Song of the Week Macy's Day Parade

[J'net]

This week's Song of the Week is Macy's Day Parade. Please use this thread to discuss your thoughts and feelings about the song.

The Warning album was released in October 2000 and reached number 4 on the charts (and has since gone gold). Macy's Day Parade was released as a single but didn't chart (!). This song was also included on International Superhits. I have to insert my opinion here and say that I think both the song and the album as a whole are seriously underrated, but it's okay. They're not underrated in my house.

Here's something Billie Joe said about this song: "It's sort of about the lies and deceptions that you have growing up and how you have to find your own way around."

Those of you who know me well know that I can never pick a favorite song – but you also know that this is one of the ones I dearly love and that it has special meaning for me. And – aside from that kind of mushy stuff … WOW … I love the way Billie plays with words in this song. I'll just give one example – "With a credit report for duty call." That's three phrases mingled into one "credit report," "report for duty," and "duty call." What a clever way of emphasizing the way all the bombardment of information from the television and other sources runs together into a single meaningless blur. However, there's much food for thought and discussion in this song, so let's see where it takes us this week.

Here's the official vid:

And here's another one just for grins. The first time I heard Green Day do this song live was this year in St. Louis, but I'm including this video from the next night (Kansas City) because it's easier to hear Billie, Arturo makes an appearance early on, and the few bits of confetti that float down near the beginning take me right back to the feeling of being there (and I was there, too).

Macy's Day Parade Lyrics

Today's the Macy's Day Parade.

The night of the living dead is on its way

With a credit report for duty call.

It's a lifetime guarantee -

Stuffed in a coffin 10% more free.

Red light special at the mausoleum.

Give me something that I need:

Satisfaction guaranteed to you.

What's the consolation prize -

economy sized dreams of hope?

When I was a kid I thought

I wanted all the things that I haven't got.

Oh, but I learned the hardest way.

Then I realized what it took

To tell the difference between

Thieves and crooks -

A lesson learned to me and you.

Give me something that I need:

Satisfaction guaranteed

Cause I'm thinking about a brand new hope,

The one I've never known,

Cause now I know it's all that I wanted.

What's the consolation prize -

Economy sized dreams of hope?

Give me something that I need:

Satisfaction guaranteed

Cause I'm thinking about a brand new hope,

the one I've never known and where it goes.

And I'm thinking about the only road,

The one I've never known and where it goes.

And I'm thinking about a brand new hope,

The one I've never known

Cause now I know it's all that I wanted.

<pause to contemplate>

And, finally, just out of curiosity, did anyone enter the Idiot Club's "Macy's Day Parade" contest that ended today?

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You can nominate songs for discussion as Song of the Week in the Song Discussions thread, which contains links to each previous Song of the Week from 9/14/2009 forward in its original post.

[drumstick]

love it!

video is not the best but I like it It's different than the other ones...

I would like to hear it live..acoustic

[AndrewW91]

This and Coming Clean are my 2 all-time favorite songs!

Great choice.

When they played this song in St. Louis, I almost cried. And then he had to go and play Coming Clean right after it, I shed some.

[Chelsea Hotel]

MACY'S DAY PARADE<3

This and Minority were my first favorite Green Day songs. And I still call the Thanksgiving Parade the Macy's Day Parade.

[Abbey.]

i cant even sneeze in 10 words or less...so i didnt enter...i look forward to kickin this song around in my noggin this week...lovely song for some pre-holiday inspiration/perspiration/aggravation.

[J'net]

This and Coming Clean are my 2 all-time favorite songs!

Great choice.

When they played this song in St. Louis, I almost cried. And then he had to go and play Coming Clean right after it, I shed some.

You should have seen me! Out of the 18 Green Day shows I've been to, this was the only one where I was in a seat (long story). When he started Macy's, I got very emotional. When he started Coming Clean, I grabbed the arm of the guy next to me (who happened to be Beth's husband), and started yelling, "Oh my god! Oh my god! It's Coming Clean!" Got a few funny looks from the crowd around us (most of whom didn't seem to know the song at all).

[Heather!]

Oh, this is one of my all-time favorites.

and I love the music video--how it's done all in one cut. and Billie's hair and too-short pants are hilarious

[Mari91]

You should have seen me! Out of the 18 Green Day shows I've been to, this was the only one where I was in a seat (long story). When he started Macy's, I got very emotional. When he started Coming Clean, I grabbed the arm of the guy next to me (who happened to be Beth's husband), and started yelling, "Oh my god! Oh my god! It's Coming Clean!" Got a few funny looks from the crowd around us (most of whom didn't seem to know the song at all).

that drives me nuts!

I sometimes wonder why people attend concerts when they only know one song by the band.

anyways

i love this song

i teared when i heard it acoustically, great moment.

i absolutely love

"When I was a kid I thought

I wanted all the things that I haven't got.

Oh, but I learned the hardest way."

its so damn true

[Salmonator.]

