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Elbow — Grounds For Divorce
Album: The Seldom Seen Kid
Avg rating:
7.5

Your rating:
Total ratings: 3748









Released: 2008
Length: 3:34
Plays (last 30 days): 1
Mondays is for drinking to the seldom seen kid

I've been working on a cocktail called grounds for divorce
Polishing a compass that I hold in my sleep
Doubt comes in on sticks, but then he kicks like a horse
There's a Chinese cigarette case and the rest you can keep
And the rest you can keep
And the rest you can keep

There's a hole in my neighbourhood
Down which of late I cannot help but fall
There's a hole in my neighbourhood
Down which of late I cannot help but fall

Mondays is for drinking to the seldom seen kid

There's this whispering of jokers doing flesh by the pound
To a chorus of supposes from the little town whores
There'll be twisted karaoke at the Aniseed Lounge
And I'd bring you further roses but it does you no good
And it does me no good
And it does you no good

There's a hole in my neighborhood
Down which of late I cannot help but fall
There's a hole in my neighborhood
Down which of late I cannot help but fall
There's a hole in my neighborhood
Down which of late I cannot help but fall

Someday we'll be drinking with the seldom seen kid
''(Ooh, ooh)''
Comments (308)add comment
Elbows lyrics are some of the finest, most meaningful and profound there has ever been in the entire history of music
One of RP's go-to bands. And now mine as well 
 stevesaw wrote:


The man can write a lyric.


Word
Last night England were useless and dull at the Euros. Bill must have read my mood, He played Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, King Crimson and Elbow back-to-back. There are some things England can do after all!   Thanks Bill!
A lot of Dylan going on with this one. Highway 61 revisited,

A cool tune
God, I love this, and how it reminds me how FUN it was to live in Akatsutsumi, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, for TEN wild years, '02-'12! where there were quite a few holes in my neighborhood to fall into, night after night, YEAH!, and dozens of even bigger ones, in nearby Shimokita-zawa, Kichijoji, Sangenjaya, NiKo-Tama...
Hey!  This is pretty good!  I think... I think... I...like it!

I usually can't get very far through an Elbow song before needing to PSD, but I like this one.  (The vocal seems different, and that's what usually bugs me on everything else Elbow, for whatever reason.)
GOOD TUNE!  Thanx RP!   
 jmkate wrote:

Not even kidding-received an unwelcome email from the equally divorced other party just as the song opened in the background... timing, RP..



bill/william and his ever-present psychic playlist is at it again!
Love Guy G. Listen to him every Sunday on BBC Sounds. May have already mentioned this. 😘
I like Elbow because I hear early  Genesis among their influences. This song not so much. But it's excellent.
sublime
Love Elbow front man. He does a pretty amazing BBC Sounds gig, Radio 6, every Sunday morning. Excellent. No disrespect, RP. X
Now this, this, is a jam.
Showing a little elbow and little else might be grounds for divorce...
good segue from 'Love is the Drug' (though that has little to do with marriage)
 frisbeepilot wrote:

Too much "whoa-oa-oa-oa"-ing for my tastes. It's an epidemic these days.



Ignoring all the other lyrics, and the music, I guess. Please enlighten us with all the other songs that are infected with this epidemic. And you know what they say about opinions... I'll gladly inform you of that if you aren't aware.
Well just ROCK MY BRITCHES why don't you Bill and Rebecca?!?!
       
Too much "whoa-oa-oa-oa"-ing for my tastes. It's an epidemic these days.
 Steely_D wrote:
There's a hole in my neighborhood down which of late I can not help but fall...

The pub.


Yes! 
 Steely_D wrote:
There's a hole in my neighborhood down which of late I can not help but fall...

The pub.


The man can write a lyric.


Not to mention a bad taste in music
Nice follow up to Big Sugar!
He has a show in BBC Radio 6. Love the man.
Vocals: More like Jack Bruce
 On_The_Beach wrote:
Vocal has a Peter Gabriel sound.
 

Nope but it's great anyway.
Wake and bake. Is this track not the coolest ever groove? So basic so powerful.
Sounds like Clapton and the Yard Birds. Or maybe I'm just getting old(er).
Have always enjoyed this tune, especially the trudge section, but after reading the lyrics for the first time, OMG, I'm having a sad.
 scraig wrote:
Best. Opening. Line. Ever.
 
