Billy

Song details

Bad Religion original
Yes
First released
1989
First release
No Control (album)
Songwriter
Brett Gurewitz

Lyrics

Billy

I can recall the warm youth of a summer day, yeah: The sweetest lemonade, the darkest game arcade, And Billy had a yearning in the corner of his mind. It moved him secretly. It moved him powerfully. But prescience was lacking and the present was not all And his aptitudes were carelessly wasted. And challenging life with the abandon of a fool, He squandered the hours of his day. Then darkness and disorder slapped him sharply in the face, yeah. It hit him like a friend, struck something deep within. He couldn't break the chain of slow decay that seemed to drag him Just like a fatal tie toward the other side. And Billy was a lunatic, just barking at the moon, And his brain was totally wasted. He then exchanged his friends for a needle and a spoon And he threw his future away. Bolt the door and throw away the key. Your dim reflection is all that you can see. So where is the justice when no one is at fault And a human life is tragically wasted? How fragile is the flame that burns within us all To light each passing day?

Versions & recordings

Grouped by recording

2

Song statistics

Archive coverage at a glance

38release versions
#157

157th most featured song

62documented shows
#106

106th most played song

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Song Interpretations

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

5

BrandonSideleauJul 9, 2009

I know for a fact that the song is about Brett and his struggle with drug addiction. However, the name "Billy" I think MAY be derived from Kurt Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse Five"- Chapter 2 in that book is dedicated entirely to a strange and quite possibly insane character known simply as "Billy" who speaks of living with aliens and being able to travel through time after having his head hurt badly in a plane crash.The…

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I know for a fact that the song is about Brett and his struggle with drug addiction. However, the name "Billy" I think MAY be derived from Kurt Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse Five"- Chapter 2 in that book is dedicated entirely to a strange and quite possibly insane character known simply as "Billy" who speaks of living with aliens and being able to travel through time after having his head hurt badly in a plane crash.The dialogue constantly speaks in the form "Billy was a...." or similar phrases. I could be completely talking out of my ass, but it struck me while reading it that "maybe" this had some sort of influence on the song's title and general consensus, despite it obviously being about Brett.
legacy memberMar 16, 2005 · edited Sep 6, 2010
I think it's not mainly about Brett, but about the wasted youth of our 'modern' world. Being a heroin-addict was only an inspiration for writing this song. And it's not only because of the heroin, or only because of the drugs, but because of all the neglecting we receive from the modern societies.
legacy memberJul 11, 2004 · edited Sep 6, 2010
FYI, users typically liquefy heroin in a spoon before injecting it, hence the 'needle and a spoon.' I had heard the song was about Brett, but perhaps it was inspired by Brett but deals with a fictional subject undergoing an all-too-common experience.
Bad BrettJul 11, 2004 · edited Sep 6, 2010

Billy may not be so special, but there's a weird feeling in that song. It's about how stupid Brett was back when he started with drugs, how it was exciting in the beginning, but then it turned out to a complete disaster, of which he couldn't get out of (he couldn't break the chain of slow decay that seemed to drag him), and he exchanged his friends for a needle (probably for heroin or something) and a spoon (spoon wi…

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Billy may not be so special, but there's a weird feeling in that song. It's about how stupid Brett was back when he started with drugs, how it was exciting in the beginning, but then it turned out to a complete disaster, of which he couldn't get out of (he couldn't break the chain of slow decay that seemed to drag him), and he exchanged his friends for a needle (probably for heroin or something) and a spoon (spoon with drugs, you know).
legacy memberJul 11, 2004 · edited Sep 6, 2010
This is another song that is autobiographically written by Brett about his heroin addiction. The character Billy Gnosis has the same initials as Brett. This is Brett writing about how heroin can destroy a person who people think of as strong, but in fact everyone is incredibly fragile and it is tragic when they are not helped to overcome their problems (as he was).