In a general sense, the lyrics are meant to "reflect" upon past times and the little things that matter, in order to evoke some feeling of melancholia/nostaligia. That's my guess.

But, still, when I look at each line in detail, I often wonder: "why that line? Why does he choose these words and what exactly is he saying?"

Discuss, please!

Two sevens together like time, indefinite

Trying to catch the glass before it falls

Without a frown can you turn up the stereo?

I wanna play you this old song about love

Can eye do that?

Did we remember to water the plants today?

Eye forgot to look up at the moon because

Eye was too busy, said eye was too busy

Eye was too busy Looking at you, babe

Still it's nice to know that uh, when bodies wear out

We can get another

What does that one thing have to do with the other one?

Eye don't know

Eye was just thinking about my mother

You know what?

Turn the stereo back down

Ain't nothing worse than an old worn out love song

Tell me do you like my hair this way?

Remember all the way back in the day

When we would compare whose afro was the roundest

Mirrored tiles above the bed

Fishing nets and posters all over the walls, oh yeah

Sometimes eye just wanna go sit out on the stool

And uh, play my guitar

Just watch all the, all the cars go by

[Edited 7/9/12 19:22pm]

I wondered the same thing when I first heard this! lol

The meaning has more 'meaning' when he performed it LIVE with Wendy back in 04' at the Tavis Smiley show.

The lyrics are very interesting! It seems as if he is really just reflecting, and using many allegories which suggest personal feelings. We don't know what they mean, but I am sure they are 'representational' for something personal to him.

For instance: "2 7's 2gether, like time indefinite, trying 2 catch the glass b4 it falls.."

This seems to mean, him with someone else..trying to persevere a sense of what is valued before it breaks...

BUT you know..Just pondering these lyrics; these are some of the most interesting lyrics ever written! I like you feel as if he is trying to evoke some feeling of nostalgic.

WHY?? WHY? WHY? AND WHAT IS HE TALKING ABOUT? LOL

Especially when he says:

Still it's nice to know that uh, when bodies wear out

We can get another

What does that one thing have to do with the other one?

Eye don't know

Eye was just thinking about my mother

I HAVE no clue what that is about...It sounds like he is talking about a sense of reincarnation..Because the prior line he says he was too busy looking at her, and obviously after time, that person got older, and the next body....Then he talks about his mother...

AHH! This is annoying me!

There is literally no meaning to this..Just a reflection. lol

My guess, is that Prince visited his home town, possible place where he was raised....Looked at everything he saw, and made a rhyme with every thought that came to him in what he saw.

It is very personal, and I love how he performs it with Wendy..It really seems to be about a personal reflection of his life, and he does not want it to sound sad, he just wants to reflect on the good times.

This is about the closest Prince has got to being reminiscent, IMO... He does not seem to reminisce much...But this song definitely does it; in a confusing incoherent manner.

STILL I LOVE IT! lol

Still it's nice to know that uh, when bodies wear out

We can get another

What does that one thing have to do with the other one?

Eye don't know

Eye was just thinking about my mother

I always thought that these lyrics were referring to his JW beliefs regarding the afterlife.

"Humans do not have an immortal soul that continues on after death. When they die, they cease to exist. With the exception of those who:

all others are resurrected. God creates a new body for the resurrected one, similar to their former body, which for most had long since decomposed. The new body is mentally and physically healthy, with the original personality and memories intact. They will be judged according to their deeds."

http://www.religioustolerance.org/witness3.htm/

I don't know if Prince had a close relationship with his mother, but her death might have affected him deeply and this serves as some consolation that even after death her body will be physically restored.

EyeJester7 said:

Especially when he says:

Still it's nice to know that uh, when bodies wear out

We can get another

What does that one thing have to do with the other one?

Eye don't know

Eye was just thinking about my mother

I HAVE no clue what that is about...It sounds like he is talking about a sense of reincarnation..Because the prior line he says he was too busy looking at her, and obviously after time, that person got older, and the next body....Then he talks about his mother...

JWs believe that when they inherit the earth, they will get new bodies when the current ones wear out. Or if they wear out before end times, once they inherit the earth, they will be given new bodies.

It can also be related to reincarnation. When one dies they can be born again into another life (new body).

What he was saying regarding forgetting to water the plants, then not looking at the moon because he was too busy looking at the other, has nothing to do with the thought of "getting new bodies", but that perhaps while he was looking at her, forgetting to look at the moon, something about it reminded him of his mother, and perhaps missing his mother, and thinking about how his mother has passed on, her body wore out, and isn't it wonderful how when our bodies wear out we can get another one.

In other words, the thoughts were related. Something from the looking at the other and not looking at the moon, or forgetting to water the plants, reminded him of his mom. This reminded him of his mom's passing, how her body just gave out on her. And this made him think about how wonderful it will be to a get a new body when our current bodies give out on us.

