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Jenny Lewis — Acid Tongue
Album: Acid Tongue
Avg rating:
6.5

Your rating:
Total ratings: 1765









Released: 2008
Length: 3:45
Plays (last 30 days): 3
I went to a cobbler to fix a hole in my shoe
He took one look at my face and said, "I can fix that hole in you"
"I beg your pardon, I'm not lookin' for a cure,
I've seen enough of my friends in the depths of the godsick blues"

You know I am a liar
You know I am a liar
Nobody helps a liar

'Cause I've been down to Dixie and dropped acid on my tongue
Tripped upon the land 'til enough was enough
I was a little bit lighter and adventure on my sleeve
I was a little drunk and looking for company

So I found myself a sweetheart with the softest of hands
We were unlucky in love, but I'd do it all again

We built ourselves a fire
We built ourselves a fire
But you know I am a liar
You know I am a liar

And you don't know what I've done

By the rolling river is exactly where I was
There was no snake oil cure for unlucky in love
To be lonely is a habit like smoking or taking drugs
And I've quit them both, but, man, was it rough

Now I am tired
It just made me tired
Let's build ourselves a fire
Let's build ourselves a fire
Comments (151)add comment
Her live show is fantastic. Y'all are yucking in my yum. 
I'm not usually a "plagiarism in music" kind of guy, but the hook is a straight rip of Kenny Rogers.
 ¥√€$ wrote:

You know I am a whiner
You know I am a whiner
Nobody listens to a whiner



Hence why we down-vote and ignore you 
You know I am a whiner
You know I am a whiner
Nobody listens to a whiner

Cant figure the haters on this. Jenny’s voice and the chorus really bring it home to me. The worldweariness of the lyric expressed vocally; just amazing. I guess everyone’s entitled to their opinion…even if they’re wrong. As Paul Simon says- one man’s ceiling is another man’s floor.
She has long left the halcyon days of Rilo.
I love, love, love this song.
The poetry here is worthy of being called 'poor man's Dylan.
The voice and melody is at least a full level above and beyond Dylan.  
But the comments and avg score are ... brazenly poor for the quality of the song. Surely this couldn't have anything to do with the fact that the artist is a woman .. would it?
This is exceptionally well recorded.  The vocals and guitar have great presence.
You know I am a whiner
You know I am a whiner
Nobody needs a whiner

 sirdroseph wrote:
Yay!!{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}


Dance, little banana.

Dance.
NAF would be a worthy addition to the RP mix ...
I don't get the Jenny hate in the comments sections for her songs.  I think she's great.  As is this song.

Now, it would be really cool to hear some Nice as F*ck on RP!
Kid Rock cover of this would be great.
 Jelani wrote:
How funny would it be if she sang :
You know I am a liar
You know I am a liar
My pants are on fire....
 

Yes but I love the harmony on that bit - the rest of it I find a bit so-so.
 coyote620 wrote:
The way she sings the chorus just grates on my nerves.  so much so I had to stop what I was doing because I couldn't concentrate and  went to rate the song , though found I had already given it a 1. It is still a 1....for me.  Another listener wanted to give it an 11, which I applaud because they really like it and wanted to let others know like I did, and what is wrong with that? For I am endlessly amazed on how music can affect people in different ways.
 

I love her voice and the story she's telling... but that harmony...chorus ... palm to head... it kills the song for me
Just love this album!
 Segue wrote:
I like this. And the haters are harder on women than on men. Have this over Hooty and CountingCrowfish caterwauling anytime.
 

If only you could have stopped after the second sentence, without having to fling h8 at unrelated artists in the third.  

The way she sings the chorus just grates on my nerves.  so much so I had to stop what I was doing because I couldn't concentrate and  went to rate the song , though found I had already given it a 1. It is still a 1....for me.  Another listener wanted to give it an 11, which I applaud because they really like it and wanted to let others know like I did, and what is wrong with that? For I am endlessly amazed on how music can affect people in different ways.
Definitely some Kid Rock in the melody here at times.
How funny would it be if she sang :
You know I am a liar
You know I am a liar
My pants are on fire....
4→5

Channeling some kid rock with this one.
 Segue wrote:
I like this. And the haters are harder on women than on men. Have this over Hooty and CountingCrowfish caterwauling anytime.
 
yeah , love this song
I too could do without the Hooty and the Counting Cranberries Crowfish crap.

Great lyrics.

H8rz gonna HATE for ever
This is the first time I've heard this on Radio Paradise. It's one of my favorite songs of all time, but apparently it has a long history on RP of so-so reviews! Oh well, that's the beauty of music, hitting each of differently. Would give this one an 11 if I could.
Is this current rotation the “do heroin, slit your wrists & fade away” set?
Wow, this was fine until the chorus in the chorus…. what producer thought that was a good idea...
I have a really hard time being able to listen to this song.  The vocals are just painful.
 Segue wrote:
I like this. And the haters are harder on women than on men. Have this over Hooty and CountingCrowfish caterwauling anytime.
 

