A Walk

Song details

Bad Religion original
Yes
First released
1996
First release
The Gray Race (album)
Songwriter
Greg Graffin

Lyrics

A Walk

I'm going for a walk, Not the after dinner kind, I'm gonna use my hands And I'm gonna use my mind. And who the hell are you to tell me what to do? You can't even tie your own haggard shoes, Your closet is a mess, and your backyard's falling down, And I have no grand ideas or intentions of sticking around. I'm gonna build a world, Independent and exempt, All alone I'll be an empire, With no mortgage and no rent. And I don't need to live in your stinking zoo, You can't even feed the animals donated to you. Your storage sheds are ramshackled, flies decorate the walls, And you expect me to die here in this shit-filled tiny stall? And I know you're watching everything I do, Call me threat to your children, call me socially unglued, Call me master of insanity, unable to relate, Call me lazy, bane, and filthy, Call me monstrous reprobate. I'm going for a walk And there's nothing you can do, 'cuz I don't have to live like you So I'm going for a walk.

Versions & recordings

Grouped by recording

6

First released on Unconventional Hits Post Modern Syndrome · 1996

Appears on

The Gray Race - Demo SessionsBootleg · 2019View 3 versions →Pop RockMisc release · 2003View 1 version →No Substance Radio ConcertBootleg · 1999View 1 version →More Power PopBootleg · 1998View 1 version →

Song statistics

Archive coverage at a glance

117release versions
#18

18th most featured song

267documented shows
#34

34th most played song

Live through the years

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Song Interpretations

What do you think this song is about? Share your interpretation and explain your reasoning.

7

ar7urMar 19, 2009

I always loves this one... it has such a powerful sense of "Fuck you, I don't care about you and what you think"... and Graffin contributes a lot, the lyrics are great... [quote]Call me threat to your children, call me socially unglued, Call me master of insanity, unable to relate, Call me lazy, bane, and filthy, Call me monstrous reprobate. [/quote] And this one, this is such a powerful part, Graffin just says…

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I always loves this one... it has such a powerful sense of "Fuck you, I don't care about you and what you think"... and Graffin contributes a lot, the lyrics are great...

[quote]Call me threat to your children, call me socially unglued,
Call me master of insanity, unable to relate,
Call me lazy, bane, and filthy,
Call me monstrous reprobate. [/quote]

And this one, this is such a powerful part, Graffin just says that they can do whatever they want, call him everything, but he simply doesn't care, that's the main message, "I don't care"... plus, the videoclip is a fucking masterpiece, Graffin always made me laugh with that videoclip... it's just random images of the band and a really sarcastic Graffin showing his face everywhere... I don't know if it was on purpose or it was done by accident, but either way the result was awsome, Graffin was fucking amazing.
legacy memberFeb 7, 2008 · edited Date unknown
This song is about not wanting to be a lump on a couch. He wants to get out see the world through his own eyes and not through the TV, computer, etc... Ironic.
legacy memberMar 21, 2006 · edited Date unknown
i think this song is about life for a teenager who needs to express his individuality under the watch of semi-neglectful parents, the concept of walking is obviously about writing.
legacy memberJul 17, 2004 · edited Date unknown

This song appears to be a very eloquent and verbose way of phrasing 'Fuck You.' I would say it kind of complements 'Walk Away' by creating a narrative about someone who finally does Walk Away from what's bothering them. I think the lyrics represent things we'd all like to say to someone. Alternately, the song could also be seen as a direct expression of the punk ethos--I am unsatisfied with the conditions under whic…

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This song appears to be a very eloquent and verbose way of phrasing 'Fuck You.' I would say it kind of complements 'Walk Away' by creating a narrative about someone who finally does Walk Away from what's bothering them. I think the lyrics represent things we'd all like to say to someone. Alternately, the song could also be seen as a direct expression of the punk ethos--I am unsatisfied with the conditions under which I live in mainstream society, ('your stinking zoo') so I am choosing to renounce it and create my own set of conditions, ('build a world, independent and exempt') and I don't care what the defenders of the mainstream think about it. ('call me...') I think it entirely possible that both of these meanings were intended. Duality and multi-layered meaning are distinctive features of Brett and Greg's songwriting.
legacy memberJul 17, 2004 · edited Date unknown
I think this song is about Greg or whoever going for a walk to try and make this world a better place. He explains about how bad this world is and he's gonna build a new one that he thinks is better than this overpopulated world with so many suffering people.
legacy memberJul 17, 2004 · edited Date unknown

I guess the most part of Bad Religions lyrics are based on the concept of what we learn that is 'politically correct' and what we should do or say. As a society, we are nothing more than trained to believe that the knowledge of these rules is the key for a life well-lived and mostly made of proud. And, in my opinion, A Walk talks about being yourself at all times, and being someone that not just sit and complain abo…

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I guess the most part of Bad Religions lyrics are based on the concept of what we learn that is 'politically correct' and what we should do or say. As a society, we are nothing more than trained to believe that the knowledge of these rules is the key for a life well-lived and mostly made of proud. And, in my opinion, A Walk talks about being yourself at all times, and being someone that not just sit and complain about life, and the way it sucks. It talks about going for what you believe, fighting for what you think is real and true.
legacy memberJul 17, 2004 · edited Date unknown
I think 'A walk' is about the people who don't agree with society and instead of being forced to conform to everyone else's standards they just give the world the finger and walk away. When Greg says 'call me master of insanity, etc.' I think he means he doesn't care because no matter what the society does he'll never follow them. Please feel free to argue that.