IMHO, anyway. And it could be completely wrong.

I met Prince's mom at the Celebration in 2000 (I believe it was that one). She was sitting on a couch, on the raised platform in the L4OA room, and I had a bum leg, which had swollen up pretty bad from standing on that concrete for so long. I asked one of the security guards if I could sit at the bottom of the raised platform and elevate my leg on the step? He asked Prince's mom if it was ok and she looked at me, saw how swollen my leg was and said it was ok with her. After about a half an hour, my leg felt a little better, swelling had gone down some since I had laid down and kept it elevated above my heart, and so I stood up and thanked her for letting me do that. She started asking me what had happened to my leg and we had a small conversation about that, and a couple of other things. We shared a similar interest in helping others, as we were both social workers. I also told her she did a wonderful job raising her son, that he seemed like a wonderful God loving man, with an enormous talent. There was a pride in her eyes. She was very proud of her son and that was very evident. She was a very sweet woman to me.

Oh and when we went to the concert one day, she was sitting in the row behind me. I had turned to wave at her and she waved back.

[Edited 7/9/12 21:43pm]

prittypriss said:

EyeJester7 said:

For instance: "2 7's 2gether, like time indefinite, trying 2 catch the glass b4 it falls.."

This seems to mean, him with someone else..trying to persevere a sense of what is valued before it breaks...

I always took this to refer to '77 or 1977, the year before his recording career begun with the release of "For You" in 1978... before the glass broke... forever altering his life trajectory.

NuPwrSoul said:

I always took this to refer to '77 or 1977, the year before his recording career begun with the release of "For You" in 1978... before the glass broke... forever altering his life trajectory.

That would seem to be the obvious reference.

The song's called 'Reflection' guys, the lyrics are all quite plain and straight forward IMO.

Dave1992 said:

But, still, when I look at each line in detail, I often wonder: "why that line? Why does he choose these words and what exactly is he saying?"

This song always have been a fave of mine, one of 's most intimate songs. NO ONE CAN KNOW WHAT HE HAD IN MIND, but here's my interpretation:

Two sevens together like time, indefinite

Trying to catch the glass before it falls

Two people living side by side, probably for a long time, trying to take what they can from life before it's too late.

Without a frown can you turn up the stereo?

I wanna play you this old song about love

Can eye do that?
Just what it says, with the idea that the girl may be complaining that the narrator listens to too much music, which the justification that he wants to play an old love song for her.

Did we remember to water the plants today?

Eye forgot to look up at the moon because

Eye was too busy, said eye was too busy

Eye was too busy Looking at you, babe
Watering the plants may or may not be a metaphor for taking care of oneself, one's environment or each other, just like the line about feeding the birds and cleaning the cage in Pearls B4 The Swine. The moon thing is just an amazingly romantic image (try it with girls, u'll be surprised ).

Still it's nice to know that uh, when bodies wear out

We can get another

What does that one thing have to do with the other one?

Eye don't know

Eye was just thinking about my mother
This is obviously about reincarnation (or maybe resurrection, since we're talking JW?): when we die we eventually come back to earth and get another physical body, an idea that came to the narrator because he was thinking of his late mother. It is implied that the girl complains that the narrator jumps from one idea to the next without obvious links between them.

You know what?

Turn the stereo back down

Ain't nothing worse than an old worn out love song

Tell me do you like my hair this way?

Remember all the way back in the day

When we would compare whose afro was the roundest
Nostalgia, possibly with the idea that one shouldn't be too attached to one's past. The afro is an obvious reference to being a teen-ager in the late 60's and 70's.

Mirrored tiles above the bed

Fishing nets and posters all over the walls, oh yeah

Sometimes eye just wanna go sit out on the stool

And uh, play my guitar

Just watch all the, all the cars go by

More nostaligia about when the narrator was just a young man with a simple life, and the idea that he wishes to do it again but can't, either because he's become too sophisticated or too famous to do it anonymously. The bedroom's description is about the narrator's bedroom when he was a teen-ager.

Also, I think it's no co-in-ki-dink, that it sounds like 78/79 albums. The intro is really brings to mind the out-take 'Miss You'.

It's one of those rare 'reflective' and mature sounding songs in the Prince canon that shows a brief tiny crack in his armour - something we don't see nearly enough of.

yeah, like others have said, it's probably a reflection on his pre-fame young self.

there's also those bits about his mother, who died not long before, didn't she?

so that could be the catalyst for remembering youth.

mingled in there is a domestic portrait of his life with mani at that time. and as it

is a post 1999 prince song there's some vague religious references that no one

quite gets. lol.

still one of the best 00's songs. he should do lyrics like these much more often

instead of those bragging lyrics or just nonsense hype speak he does too much

of these days.

sadly, for every 10 "never be another like me" there's only 1 "reflection" when it

should clearly be the other way around.

