You Owe Me
"You Owe Me" is the second track on Angels & Ghosts.
Lyrics
A sour reminder of how hard I've tried
I'm under your spell, I'm holding so tight
I feel cold and disheveled, I'm as blue as your eyes
When lights go up, a hand comes down
You know, you owe me
You know, you owe me
You've come to the end, the end of the road
Exceeding the limit, as far as you can go
There's no room here, ain't nowhere left to hide
No particular reason, just foolish pride
When lights go up, a hand comes down
You know, you owe me
You know, you owe me
You gave me hope, all that I can be
Easy to hold, but so hard to please
So hard, hard, hard, hard
(You know, you owe me)
When lights go up, a hand comes down (You know)
Angels are singing, it's a beautiful sound (You owe me)
When lights go up, a hand comes down (You know)
Bells are ringing, it's a beautiful sound (You owe me)
You know, you owe me
Dave's Take
"'You Owe Me' I think is a little bit of a dig at everything. It might even be, subconsciously, a bit of a dig at the world, I don't know. Looking at yourself in the mirror, catching that reflection. Not being entirely happy with what you see staring back at you. This song is definitely me getting a little bit testy with everything and everyone around me. And really, sort of standing up and saying: fuck you. You owe me. And it's actually very positive in that way, too. You've got to stand up and do something if you want something to change."1
My Take
This number sounds very bluesy- even jazzy...with its warm, vintage-sounding guitar and a beautiful string arrangement to accompany it. I could almost hear Martin Gore's guitar sound on this, similar to how he played on "Breathe," say. Do I make too many comparisons to Martin in these reviews about Dave's music? Yeah, probably. There is a level of lyrical maturity here that I think is wonderful to see from Dave, having the opportunity to develop his craft for songwriting many times by this point. The line, "easy to hold, but so hard to please" gives me the image of someone who is vulnerable yet fickle, a trait that I can definitely relate to. It is tempting to blame others for your shortcomings and thinking that they "owe" you something...but of course, when reality says otherwise, that can be a hard pill to swallow. I can't emphasize enough how much these Soulsavers projects have really allowed Dave to blossom as a songwriter and singer. I do witness something somewhat similar in him with Depeche Mode but not to the same degree.
Music Video
There is no music video for this song.