What follows is pretty darn good too
A band with flashes of genius. Watch the live session at Abbey Road with orchestra. Amazing.
jmkate wrote:
Not even kidding-received an unwelcome email from the equally divorced other party just as the song opened in the background... timing, RP.. 
unclehud wrote:

Condolences.
 
I'm fond of saying "Congrats" to recently divorced people....if it wasn't working, for whatever reason, why continue the suffering?  And I'm going to +1 this to a 9...Long Live RP!!
definitely growing on me...
One of the best songs on radio Paradise, what a great vibe!
Still one of my favourite Elbow songs.
 jmkate wrote:
Not even kidding-received an unwelcome email from the equally divorced other party just as the song opened in the background... timing, RP..
 
Condolences.
Vocal has a Peter Gabriel sound.
 Steely_D wrote:
There's a hole in my neighborhood down which of late I can not help but fall...

The pub.

 


gif from Elbow's video for "Grounds for Divorce"
Not even kidding-received an unwelcome email from the equally divorced other party just as the song opened in the background... timing, RP..
{#Bananajam}{#Bananapiano}{#Bananasplit}{#Dancingbanana_2}

Love this track and ELBOW!!!
 westslope wrote:
Excellent CD from start to finish.  Not too impressed with the follow up CD.  
 
Totally agree.
For some reason I marked this song as only a 9. Goes all the way to 10. Just like the volume when I listen to it.
Excellent CD from start to finish.  Not too impressed with the follow up CD.  
There's a hole in my neighborhood down which of late I can not help but fall...

The pub.
{#Crown}
 cdysthe wrote:
Now that inspires a double espresso! Great song! 

 
Certainly a double something!
We have gone from Love is the Drug to Grounds for Divorce? Bill, what are you trying to say?
 kilroyjoe3 wrote:
Love the song, love the band.  But does anyone agree that Guy Garvey has NO lung capacity.  Time to kick the smokes dude.

 
I smoke, and when I sing along I try hard to breathe when he does in the neighborhood with tripping hazards bit. He has better lung capacity than I!! Must smoke a little less....
Yet another band I would not know about were it not for RP. Thanks Bill. 
This sounds scratchy and mildly destructive in all the right ways. But then, I am still working on coffee this morning, so it could just be me.
Now that inspires a double espresso! Great song! 
There we go, tags run a little behind. :) Great song.
Best. Opening. Line. Ever.
Such a HUGE, mind blowing song - an instant classic to me. I feel like if I've known it for decades. That guitar/synth bridge, that huge sound, wow.

And yes: it's *really* worth it listening to the whole album from beginning to end. I didn't do it right away, but when I finally did, it really made a lasting impression on me.

A strong band I wouldn't know if not for RP. One more {#Clap}
 Stingray wrote:
This song is simply incredible, just cannot do much with the rest of the album - not that I have heard it too often (maybe I should)!

 
Listened start to finish, it's the story of a relationship - from infatuation, to starry-eyed love, through temptation, and (via the eyes of others) the relationship's failure and regrets.  Superb.
Whoa! I just heard Big Sugar loud and clear, before I noticed that it was, in fact, Elbow. But, c'mon, although this may not be hallowed ground, this is definitely Big Sugar turf!

Hint, hint, Bill...
Excellent opening show of their US tour at 9:30 Club Sunday night - if you have an opportunity see this band live - GO.
 
 Proclivities wrote:

Guy Garvey has a similar (hoarse) singing style, but musically, Elbow's music doesn't sound very much like Mr. Gabriel's, to me.

 
Guy Garvey has spent some time writing at Real World Studios ( owned by Gabriel ).
Elbow has covered "Mercy Street" by Peter Gabriel and Peter Gabriel has covered Elbow's "Mirrorball".

 
Meaty beaty big and bouncy..............oh, did somebody already invent that?


