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This song is actually played on Piano but sounds good on guitar too!
Chords used:
Em7: 022030
Am7: x02010
G: 320033
C: x32010
G/B: x20003
Am: x02210
A/C#: x4222x
D: xx0232
B/D#: x6444x
Em7 Am7
baby britain feels the best
G C
floating over a sea of vodka
Em7 Am7
separated from the rest
G C
fights problems with bigger problems
Em7 Am7
sees the ocean fall and rise
G C
counts the waves that somehow didn't hit her
Em7 Am7
water pouring from her eyes
G C
alcoholic and very bitter
Chorus:
Em Em/G Em/A Em/B C
for someone half as smart
Em Em/G Em/A Em/B C
you'd be a work of art
Em Em/G Em/A Em/B C G/B
you put your-self a- part
Am C
and i can't help until you start
Verse 2:
Em7 Am7
we knocked another couple back
G C
the dead soliders lined up on the table
Em7 Am7
still prepared for an attack
G C
they didn't know they'd been disabled
Em7 Am7
felt a wave a rush of blood
G C
you won't be happy til the bottle's broken
Em7 Am7
and you're out swimming in the flood
G C
you kept back kept unspoken
Repeat chorus
Bridge:
C A/C#
you got a look in your eye
D
when you're saying goodbye
B/D#
like you wanna say hi
Instrumental:
Em Em/G Em/A Em/B C (3X)
G/B Am C
Verse 3:
Em7 Am7
the light was on but it was dim
G C
revolver's been turned over
Em7 Am7
and now it's ready once again
G C
the radio was playing crimson and clover
Em7 Am7
london bridge is safe and sound
G C
no matter what you keep repeating
Em7 Am7
nothing's gonna drag me down
G C
to a death that's not worth cheating
Repeat chorus 2X
For the chorus part, all you are doing is playing Em7 with an ascending
bass line that looks like this when tabbed out:
All E minors listed here are actually Em7 chords
Em Em/G Em/A Em/B C
--0---0----0----0----0---------
--0---0----0----0----1---------
--0---0----0----0----0---------
--2---2----2----2----2---------
--2---2----0----2----3---------
--0---3------------------------
Tab Discussion, Comments, and Critiques
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curt Average |
#1 by curt at Sep 26, 2007 at 7:59 AM EST |
| revolver's been turned over and now it's ready once again a-ha! a beatles reference... | |
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Jake Average |
#2 by Jake M at Sep 26, 2007 at 1:54 PM EST |
| The problem with you Americans is that you attach too much importance to yourselves and never has this been more apparent than reading through the interpretations you have given on this site. This song isn't about America, its about Britain, hence the title! Elliott is on record numerous times stating his love of the UK. Why? Well as this song documents, he feels at home here. Partly because of the drinking culture (if you've ever been here you will know what I am talking about!) but also due to the personality of the average Brit which is stand-offish. This reflected by the lines "you got a look in your eye when you're saying goodbye like you wanna say hi". I agree with the suggestion that this was inspired by a drinking session with a friend whilst in London. Elliott is an extremely perceptive man, and his subsequent drunken stupor provided him with all sorts of insights into the state of Britain. The song is simply an ode to its condition; a country separated from the rest, with an acute alcohol problem and yet remaining strangely full of charm, homely and individual. Listen again, and this time forget about the USA for the 3 minutes 15 seconds that it plays. Do it more often, and we might all begin to live in a more understanding, peaceful and co-operative world. | |
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Danyboi Average |
#3 by Danyboi at Sep 26, 2007 at 1:54 PM EST |
| Does no one realize that they're playing russian roulette over vodka shots? | |
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Dan Wanna Be |
#4 by Dan Temple at Sep 26, 2007 at 4:29 PM EST |
| I agree with EnidCaulfield. and i think those britain interpretation makes sense but amercan one sounds a bit... i dunno made up? no matter what you keep repeating nothing's gonna drag me down to a death that's not worth cheating for someone half as smart you'd be a work of art you put yourself apart and i can't help until you start its like " you are not that bad. stop hurting yourself. and no one can help you until you get up first " 1 2 Next | |
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ruthuger Average |
#5 by ruthuger nixon at Sep 26, 2007 at 4:41 PM EST |
| This song is about self-destruction and liking it. "when you're saying goodbye like you wanna say hi" | |
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dan Average |
#6 by dan worgan at Sep 27, 2007 at 5:26 AM EST |
| ------------------------------------------------------------ by mlueth19 on 03-04-2006 @ 01:17:34 AM I've always wondered about the line "For someone half as smart, you'd be a work of art." Do you think he meant "Someone less intelligent would see you as a work of art, but I'm too smart for that"? ------------------------------------------------------------ I'm of the opinion that he's talking to himself in a lot of his songs (or the character in the song is talking to himself), even though he may refer to himself in the third person. So, to be more precise, I would say it means "Someone less intelligent might see me as a work of art, but I know better." But I think your interpretation of it is entirely correct. I always loved that line. | |
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Josh Average |
