Hard to Explain
"Hard to Explain" is the first single from New York garage rock band The Strokes (their only previously released material was The Modern Age EP). It was released first in the UK and was later released in the U.S. with different album artwork. (The UK version has a photo of two chairs, one red and one black, facing the camera. The chairs appear to be in a diner or restaurant of some sort.) Because this single is the first from their debut LP Is This It, "Hard to Explain" made the anticipation for the album proper very high, and when Is This It did come out it was widely hailed as one of the best of the year. The B-side of this single, "New York City Cops" was omitted from the U.S. version of the album in the wake of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center (the chorus to the song contains the lines "New York City cops/They ain't too smart").
Reception
The single reached #16 on the singles chart in the UK. The single was voted #3 on the NME Top 100 songs of the decade. In October 2011, NME placed it at number 36 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".Rolling Stone placed the song at number 59 on its list "100 Best Songs of the 2000s."
Podcasts:
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by Owen Pallett
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by Cowboy Junkies
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by The Strokes
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by Strokes
Hard To Explain
by: Owen PallettWas an honest man
Asked me for the phone
Tried to take control
Oh, I don't see it that way
I don't see it that way
Oh, we shared some ideas
All obsessed with fame
Says we're all the same
Oh, I don't see it that way
I don't see it that way
Raised in Carolina
"I'm not like that"
Trying to remind her
When we go back
I missed the last bus, I'll take the next train
I try but you see, it's hard to explain
I say the right things, but act the wrong way
I like it right here, but I cannot stay
I watch the TV; forget what I'm told
Well, I am too young, and they are too old
The joke is on you, this place is a zoo
"You're right it's true"
Says he can't decide
I shake my head to say
Everything's just great
Oh, I just can't remember
I just can't remember
Raised in Carolina, she says:
" I'm not like that"
Trying to remind her
When we go back
I say the right things but act the wrong way
I like it right here but I cannot stay
I watch the TV; forget what I'm told
Well, I am too young, and they are too old
Oh, man, can't you see I'm nervous, so please
Pretend to be nice, so I can be mean
I miss the last bus, we take the next train