Junk bond trader - Elliott Smith Lyrics in desctiprion

The imitation picks you up like a habit
Writing in the glow of the TV's static
Taking out the trash to the man
Give the people something they'd understand

A stick man flashing a fine-lined smile
Junk bond trader trying to sell a sucker a style
Rich man in a poor man's clothes
The permanent installment of the daily dose

And you tell off when you tell it like it is
Your world's no wider than your hatred of his
Checking into a small reality
Boring as a drug you take too regularly

The athlete's laugh, the broken crutch
The first true love that folded at the slightest touch
Brought down like an old hotel
People digging through rubble for things they can resell

Happy holidays, sad sick savior
The leaving lover that I still favor
I won't take your medicine,
I don't need a remedy
To be everything I'm supposed to be
I don't want nobody else
I can do it by myself
We're meant to be together

Now I'm a policeman directing traffic
Keeping everything moving, everything static
I'm a hitchhiker you'll recognize passing
On your way to some everlasting
Better sell it while you can (x4)

[TheDreamingJune]

God, I love the instrumentation in this song. So satisfying to the ears.

[totallynotalpharius]

"boring as a drug you take to regularly" probably my favorite lyric of all time

[cookiemonsterable]

The first true love, that folded at slightest touch

[jamiedossantos]

Favorite line is "people dig through the rubble for things they can resell." This entire song is about how the music industry was all too happy to profit from his emotional agony and resulting drug and alcohol addiction. Least favorite line is "better sell it while you can" because I believe he was hinting at his oncoming demise.

[alisonwelch]

the more i listen the more it is the best songwriting ever...from at the time to now...

[stevenmorris]

I deeply love his music. A songwriter genius and very cool interesting voice. Been a fan for 5-6 years now.

[roachdogjrjr]

Thanks for uploading a lyrics version to this, and them actually being correct. (lol)

Besides being one of my favorite Elliott Smith songs musically and lyrically, these lyrics have a special meaning to me. I'm well aware what Smith meant with the lyrics, but taken in context with (my unimportant) life, it means something special.

[JeffreySmithNumber]

I really like this song. Elliott made great music.

[stevenmorris]

This song would be great for Life Is Strange Before the Storm. They have incredible songwriters for the soundtrack of that game.

[youtubechannel-ezwx]

this music is perfect ❤❤❤❤ Oh thank to the universe i have this album in cassette format official, first press 2000.

[louispconstant]

This is great but I much prefer the lyrics he started using later "And you tell people they're too paranoid, instead of and you tell off? you tell it like it is", and the diff outro etc

[mariamman]

This whole album in terms of orchestration and instrumentation is Elliott’s best album

[getehehh]

This is like elliott smith if he rapped

[anthonyphilippo]

“rich man in a poor mans clothes” that kinda says a lot but still wonder what he means by that 🤔 when i think about it i think about how drake and kanye dress and they’re both filthy rich but yet dress bummy when they have the money to dress fancy as fuck