#7 by Josh Riemersma at Sep 27, 2007 at 9:24 AM EST |
| I've always wondered about the line "For someone half as smart, you'd be a work of art." Do you think he meant "Someone less intelligent would see you as a work of art, but I'm too smart for that"? | |
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Mr. Always Mezm Average |
#8 by Mr. Always Mezmerized (o)(o) at Sep 27, 2007 at 3:41 PM EST |
| "baby britain feels the best floating over a sea of vodka separated from the rest" Im suprised no one considered the metaphor of america. One of the many children of Britian, america. This line is talking about how america thinks its the best country but elliott believes that we're just tear our selves apart by using Drinking as another metaphor for self caused problems of the coutnry. "for someone half as smart you'd be a work of art you put yourself apart" Seperating the US From the UN is the govermeants major problem right now. And america could be a much better country if not for money greedy people buying them selves to the top. 'Fights probles with bigger problems" The definition of america.... Eh i dont know Baby Britian sparked that Idea | |
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peebo Average |
#9 by peebo at Sep 27, 2007 at 6:05 PM EST |
| for me, this has been my break up anthem. significant other went off the deep end with no alarm and no explanation. i'm baby britain drinking myself to sleep, and i can't help him until he figures out what's wrong. i like the image of the revolver paired with cirmson and clover. messy suicide imagery. | |
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Nyle Average |
#10 by Nyle Leddy at Sep 28, 2007 at 12:58 AM EST |
| BTW, I forgot to mention. Elliott Smith was so clearly inspired by the Beatles, that his music is littered with references to them both lyrically and in its melodies. This is one of his most Beatle-esque. R.I.P Elliott, I think you are one of the most talented song writers I have ever had the pleasure of listening to. | |
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Bill Wanna Be |
#11 by Bill Rossi at Sep 28, 2007 at 10:18 PM EST |
| notice the similarities in the music to the beatles' "getting better"--elliot smith uses the same background music (slightly modified). | |
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josh Average |
#12 by josh meador at Sep 29, 2007 at 2:38 PM EST |
| To upallnight: your remarks were misguided. And here's why. For the most part, what magww said seems plausible. Notice I say 'plausible' and am not saying this is absolutely what the song means which would be stupid...cuz i don't know what the song means... and neither do you because you're not elliot smith... or God. So let me make a case for the "'Baby Britain' as a metaphor for America" notion. Please note: I don't claim to know everything. But I do know some things so I think you should hear me out. I think we can all agree that a baby can be loosely defined as a newborn human. So I think a Baby Britain can be loosely defined as a newborn Britain. So this could possibly be referring to a rebirth of Britain. If this is the case, then I have no idea what this song is talking about. But as you may recall, America fought a revolution against Britain in the 1770s and 1780s in which they won their independence and created a new nation (a Baby Britain if you will). So let's pretend for a moment that this is the case. The alcohol aspects of this song could suggest that America is drunk with power. "you won't be happy 'til the bottle's broken" hmmm.... Remember all those bar fights in the movies where a ruffian breaks a bottle on a table and tries to shank someone? Any liberals in the room probably see where I'm going with this. America likes to pick fights. XO came out in August of 1998. So putting this into context a little bit, January of 1998 was when news of the Monica Lewinsky scandal (problem?)broke out. In February, Clinton issued Operation Desert Fox against Iraq (bigger problem?). So like I said, I'm probably wrong. because I'm just a big dumb American who likes to eat hot dogs and pizza in large quantities and I'm too busy to care about anything other than my financial well-being. But seriously, there are a considerable number of holes in the theory that this song is referring to America, but a case can be made and until I hear some evidence supporting that it is really about Britain, I will assume that it's about America. Or alcoholism. Either/Or. | |
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Kevin Wanna Be |
#13 by Kevin at Sep 29, 2007 at 5:41 PM EST |
| I love this song so much!! So catchy and this really does sound like a Beatles song, to the first person that commented. | |
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Zach Average |
#14 by Zach DeLaRocha at Sep 29, 2007 at 9:55 PM EST |
| First off, I would like to say that I was very impressed with Magww's interpretation of the song that Baby Britain is a metaphor for America and how it deals with its problems. Very astute and insightful--something that I had not considered. But I am surprised that no one has offered what seems to me the most obvious intepretaiton of this song, which is that it is about a friend of his who is struggling with alchoholism. This friend loves to drink, "feels best when floating over a sea of vodka" and drinks with determinition "won't be happy until the bottles broken." And it saddens the narrator because he can see how booze has changed this person's life. But nevertheless, he feels powerless over the situation because "I can't help until you start" (helping youself). That was what I took from the song the first time I heard it--but I really like the American analogy too. | |
