Hello city, hey

Another night at the palace
'Cause there is nothin' else to do
Oh, oh, ah, ha
The same people, the same drinks and
The same music, the same quicksand
I think this harbor town is waist deep and sinkin' fast

Hello city, you've found an enemy in me
Whoa, oh, whoa, oh (ba, dum, tum, tum, hey, hum)
Hello city, hello city, hello city, hey

Second night at the warehouse
And my mock turtleneck just reeks
Whoa, oh, whoa, oh
From the liquor room to the change room
To the doom and gloom of the hotel room
I think this seaside beer hall should sink into the bay

Hello city, you've found an enemy in me
Whoa, oh, whoa, oh (ba, dum, tum, tum, ba, dum)
Hello city, hello city, hello city

Maybe I caught you at a bad time
Maybe I should call you back next week
Maybe half the fault is mine that the sun didn't shine on Barrington Street

It's 3 o'clock in the morning
And I'm hungry so let's eat
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa

Climb down three flights
Too the street lights
And the bar fights
We're just takin' in the sights
I hope tomorrow that I wake up in my own bed

Hello city, you've found an enemy in me
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa
Hello city, hello city, hello city, hey

What a good place to be
Don't believe them, cause they speak a different language
And it's happy hour again
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa
It's happy hour again
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa

Hello city, eh
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa
Hello city, eh


Lyrics submitted by ojms

Hello City Lyrics as written by Steven Page Ed Robertson

Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Hello City song meanings
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11 Comments

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  • +2
    General Comment

    This is a song about Halifax.....before they got big they played Halifax and got booed out of the city. It is a fave of the city noe because of a number of reasons..."Another night at tha Palace, cuz there's nothing else to do". I dare you to find a 20 something person in Halifax who has never uttered this line at least once. It is one of the biggest bars in the city and boasts live bands and large crowds. The unofficial name of this bar is the last chance for romance, because if you can't pick up here then you may as well join the priesthood or a nunnery.

    "Cause they speak a diferent language' The maritime lingo can be a bit difficult to decipher if you aren't used to it

    "It's happy hour again" Halifax has the most bars per capita than any city in North America

    "Maybe half the fault was mine that the sun didn't shine on barrington street." There are a lot of trees and tall buildings along Barrington in the heart of downtown and the sun hardly ever does shine there

    jmo78on October 01, 2005   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    This is a song about Halifax.....before they got big they played Halifax and got booed out of the city. It is a fave of the city noe because of a number of reasons..."Another night at tha Palace, cuz there's nothing else to do". I dare you to find a 20 something person in Halifax who has never uttered this line at least once. It is one of the biggest bars in the city and boasts live bands and large crowds. The unofficial name of this bar is the last chance for romance, because if you can't pick up here then you may as well join the priesthood or a nunnery.

    "Cause they speak a diferent language' The maritime lingo can be a bit difficult to decipher if you aren't used to it

    "It's happy hour again" Halifax has the most bars per capita than any city in North America

    "Maybe half the fault was mine that the sun didn't shine on barrington street." There are a lot of trees and tall buildings along Barrington in the heart of downtown and the sun hardly ever does shine there

    jmo78on October 01, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    its a song about stevens fondness for montreal... silly canadians

    sean2458on April 25, 2003   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    i think that this song is about a band (possibly BnL themselves) getting really annoied with playing at the same place over and over again

    neko-chanon June 14, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Hello City is about one of the band's earlier days while still a duo and travelling with Corky and the Juice Pigs. They came to a city during the second length of the tour and nobody liked them. They were just miserable, and it was just a terrible experience. So they wrote a song about it to get back at them I guess.

    Sanjuroon October 25, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    The bit:

    "what a good place to be, don't believe them, 'Cause they speak a different language And it's never been happy for me. It's Happy Hour again."

    is taken from the song "Happy Hour" by the Housemartins which was the band which Fatboy Slim (Norman Cook), Dave Hemingway (Beautiful South) as well as Paul Heaton (Beautiful South) were all part of.

    jonnykerron December 02, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    What Sanjuro said. More specifically, it's about Halifax, NS. I found Barrington Street when I was there a few years ago. :)

    gravity_defianton December 11, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    "You've found an enemy in me..." I love those lines!

    shan4shorton March 13, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Ah, Halifax. I lived there (and hated it) for two years. I had this song on constant replay. Then I moved back to Toronto and found out that Steve Page had moved onto my parent's street.

    And the sun never shines ANYWHERE in Halifax, from all the fog and rain. Urk.

    KatOuzon July 20, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    i think of it as a guy who moves to a big city (maybe for a new job or whatever) and just hates it. he spends his time wasting away his life, drinking and doing whatever (going home with women) just to pass the time in his horrible life and he blames it all on the city

    draglineon June 27, 2007   Link

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