1979 – English Lyrics

• By: The Smashing Pumpkins
• Album: Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the story behind The Smashing Pumpkins' iconic hit, '1979.' This song offers a poignant look at the universal experience of growing up, making it a great way to connect with the emotions and cultural touchstones of the 90s alternative rock scene. Through its evocative lyrics, you can explore themes of nostalgia, change, and the passage of time.

[English]

("1979" by The Smashing Pumpkins)

♪ Shakedown 1979 ♪

♪ Cool kids never have the time ♪

♪ On a live wire right up off the street ♪

♪ You and I should meet ♪

♪ Junebug skipping like a stone ♪

♪ With the headlights pointed at the dawn ♪

♪ We were sure we'd never see an end to it all ♪

♪ And I don't even care ♪

♪ To shake these zipper blues ♪

♪ And we don't know just where our bones will rest ♪

♪ To dust I guess ♪

♪ Forgotten and absorbed into the earth below ♪

♪♪♪

♪ Double-cross the vacant and the bored ♪

♪ They're not sure just what we have in store ♪

♪ Morphine city slipping dues down to see ♪

♪ That we don't even care ♪

♪ As restless as we are ♪

♪ We feel the pull in the land of a thousand guilts ♪

♪ And poured cement, lamented and assured ♪

♪ To the lights and towns below ♪

♪ Faster than the speed of sound ♪

♪ Faster than we thought we'd go ♪

♪ Beneath the sound of hope ♪

♪ Justine never knew the rules ♪

♪ Hung down with the freaks and ghouls ♪

♪ No apologies ever need be made ♪

♪ I know you better than you fake it to see ♪

♪ That we don't even care ♪

♪ To shake these zipper blues ♪

♪ And we don't know just where our bones will rest ♪

♪ To dust I guess ♪

♪ Forgotten and absorbed into the earth below ♪

♪ The street heats the urgency of now ♪

♪ As you see there's no one around ♪

♪♪♪

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
shakedown /ˈʃeɪkdaʊn/ B2	noun - a police raid or search; extortion
kids /kɪdz/ A2	noun - children
wire /waɪər/ B1	noun - a thin flexible thread of metal
headlights /ˈhɛdˌlaɪts/ B2	noun - front lights of a vehicle
dawn /dɔn/ B1	noun - time when the sun rises
bones /boʊnz/ B2	noun - the framework of the body in vertebrates
dust /dʌst/ A2	noun - fine particles of matter in the air or on surfaces
earth /ɜrθ/ A2	noun - the planet we live on
city /ˈsɪti/ A2	noun - large town
sound /saʊnd/ A2	noun - vibrations that travel through the air verb - to produce or be heard as sound
hope /hoʊp/ B2	noun - feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen
rule /ruːl/ B2	noun - a prescribed guide for conduct or action
freaks /friːks/ B2	noun - someone who behaves in an unusual or frightening way
guilt /ɡɪlt/ B2	noun - a feeling of having done wrong
cement /sɪˈmɛnt/ C1	noun - a powder used to make concrete

Key Grammar Structures

• We were sure we'd never see an end to it all

  ➔ Conditional sentence with 'would' to express a hypothetical situation.

  ➔ 'would' is used here in a conditional sense to describe a situation that was believed to be possible in the past.

• And I don't even care to shake these zipper blues

  ➔ Infinitive phrase 'to shake' following 'care' indicating purpose or intention.

  ➔ The infinitive 'to shake' explains what the subject 'I' is reluctant or willing to do.

• And we don't know just where our bones will rest

  ➔ Future simple tense with 'will' expressing uncertainty about the future.

  ➔ 'Will' indicates a prediction about the future that is uncertain.

• And poured cement, lamented and assured

  ➔ Past tense verbs 'poured', 'lamented', and 'assured' describe completed actions in the past.

  ➔ These verbs are in the simple past tense, indicating actions completed at a specific time in the past.

• Faster than the speed of sound

  ➔ Comparison using 'faster than' to compare speed.

  ➔ The phrase uses the comparative 'faster than' to indicate a higher speed relative to the speed of sound.

• No apologies ever need be made

  ➔ Passive voice with 'need be made' indicating necessity or obligation.

  ➔ This phrase emphasizes that apologies are not required, using the passive construction indicating that the action is not necessary.