Cool Video - Cool Band + Little Hurricane cover is Cool too.
    "O U T S T A N D I N G"
     {#Clap}                       {#Clap}  
Still looking for the recipe for a cocktail called 'Grounds For Divorce' - closest I've come is from place in St. Louis:
"it's made from a base of Black Maple Hill Bourbon and amaro, vermouth, Campari, two kinds of bitters, and topped with a bloody maraschino cherry."  An English bloke wouldn't be having one of these in a Missouri bar, sorry.  *wink*
Bill was way ahead of the curve on Elbow.  I impressed my son in college several years ago as he had never heard of them. 
Awesome song and album.
chunky guitar....love it.
 jktravl wrote:
sounds alot like peter gabriel

 
Guy Garvey has a similar (hoarse) singing style, but musically, Elbow's music doesn't sound very much like Mr. Gabriel's, to me.
this one is a Block Rocker.
sounds alot like peter gabriel
Freakin awesome song!
 Stingray wrote:
This song is simply incredible, just cannot do much with the rest of the album - not that I have heard it too often (maybe I should)!

 
Keep listening -- the whole album just flows incredibly!
This song is simply incredible, just cannot do much with the rest of the album - not that I have heard it too often (maybe I should)!
 peregrin8 wrote:
Elbow's album "Build A Rocket Boys" belongs in the same category of albums where the title comes from a line in one song. 

LPCity wrote:


Add in "Nevermind" and "Stop Making Sense" and we're off!

 



 
Lets not forget Momentary lapse of reason.
Love the song, love the band.  But does anyone agree that Guy Garvey has NO lung capacity.  Time to kick the smokes dude.
Elbow's album "Build A Rocket Boys" belongs in the same category of albums where the title comes from a line in one song. 

LPCity wrote:


Add in "Nevermind" and "Stop Making Sense" and we're off!

 


"There's a hole in my neighborhood, down which of late I cannot help but fall." Often, Elbow's lyrics make my inner geeky English major grin.
Brilliant music I guess KristianGregory wrote:
I just don't get it, what do people see in this band that I'm missing?

 


 Sasha2001 wrote:

You could have found 100 songs to say the same thing about, interesting that you chose "Crossroads." Now all I want to do is listen to that gem of a tune.

If music reflects the many facets of the human condition than Elbow's music reflects the part of the human condition where I want to take meat thermometers and jam them into my ears.

 
Actually, I picked it because it's one my all time favourites, but which seems, undeservedly, to have fallen off most people's radar.

I've gotta say, I'm pleased for people who like Elbow.  They certainly vastly out number you and me.

I suppose I should try to understand the popularity of their music, but for me it'd be as gratingly miserable as sitting on the steel mesh steps of a mobile home in a sleet storm trying to admire the tenant's plastic flower collection.
 Sasha2001 wrote:

I know, way too high. ;)

 
7.7 Way too low   ;)
 Poacher wrote:
Well, Mrs Poacher and I are going to get married very soon (it's a long story - don't ask). We are choosing music and we have to have one for going out of the ceremony. . . I am going to suggest this and see how it goes down with her. 

Any more good suggestions please PM me :) 

 

Congratulations to you both - did you get your choice of music or did Mrs Poacher choose something like the Boxer?
Thank you Bill. Today's my birthday and I've been waiting for an Elbow song. Was hoping for One Day Like This, but this is another favorite. Thanks for making my night and turning me on to my favorite band, Elbow. RP is the best thing out there for music! {#Music}
 DearDM wrote:
7.7? Wha?

 
I know, way too high. ;)
 Hasan wrote:
I just noticed that "Crossroads" by Cream has not had a single moment of air time since Nov 2011, but this dismal droning misery seems to be on every week!



 
You could have found 100 songs to say the same thing about, interesting that you chose "Crossroads." Now all I want to do is listen to that gem of a tune.

If music reflects the many facets of the human condition than Elbow's music reflects the part of the human condition where I want to take meat thermometers and jam them into my ears.
Grounds for coffee
Well, Mrs Poacher and I are going to get married very soon (it's a long story - don't ask). We are choosing music and we have to have one for going out of the ceremony. . . I am going to suggest this and see how it goes down with her. 

Any more good suggestions please PM me :) 
 Hasan wrote:
I just noticed that "Crossroads" by Cream has not had a single moment of air time since Nov 2011, but this dismal droning misery seems to be on every week!