You should have seen me! Out of the 18 Green Day shows I've been to, this was the only one where I was in a seat (long story). When he started Macy's, I got very emotional. When he started Coming Clean, I grabbed the arm of the guy next to me (who happened to be Beth's husband), and started yelling, "Oh my god! Oh my god! It's Coming Clean!" Got a few funny looks from the crowd around us (most of whom didn't seem to know the song at all).

Hahahaha

[AndrewW91]

You should have seen me! Out of the 18 Green Day shows I've been to, this was the only one where I was in a seat (long story). When he started Macy's, I got very emotional. When he started Coming Clean, I grabbed the arm of the guy next to me (who happened to be Beth's husband), and started yelling, "Oh my god! Oh my god! It's Coming Clean!" Got a few funny looks from the crowd around us (most of whom didn't seem to know the song at all).

Hahaha

I looked back at the people I was with and basically said the same thing. Oh god, I was freaking out.

I did the same thing when he started playing Alison too! I yelled, and then like everyone around me looked at me like "what are you freaking out about?", and we were on the floor.

I guess its acceptable with that song though, since its not well known.

[Vespertine]

I fucking love this song <3

[Heather!]

I fucking love this song <3

I glanced at the last poster in this thread and thought it said Macy and went but then I realized your username is Mary.

[ANJI]

Great song and love the music video...lol billie's hair in the vid

[novacaine_kid]

This is in my top 3 Green Day songs. I love it to death. I nearly exploded when I heard this live for the first time, and so glad they have been playing it again recently.

[Angie-Marie]

God, I love Macy's Day Parade. It's easily one of my top 10 Green Day songs, the lyrics are so brilliant and poignant. Hearing this one live was probably my favorite moment of the show I was at. Not only is it one of my favorite songs of theirs, it was a total surprise to me because I think my show was the first show they played it at on this tour. I had been following the updates on the shows before mine so I had a good idea of what to expect song-wise, but I wasn't expecting MDP. It was a perfect way to wind down the show after Minority.

[Vespertine]

I glanced at the last poster in this thread and thought it said Macy and went but then I realized your username is Mary.

hahaha, a little bit different

[Tiffx]

I love this song so much. The live version is so beautiful <3

[Michael128]

Yeah Warning is definitely underrated. It's their best album imo.

I've never seen this video before. Imma watch it now I think.

Goddammit, it won't let it be embed here and it's not available in my country.

[Savior of Rebellion]

This song is just great, even if it is one of the sadder Green Day songs (atleast to me)

The message never fails to get to me, this song has always seemed to say something important.

[Rae'n'shine]

Beautiful song

I would do anything to hear this song live. Good choice for SOTW!

[Clayish]

Warning is such a great album.

Probably their 3rd best album in my book.

This song is one of their best album closers, but nothing beats Whatsername.

[Mar]

HJUDHFVHEWEHDKFJHJKSHAHJKF!!!!!!! :w00t:

Ah, I adore Macy's Day. So much. It's been my favorite Green Day song for years. I really don't know why I loved it so much; before I saw them in concert and became a really huge fan, I adored this song like no other, and I thought it was beautiful.

Upon buying my ticket and seeing set lists from earlier shows, I kind of knew that I wasn't going to get to hear the song live, and that was alright with me. I still had a blast at the entire show. Then, when Billie took the stage by himself, I expected him to start strumming "Good Riddance." However, he started playing the chords to this. I screamed so loudly (and I'm not really a loud person), I couldn't believe I got to hear my favorite song! We were the first show that tour to get it if I'm not mistaken, and it just blew me away. How I got so lucky, I don't know. No lie, my eyes started to well up afterward.

God, this is a fantastic song.

[justcause]

“It's sort of about the lies and deceptions that you have growing up and how you have to find your own way around.” The video speaks all of that so perfectly - the factory wasteland, the sense of 'what is all this industry for?', and when Billie Joe wanders over to strum almost absently with the band, it has the same feeling, like he's questioning even the purpose of his music, his own personal industry. The band is the only sign of life in this place - it's just ticking over and he steps in and does his part and walks away, still searching.

So much of Warning is about commerce - trade-offs and making deals, and at the heart of it, the yearning for something beyond 'economy-sized dreams of hope' that aches in this song and lets it soar beyond the bleakness of disillusionment.

[Supermodel*Robot]

For a very long time, this was in my "skip" list, along with one other Green Day song. I never like how monotonous it was. But now it's starting to grow on me, especially lyrically. The whole Macy's Day Parade reference didn't make sense to me before because I'd never heard of it before so it was just this fat WTF in my face.

It is a beautiful song though.

[Sarahnade.]

I glanced at the last poster in this thread and thought it said Macy and went but then I realized your username is Mary.

I snorted loudly and my cat gave me the weirdest look, ahahaha.

Wonderful song! I love the simplicity of the music, and the lyrics flow so well. Perfect album ender.