You can say that again!  
Oh I like it well enough.. Am a sucker for this kinda harmony.
Dolly Parton is a national treasure
I love this tune but I wish I could make sense of the lyrics
Not for me.
 I agree with every word. When she says she's tired, I believe her. And at sixty and well-traveled, I know tired when I see or hear it. :-)
easmann wrote:

Wow. From my perspective I think you got her wrong all the way around. Seems like a pretty honest confessional to me, and the prose is refreshingly straightforward. Not saying you have to like it.

"To be lonely is a habit like smoking or taking drugs
And I've quit them both, but, man, was it rough
Now I am tired
It just made me tired" 

— Jenny Lewis, Acid Tongue 

Peace

 

 maxvonevil wrote:
Think someone dropped acid on that backing choir: "BLAAAAAAAAHAAAAAAA!!!!!", they come booming out of nowhere. Actually scared the crap out of me. Stop that! {#Beat}
 
Agreed!  Damn!
Think someone dropped acid on that backing choir: "BLAAAAAAAAHAAAAAAA!!!!!", they come booming out of nowhere. Actually scared the crap out of me. Stop that! {#Beat}
Interesting album cover
Oh ... this again.
I like this. And the haters are harder on women than on men. Have this over Hooty and CountingCrowfish caterwauling anytime.
 gmichaelt wrote:

The French "h-aspiré" is a bit of a misnomer; that h hasn't been aspirated for a long time, as languages do evolve. So, technically, French speakers don't have difficulty with the h sound; they pronounce it as it should be pronounced — in French, of course. It's a different story in English, however.

 
{#Iamwithstupid} Alt-Right's™ viva la France🇫🇷🛫
 westslope wrote:
This is alt-country?   Any relationship to the alt-right? 
Sure this is not halt pronounced 'alt' by French speakers who have difficulty with the h sound?  
 
The French "h-aspiré" is a bit of a misnomer; that h hasn't been aspirated for a long time, as languages do evolve. So, technically, French speakers don't have difficulty with the h sound; they pronounce it as it should be pronounced — in French, of course. It's a different story in English, however.
 thewiseking wrote:
Romanticizing your experimental drug use will not win you any friends out here Jenny. Stick to your amateurish musicianship and weak prose.
 
Wow. From my perspective I think you got her wrong all the way around. Seems like a pretty honest confessional to me, and the prose is refreshingly straightforward. Not saying you have to like it.

"To be lonely is a habit like smoking or taking drugs
And I've quit them both, but, man, was it rough
Now I am tired
It just made me tired" 

— Jenny Lewis, Acid Tongue 

Peace
Romanticizing your experimental drug use will not win you any friends out here Jenny. Stick to your amateurish musicianship and weak prose.
 westslope wrote:

This is alt-country?   Any relationship to the alt-right? 

 
Alt-country or Indie folk

No relation to alt-right AKA hipster-nazism.
I believe her.
 RadioDoc wrote:
Heh...I'm not sure she could pull that off.  Doesn't sound angry enough, and alt-country doesn't have much acid in its pedigree.
 
This is alt-country?   Any relationship to the alt-right? 
Sure this is not halt pronounced 'alt' by French speakers who have difficulty with the h sound?   
i just love it. love the whole album.
the first song in almost two days that I have to PSD - things were going so well, then comes this and Santana - seven minutes of music with four lines of lyrics repeated ad nauseum is too much for my ear to bear
Flimsy stuff, to my ears.
Insipid.
 scocam wrote:
-=-=-=-=-
We build ourselves a fire
We build ourselves a fire
But you know I am a liar
You know I am a liar
-=-=-=-=-

Those have got to be some of the most insipid lyrics ever produced.

 
Yeah, they're not especially profound, but that is the chorus you quoted; you could take the choruses from hundreds of celebrated and/or legendary songs out of context and denigrate them.  Did you read any of the other lyrics?  Surely, it's not Marcel Proust, but his records were kind of tiresome anyhow, especially that "experimental" stuff he did with Mungo Jerry.
We built ourselves a fire.
 SmackDaddy wrote:


How about

We built this City
We built this City
We built this City on Rock n Roll.

{#Rolleyes}


 
The time to hesitate is through
No time to wallow in the mire
Try now we can only lose
And our love become a funeral pyre

{#Drunk}
 scocam wrote:
-=-=-=-=-
We build ourselves a fire
We build ourselves a fire
But you know I am a liar
You know I am a liar
-=-=-=-=-

Those have got to be some of the most insipid lyrics ever produced.
 

How about

We built this City
We built this City
We built this City on Rock n Roll.