  Perfect, considering I've heard "Crossroads" about a thousand times in my life and this only about twenty.
 When it drops, it's so good.
I just noticed that "Crossroads" by Cream has not had a single moment of air time since Nov 2011, but this dismal droning misery seems to be on every week!


 ceicilbee wrote:
heard this on a jcpenny tv commercial last night.  made me ill....

 
NeuroGeek wrote:
I about fell off of my couch last night when I heard this song as the background for a JC Penney commercial. Fortunately no wine was spilled.

 
You two had a mine meld there...
heard this on a jcpenny tv commercial last night.  made me ill....
I about fell off of my couch last night when I heard this song as the background for a JC Penney commercial. Fortunately no wine was spilled.
 peregrin8 wrote:

So do I.  Let's create a community ;-)

I love "Jagged little pill" for example.
 
 

Add in "Nevermind" and "Stop Making Sense" and we're off!
 stevendejong wrote:
Lyrically and musically excellent.
 
Yes - absolutely!
 ingrizek wrote:
and now some Black Keys ...
 
or BLACK RM CLUB
and now some Black Keys ...
I just don't get it, what do people see in this band that I'm missing?
 colt4x5 wrote:
What The Beatles would have sounded like with Peter Gabriel at the helm.
 
 
Not far off the mark!  I've noticed a number of times that Peter Gabriel channeling....
7.7? Wha?

ooH!  Cool


I hear Gordie Johnson's Big Sugar all over this!
 
Lyrically and musically excellent.
colt4x5
(under the scree field.)
Posted: Nov 03, 2012 - 13:45 < Reply >

What The Beatles would have sounded like with Peter Gabriel at the helm.
 

{#Think}   {#Yes}  Add in a bit of the Black Keys signature crunch, driven guitar sound in this particular song, and bingo!  {#Roflol}


What The Beatles would have sounded like with Peter Gabriel at the helm.
 
One of the most underrated bands.
 Clarentine wrote:


I'd written:  "Total disconnect between that singing beat and the lyrics, but I love it."  What I meant to write was "that swinging beat," which might resolve your curiosity.  Otherwise, does it clarify if I say that the song's beat, that superbly motion-inducing percussion in particular, serves as a neat counterpoint to (my understanding of) the lyrics and makes me love the entire package all the more? 
 

Nicely done.
 lily34 wrote:

i don't get what you mean by this...and i'm curious.
 

I'd written:  "Total disconnect between that singing beat and the lyrics, but I love it."  What I meant to write was "that swinging beat," which might resolve your curiosity.  Otherwise, does it clarify if I say that the song's beat, that superbly motion-inducing percussion in particular, serves as a neat counterpoint to (my understanding of) the lyrics and makes me love the entire package all the more? 
OK, for my money, Little Hurricane's cover is more entertaining!  Thanks CC ;-)


I was watching an episode of Rescue Me and this song was used in a bar room scene, very effective I thought. Good series btw.
.....the more i hear the more i like.........8...going to grow....
 Clarentine wrote:

Total disconnect between that singing beat and the lyrics, but I love it.  {#Yes}

 
i don't get what you mean by this...and i'm curious.

Total disconnect between that singing beat and the lyrics, but I love it.  {#Yes}


 lemmoth wrote:
I love when the album title comes from a line in a song.  Don't ask me why I just do.
 
So do I.  Let's create a community ;-)

I love "Jagged little pill" for example.
 
new elbow album coming out soon. they say it's not b-sides, but...hey.
i can't wait, regardless! 
I love when the album title comes from a line in a song.  Don't ask me why I just do.
They've been quite disappointing for me since this album. Heard them first here on RP, love this album, by far. But since? Not so much.
10
 q4Fry wrote:
So they were live streaming the Isle of Wight festival yesterday... This song was so excellent.

I hope Elbow tours this side of the pond sometime soon.
 


So they were live streaming the Isle of Wight festival yesterday... This song was so excellent.

I hope Elbow tours this side of the pond sometime soon.
 neuticle wrote:

Sooooo, it is about alcoholism ?
 
Who cares....it's a good song.
Good video too 
Oh my - giving me the chills - on a friday no less.
 Jackson_Feelgood wrote:
Has an early Clapton feel about it. (Yardbirds / Cream) sort of. Love it !
 
What JF said