One thing regarding the first line, keep in mind Prince's interest in numbers. They seem to have meaning to him, especially the number 7.

In Hebrew, 7 means complete or full. It is also spiritual perfection and represents the Holy Spirit.

So with that in mind...

Two sevens together like time, indefinite

Two complete people together, two spiritual (?) people together, two equals, they are the same....and just as time is not definite, their relationship perhaps is not definite, is undefined perhaps, or there is no certainty about how long they will last together.

Trying to catch the glass before it falls

With the addition of this line, I tend to think the first line signifies the uncertainty about how long they will last together. "Trying to catch the glass" signifies trying to save something. If glass falls, it breaks. So these two are together, but it's uncertain for how long, and either they both are, or he is, trying to save the relationship before it's broken.

This would have the tendency to cause one to become reflective about their life. Where did I go wrong? Where did s/he go wrong?

Without a frown can you turn up the stereo?

He is asking someone to turn the stereo for him and the part "without a frown" indicates the one he is asking becomes upset with him, or unhappy when the focus is on music, or when the music is turned up too loud.

I wanna play you this old song about love

Can eye do that?

It seems that this begins his reflection. Listen to this old song about love, remember how we used to be. He feels he has to ask her permission to play her the song because he's not sure if she wants to hear it, perhaps?

Did we remember to water the plants today?

Eye forgot to look up at the moon because

Eye was too busy, said eye was too busy

Eye was too busy Looking at you, babe

Already explained these next two verses, but had a thought about this one...

It seems he is remembering the love they shared, and trying to remind her of the love they shared, and in his remembering the love they shared his focus has been on her entirely and he's not even certain whether they did the day to day to chores, and he doesn't even notice the moon, because his focus is her completely at this point.

Still it's nice to know that uh, when bodies wear out

We can get another

What does that one thing have to do with the other one?

Eye don't know

Eye was just thinking about my mother

See above explanations. I think this verse has been covered nicely by everyone. Except that I want to say that I think this verse is more reflective of melancholia than sadness. A type of pensive reflection or contemplation.

You know what?

Turn the stereo back down

Ain't nothing worse than an old worn out love song

The song isn't having the desired effect. It is merely making him melancholy, and it's not having an effect on her. It's old and it's worn out and it's not having the impact he wanted it to have.

Tell me do you like my hair this way?

Remember all the way back in the day

When we would compare whose afro was the roundest

A focus on the superficial, the looks, nothing deeper than that. But then he brings in a shared history, a reminder of all that they have shared. It seems he was still trying to reach her but in a different way. Do you like the way I look? Do you remember how I looked when we met? Do you remember how silly we were back then?

Mirrored tiles above the bed

Fishing nets and posters all over the walls, oh yeah

Sometimes eye just wanna go sit out on the stool

And uh, play my guitar

Just watch all the, all the cars go by

His reflections, the complexities of relationships, have caused him to long for something simple, something easy, something normal. He longs for a moment in which he can just play to be playing, the enjoyment of the moment, a moment where he is the one watching everyone else instead of being the one always being watched.

Of course, all of this is merely speculation, my take on it. And until Prince comes out and says this is what the song means, or this lyric means, all we have is our take on it.

[Edited 7/10/12 7:35am]

prittypriss said:

It's about vaginas. Prince is absolutely obsessed with vaginas.

^ Annnnywaaaay...

The first line confuses me the most, like how you said, Dave1992, why those words, or in this case, why that number? I always took it to mean two people because the song plays out like a small dialogue, and I like the explanations others have posted here. The song is so sparse, but in so little words, you get this whole implied conversation. I think that's so cool, and it's those questions that are just really touching to me and create a genuine, intimate and simple mini story:

Without a frown can you turn up the stereo? ... Can I do that? ... Did we remember to water the plants today? ... What does that one thing have to do with the other one? ... You know what? ... Tell me do you like my hair this way? Remember all the way back in the day... when we would compare whose afro was the roundest?

Also, having to imagine the answers to these questions adds to the song's whole feel of jumping from one image/thought to another.

Another option is Prince is asking us (the listener) those questions.

Do you like my hair this way? Can I do that? (just like he asks "can i play my guitar a little bit?" in concert etc.)

The vibe of a conversation with a partner sits nicely too though, and that's how I have always listened to it.

NuPwrSoul said:

EyeJester7 said:

For instance: "2 7's 2gether, like time indefinite, trying 2 catch the glass b4 it falls.."

This seems to mean, him with someone else..trying to persevere a sense of what is valued before it breaks...

