Before the Lobotomy Lyrics

How to Format Lyrics:

  • Type out all lyrics, even repeating song parts like the chorus
  • Lyrics should be broken down into individual lines
  • Use section headers above different song parts like [Verse], [Chorus], etc.
  • Use italics (<i>lyric</i>) and bold (<b>lyric</b>) to distinguish between different vocalists in the same song part
  • If you don’t understand a lyric, use [?]

To learn more, check out our transcription guide or visit our transcribers forum

About

Genius Annotation

The song’s title was inspired by a story from The San Francisco Chronicle about Howard Dully, who recalled how his stepmother forced him to have a transorbital lobotomy when he was 12.

This is the first song from Gloria’s point of view. Remember “¡Viva la Gloria!”, when we were introduced to this character who completely changed midway through the song? That was quite obviously in Christian’s point of view and the last line was “Tell me the story of your life.” Well, here it is; this is Gloria’s story that he asked for, much like “21st Century Breakdown” was Christian’s story. Problem is, she can’t remember much. She didn’t get a literal lobotomy but joining life with Christian, the extremist revolutionary leader, has wiped away most of her fond dreams and memories. The brutal sadness of reality has washed away the time with her family, even laughter and a more fulfilling life.

The negativity and pain has tarnished her innocence and without her faith she compares herself to a “lost refugee.” “Christian sang the eulogy” is, in a way, referring back to “¡Viva la Gloria!” but, also, Christian basically killed the person Gloria was, as she has morphed into someone completely different since initially meeting him. In her mind, she’s not any worse though, because she found out the “truth” about the cons of America from Christian — yet she’s not in love with him either, because she’s too drugged out and disgusted with the world.

Singer Billie Joe Armstrong explained to Q magazine May 2009:

It’s about how self destructive behaviour can overshadow parts of your ambition.“ He added: "A lot of people have a self-destruct button. I think for a lot of rock musicians, when you’re celebrating, it turns into partying and then suddenly you’re f—ing yourself up and you’re destroying something you worked so hard to build up. There’s this shiny red button that you just want to push.”

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did Green Day say about "Before the Lobotomy"?
Genius Answer

Billie Joe: “Before The Lobotomy” is when the character Christian comes in for the first time. I think it’s just really trying to push the boundaries of how you arrange pop music or rock music or punk rock music and just really kind of going for it with no rules. And, you know, going until like, you know, like train, I mean the time signature on that, it’s like…

Tré: I’m not exactly sure what it is, but I think (laugh) it’s not in 4/4. Also, the subject matter of “Before The Lobotomy” kind of dives into self-destruction and, you know, drug and alcohol abuse. It’s that self-destructive nature of Christian, which we see throughout the record. – [x]

Credits
Produced By
Background Vocals
String Arranger
String Conductor
Mastering Engineer
Mixing Engineer
Percussion
Recorded At
Ocean Way Recording (Hollywood, CA); Studio 880 (Oakland, CA); Jel Studios (Newport Beach, CA) & Costa Mesa Studios (Costa Mesa, CA)
Release Date
May 12, 2009
Tags
Comments