I have heard performed live at a soundcheck but never actually seen live at a show. And of the three, it is the only one that has actually never _been_ performed live at a show. I've always wondered why. I guess they just didn't like the way it was sounding.

There are two things on the recording of this one that fascinate me. The first is what sounds like an errant bass note right after the word "obvious" at the beginning of the song. I've always been curious if it was intentional or just snuck in there and nobody noticed. The other is the trio of drum beats that recur right before the lines "Like its in the past" and "You don't like me" just about a minute into the song. It seems like they should also be present at the end when those lines are repeated, but they aren't. That seems like a deliberate decision and it is one I find really interesting.

I have always found this to be an odd choice to end Join Us with. The way the song, and the album, end on the lyric "William Tell" feels a little uncomfortable and unfinished. But I have grown to love it and appreciate it as a quirk of the album.

And lastly, the line "I'd be told to let it go and that I care to much/But this is not about me/And you don't want to know" is one of my favorites. It is one of the sort that occasionally strikes a little too deep and pointedly, but I love it anyway.