I always took this to refer to '77 or 1977, the year before his recording career begun with the release of "For You" in 1978... before the glass broke... forever altering his life trajectory.

Interesting read about the 2 7's. 4 some reason, I was thinking the two sevens indicating one or two sets of geminis. Thanks for sharing your interpretaion.

To All, Soul is Eternal...don't believe the lies. It is just what darkness would want us to believe, that life is a straight line. Soul is the light and nrg of God. Love God - u r loving urSelf.

Dave1992 said:

In a general sense, the lyrics are meant to "reflect" upon past times and the little things that matter, in order to evoke some feeling of melancholia/nostaligia. That's my guess.

But, still, when I look at each line in detail, I often wonder: "why that line? Why does he choose these words and what exactly is he saying?"

Discuss, please!

Two sevens together like time, indefinite

Trying to catch the glass before it falls

Without a frown can you turn up the stereo?

I wanna play you this old song about love

Can eye do that?

Did we remember to water the plants today?

Eye forgot to look up at the moon because

Eye was too busy, said eye was too busy

Eye was too busy Looking at you, babe

Still it's nice to know that uh, when bodies wear out

We can get another

What does that one thing have to do with the other one?

Eye don't know

Eye was just thinking about my mother

You know what?

Turn the stereo back down

Ain't nothing worse than an old worn out love song

Tell me do you like my hair this way?

Remember all the way back in the day

When we would compare whose afro was the roundest

Mirrored tiles above the bed

Fishing nets and posters all over the walls, oh yeah

Sometimes eye just wanna go sit out on the stool

And uh, play my guitar

Just watch all the, all the cars go by

[Edited 7/9/12 19:22pm]

prince loves being cryptic & he loves his double entendres. although he is reflecting back on life, consider reading the lyrics keeping in mind the 2nd definition for reflection, someone literally looking in the mirror. in prince's world a seven is someone born on the 7th day of the month. therefore prince & his twin(his reflection) are the 2-7's . the phrase about the bodies wearing out he is a joking about how $ can buy a lot of nipping,tucking, nose jobs,boob jobs,eye surgery etc. but his mood shifts when he considers that all the $ in the world can't bring him another day with his beloved mother.

Does anyone remember when the song was posted on the NPGMC that it was accompanied by a pic of Prince and Morris (circa 1977)? Maybe that had something 2 do with it? Also, his mother had recently died when the song was originally released, so mayibe that's why he mentioned her.

daPrettyman said:

Does anyone remember when the song was posted on the NPGMC that it was accompanied by a pic of Prince and Morris (circa 1977)? Maybe that had something 2 do with it? Also, his mother had recently died when the song was originally released, so mayibe that's why he mentioned her.

wasn't this released in the reflection room? that was just a pool that a player would pop up

out of, wasn't it? i can't remember a picture of him and morris being there.

or perhaps i'm confusing it with 'what do you want me 2 do?' wich was also debuted in the

reflection room iirc.

IstenSzek said:

daPrettyman said:

Does anyone remember when the song was posted on the NPGMC that it was accompanied by a pic of Prince and Morris (circa 1977)? Maybe that had something 2 do with it? Also, his mother had recently died when the song was originally released, so mayibe that's why he mentioned her.

wasn't this released in the reflection room? that was just a pool that a player would pop up

out of, wasn't it? i can't remember a picture of him and morris being there.

or perhaps i'm confusing it with 'what do you want me 2 do?' wich was also debuted in the

reflection room iirc.

It was, but on the floor (to the left) there was a pic of Prince and Morris. They looked to be about 17 or 18 with big fros.

I remember the pic surfacing on the net, then it ended up being in the reflection room.

I FINALLY found it. It didn't have the writing around the pic, but here is the photo.

[Edited 7/12/12 14:40pm]

cool find daPrettyman. thanks for posting. i had completely forgotten about that.

IstenSzek said:

cool find daPrettyman. thanks for posting. i had completely forgotten about that.

You're welcome.

One of my favorites

Seriously one of his best, and to me most heartfelt of his lyrics, personal, much like The Love We Make. I would rank these 2 songs very high in his all time best chart. This song is to me about simplicity, looking back, being on the "stoop", "posters on the wall" i look at this as being with an old friend after time passed and looking back with them, and also "mother" to me is direct to his mother passing, i feel him longing for her because regardless of what the relation, he wouldnt be here without her and he was closer to her, though the music may have come from his father, his mother was that woman in his life and they he maybe saw being "mistreated", maybe even some guilt in Prince at her passing, its alot but if Prince was Rihanna or Tpain really we wouldnt have this discussion, Prince is def a deep person even if we agree disagree with him on things, albums, videos, and beliefs he has, he is human like us.