{#Rolleyes}

 Rantipole wrote:
Alcohol references. {#Naughty}
 
Drug references too! 
 phlattop wrote:
I hear Son of a Preacher Man here, especially the beginning. Anyone else hear that?
 
yep
 tulfan wrote:
I truly hope this is the last time we have to try and endure this drek on RP...
 
I guess you're out of luck then...
I truly hope this is the last time we have to try and endure this drek on RP...
 sirdroseph wrote:
Yay!!{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}
 
Man, that's a lot of dancing banana's...


 scocam wrote:
-=-=-=-=-
We build ourselves a fire
We build ourselves a fire
But you know I am a liar
You know I am a liar
-=-=-=-=-

Those have got to be some of the most insipid lyrics ever produced.
 
Sarcasm correct ?

Would be great to hear from JL's new project, Jenny and Johnny, on RP!
 scocam wrote:
-=-=-=-=-
We build ourselves a fire
We build ourselves a fire
But you know I am a liar
You know I am a liar
-=-=-=-=-

Those have got to be some of the most insipid lyrics ever produced.
 
10-4.
meh..........  I like "Pretty Bird" a whole lot better than this one
 daedalus wrote:
Shades of Lucinda Williams - but mainly in tune !
I have to say I like it.
 


 i4niblind wrote:
remember when bill was completely obsessed with jenny lewis?  At least now she's only played randomly instead of constantly.. 
 
Are you perhaps referring to the next moooooo-si-ah?

I dropped battery acid on my hand on time...{#Mrgreen}
-=-=-=-=-
We build ourselves a fire
We build ourselves a fire
But you know I am a liar
You know I am a liar
-=-=-=-=-

Those have got to be some of the most insipid lyrics ever produced.
Less of this and more rock n' roll
I'm not a drunk in a bar sitting on a stool crying in my beer 
Yay!!{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}{#Dancingbanana_2}
 i4niblind wrote:
remember when bill was completely obsessed with jenny lewis?  At least now she's only played randomly instead of constantly.. 
 

Well, at least he doesn't have a restraining order to prevent coming within 100 yards of her like I do!{#Daisy}
Love.
remember when bill was completely obsessed with jenny lewis?  At least now she's only played randomly instead of constantly.. 
Finally a Jenny Lewis song I can stomach.
 walchenbach wrote:
Jenny sings of being painfully alone.  Even the cobbler can see it on her face.  She cops to seeking the protection alcohol and drugs can offer.  She admits to bad love.  I wish we all had the guts to be so honest.  I love this song.
 
Hey, I had 19 years of bad love. I woke up and moved on. Best thing I ever did. It wasn't so gutsy for me to throw that out there. Don't give her so much credit. Plenty of songwriters out there leaving her in the dust.
{#Stop}
I hear Son of a Preacher Man here, especially the beginning. Anyone else hear that?
 ThePoose wrote:

Could also be metaphorical.
If I said, ''I skinned a snake in Dixie'' does it mean I really removed the scales from a limbless reptile?
Or could it be that I masturbated in Meridien? As I have an uncut member, in this usage, it would be a metaphorskin.
 
Thanks for sharing.

Pretty dull, and sounds like Cowboy Junkies to boot.  One strike to go Jenny.
 westslope wrote:
 ThePoose wrote:

Could also be metaphorical. {acid=LSD hypothesis}

How so ThePoose?   Fits well with somebody who experiments with LSD and then "matures" out of it.

Funny, a few listens later and I think I'm starting to enjoy this song.  hehe


 Here is an alternate interpretation then, since you ask. The term ''acid tongue'' is used to describe someone who is verbally nasty.
So she could have gone down South and acted spitefully with various people, but eventually grew out of that dead-end behavior.

 ThePoose wrote:

Could also be metaphorical. {acid=LSD hypothesis}

How so ThePoose?   Fits well with somebody who experiments with LSD and then "matures" out of it.

Funny, a few listens later and I think I'm starting to enjoy this song.  hehe


 walchenbach wrote:
Jenny sings of being painfully alone.  Even the cobbler can see it on her face.  She cops to seeking the protection alcohol and drugs can offer.  She admits to bad love.  I wish we all had the guts to be so honest.  I love this song.
 
  I agree.  I wonder if Shelly Long was like, really mean to her on the set of Troop Beverly Hills? She was a child actress...

 vandal wrote:

because I've been down to Dixie
and dropped acid on my tongue
tripped upon the land
until enough was enough

 
Could also be metaphorical.
If I said, ''I skinned a snake in Dixie'' does it mean I really removed the scales from a limbless reptile?
Or could it be that I masturbated in Meridien? As I have an uncut member, in this usage, it would be a metaphorskin.
Shades of Lucinda Williams - but mainly in tune !
I have to say I like it.
 
