[Intro] Broken lines, broken strings Broken threads, broken springs Broken idols, broken heads People sleeping in broken beds Ain’t no use jiving Ain’t no use joking Everything is broken
[Verse 1] Broken bottles, broken plates Broken switches, broken gates Broken dishes, broken parts Streets are filled with broken hearts Broken words never meant to be spoken Everything is broken
Seem like every time you stop and turn around Something else just hit the ground
[Verse 2] Broken cutters, broken saws Broken buckles, broken laws Broken bodies, broken bones Broken voices on broken phones Take a deep breath, feel like you’re choking Everything is broken
Every time you leave and go off someplace Things fall to pieces in my face
[Outro] Broken hands on broken ploughs Broken treaties, broken vows Broken pipes, broken tools People bending broken rules Hound dog howling, bullfrog croaking Everything is broken
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Genius Annotation1 contributor
In a first version called ‘Broken Days’, the more romantic lyrics focused more on the feelings of two people breaking, while the version of ‘Oh Mercy’ became a diatribe against the world of the end Of the 20th century.
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