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Tony Wanna Be |
#15 by Tony Danza at Oct 1, 2007 at 2:25 AM EST |
| i was listening to xo for the first time in awhile yesterday and was blown away by this line I hadn't really noticed before: "you got a look in your eye when you're saying goodbye like you wanna say hi," that sums up so much for me lately. anyway, i agree with you mag. very good points. =P and a comment in general, this is one of my favorites from this album. | |
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Rob Average |
#16 by Rob Jones at Oct 1, 2007 at 7:32 AM EST |
| Great song!!! I love the lyrics... | |
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Derek Wanna Be |
#17 by Derek Wilkinson at Oct 2, 2007 at 2:44 AM EST |
| yeah well he did love the beatles and covered more than a few songs of thiers. This one is a take on 'gettin better' obviously, and yeah it directly references the beatles lol. oh and elliott was a lot of things, but he most definately was not a hipocrate... his 'anti' person, as someone called it, was who he really was. he was as real a musician as this world has ever seen. | |
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Artcore Lead Player |
#18 by Artcore at Oct 3, 2007 at 5:47 PM EST |
| such a beautiful song. i always kind of saw it like a sequel to "between the bars"-- it talks about someone who is an alcoholic, which is what a lot of people see BTB as. and also "if you were half as smart you'd be a work of art"-- kind of like the whole theme of someone who is wasting their potential? and "separated from the rest" pretty much the same line is in "between the bars." but i probably have no idea what i'm talking about haha, whatever it means this song is great. | |
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Baxter Wanna Be |
#19 by Baxter at Oct 3, 2007 at 11:25 PM EST |
| this song is an amazing insite into Elliots own hypocracy, or perhaps his schizophrenia, trying to convince himself that his own depression is just a by-product of his idealistic "anti" personna and not a life encompassing or ending disease. for me it epitomizes elliot and the rage i feel about his suicide. | |
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Gilbert Average |
#20 by Gilbert Fontana at Oct 4, 2007 at 8:40 AM EST |
| i like the way darnhoodlums sums it up, that is pretty much as good as ii've heard in terms of interpreting this song.....although some lyrics still dont fit. not my favorite Elliott Smith song but good nonetheless.....R.I.P. | |
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Swann Average |
#21 by Swann at Oct 4, 2007 at 2:58 PM EST |
| To the person whose idea that this song was refrencing Britain. Are you not the person who was calling Americans self-centered? Yet you're sitting there ASSUMING it's about you. And here's the kicker; music is not definite or concrete. If Elliot Smith wanted his music to be interpreted in an EXACT way, he outwardly stated what his songs are about. But he didn't, because he, like many artists, understood that it was all about individual meanings. A good song is one that can be interpreted thousands of different ways and have a thousand different meanings to different people, even if those meanings are not nessecarily what the artist had in mind while writing the piece. To me, the best interpretation of this song is Elliot writing about himself, and his own struggles with alcoholism. | |
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kyle Average |
#22 by kyle sharpshooter at Oct 5, 2007 at 1:17 AM EST |
| So this guy and this british girl are in a bar together getting blasted. I mean, these two are getting tanked out of their minds. To the point where this girl, she's yelling "London Bridge is Falling Down" at the top of their lungs. Keep breaking bottles, leaving them half-empty, just drowning in the stuff. Oceans of booze. And this jukebox keeps blaring in the background. | |
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bob Average |
#23 by bob fred at Oct 5, 2007 at 9:17 PM EST |
| this is about someone he probably cares about who wallows in their own sorrow ("fights problems with other problems") and drowns all their problems in alcohol ("we knocked another couple back"). they only see the negative in life ("counts the waves that somehow didn't hit her" as supposed to the ones that did) and can't comprehend how great they could be ("for someone half as smart, you'd be a work of art"). however, there is still some hope for change ("got a look in your eye, when you're saying goodbye, like you wanna say hi"). to the asshole who took it literally, you're an idiot. | |
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D-K Average |
#24 by D-K at Oct 6, 2007 at 9:26 AM EST |
| I think this is a song to a girl, telling her to stop being so neurotic, and to stop selling herself short. But what do I know? | |
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mike Wanna Be |
#25 by mike ballard at Oct 6, 2007 at 8:26 PM EST |
| that's odd, I don't even listen to the beatles but this song immediately reminded me of a beatles upon hearing great, great pop song. | |
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