 Rantipole wrote:
Alcohol references. {#Naughty}
 
What, are you the Church Lady or something? 

 walchenbach wrote:
Jenny sings of being painfully alone.  Even the cobbler can see it on her face.  She cops to seeking the protection alcohol and drugs can offer.  She admits to bad love.  I wish we all had the guts to be so honest.  I love this song.
 
I wish for some peach cobbler.... and I'm not lyyyyyyyyying!!!

Jenny sings of being painfully alone.  Even the cobbler can see it on her face.  She cops to seeking the protection alcohol and drugs can offer.  She admits to bad love.  I wish we all had the guts to be so honest.  I love this song.

 Exene wrote:



That is weird. The first time I head this I kinda liked it but today it's making me want to beat my head against the wall. Guess I'll wait for time #3 to make up my mind.

 
3rd time, and yes that last impression hasn't changed. Except now I want to beat HER head against the wall. OK, deep breath now. A sunny Friday afternoon is no place for that kind of talk. Not with a lovely weekend to look forward to.


Alcohol references. {#Naughty}
 onerb wrote:
OK that does it! I'm getting the 6-string. Work be damned!
 
Think that over in a few hours, after the drugs wear off.

This one keeps going and going ...................................................
Hey, I'm all for people doing whatever makes them happy, really, honestly.

but

i don't like the sound, message, subject matter, or cloying simplicity of this stupid, stupid, horrible song

she's quit drugs, but man was it rough?

i'm quitting this song, performer, and streaming station for a little while, and man is it easy!

OK that does it! I'm getting the 6-string. Work be damned!
deepwoodskev wrote:
This song raises my "iiiiiiiiiiiiiiire!"



The song gets a 3, this post gets a 10.
 DaveInVA wrote:
I like a lot of her earlier stuff and I even like some of the other cuts on this album BUT she sounds like a cow stuck in a barb wire fence in this song. I really tried to like it. That being said I still bought the CD for the other songs on it I like....
 



damn Dave ya'll's cows must sound good our cows can't sing worth a shit
:Love this song! Taught myself to play it on the guitar. Pretty easy, really. I can never get enough of this record. Love it! {#Yes}
This song raises my "iiiiiiiiiiiiiiire!"

Bad Lyrics Hall of Fame candidate.
Love, love, love her voice!


 agnes wrote:

*I* certainly wouldn't deny Jenny Lewis anything. 

{#Hearteyes}

 

Why is she one of Jerry's kids?
I like a lot of her earlier stuff and I even like some of the other cuts on this album BUT she sounds like a cow stuck in a barb wire fence in this song. I really tried to like it. That being said I still bought the CD for the other songs on it I like....


 superfido wrote:


??? Who told you that nonsense?  Regardless, that's rubbish. So no, she hasn't likely been denied anything on account of this song.
 
*I* certainly wouldn't deny Jenny Lewis anything. 

{#Hearteyes}

Other than the verse, the chorus, and the hollow sounding guitar, the song is o.k.
She's a liar.
holy shit..this is bad.
"Godlike"
superfido:  "...and dropped acid on my tongue"....  
I'm with jagdriver on this one - it just keeps getting more and more painful to listen to her stuff
 westslope wrote:
So she admits to doing LSD.  Does that mean that she is denied a passport?  Or travel to foreign 'righteous' countries?
 

??? Who told you that nonsense?  Regardless, that's rubbish. So no, she hasn't likely been denied anything on account of this song.
westslope wrote:
So she admits to doing LSD. Does that mean that she is denied a passport? Or travel to foreign 'righteous' countries?

You're so funny. Haha.

Stop saying idiotic things.

 jagdriver wrote:


The more I hear it, the less I like it.

2 < 3
 

1 < 2
So she admits to doing LSD.  Does that mean that she is denied a passport?  Or travel to foreign 'righteous' countries?

because I've been down to Dixie
and dropped acid on my tongue
tripped upon the land
until enough was enough

Her voice is ok, but I'm not so sure about that chorus which sounds a fraction of a tone out of tune to me. 4 from the Nottingham jury.
damn, move over Neko, I think I'm in love again!
 kellis wrote:
The more I hear this, the more I like it!

6 > 8
 

The more I hear it, the less I like it.

2 < 3
 michaelgmitchell wrote:
Bill just said it "knocks me out".  Ouch.  From that chorus beating you into submission, perhaps?  I'm tired of her singing about being tired.  Sorry.
 
Hey champ, you missed the first 7/8ths of the song.  Thanks for your input.  She sings 'tired' twice, by the way.

Sorry to be harsh, but someone has to be.

The more I hear this, the more I like it!

6 > 8
Bill just said it "knocks me out".  Ouch.  From that chorus beating you into submission, perhaps?  I'm tired of her singing about being tired.  Sorry.