Story Behind The Song
I think we have all compromised ourselves in order to please others. It slowly chipped away at me till I no longer resembled myself. At an instant it was all stripped away, and I remembered who I was and realized I need to maintain my own identity.
Song Description
It's a basic metaphor for becoming someone or something you're not in order to please others.
| Song Length |
4:20 |
Genre |
Folk - Alternative, Folk - Rock |
| Tempo |
Medium Slow (91 - 110) |
Lead Vocal |
Male Vocal |
| Mood |
Pleasant, Cheerful |
Subject |
Bad Love, Conformity |
| Similar Artists |
Ben Folds, The Decemberists |
Language |
English |
| Era |
2000 and later |
| |
Lyrics
I was just a grain of sand
I was happy on the land
until the tide it washed me in.
I found my way into your shell
Captivated by your spell
but I was irritating on your skin.
So you coated me in white.
made me beautiful in your own sight.
now I'm smooth against your skin
but I am no longer the grain of sand I'd been
before.
And now I am just a pearl
on a necklace on a girl
back in 1953
As I dangle on this string
I can't help but wondering
is this really where she wants to be?
or is she just another grain of sand
the ocean carried from the land.
and found her way into an oyster's shell
who coated her in white as well,
as well as me.
Now I am beautiful, it's true
and it is all because of you
but would I rather be grain of sand
than just the shadow of the man
I used to be.