90s | Music | Pop Culture

Turns Out We've Been Getting Semisonic's 'Closing Time' Wrong For Almost 20 Years

American Dad Wiki

While it was released in 1998, "Closing Time" by Semisonic is still a familiar tune, even today.

Anytime you mention the song to me, I can't help but start humming it to myself. Whether it's a familiar tune from the bar, or you loved it in Friends with Benefits in 2011 with Justin Timberlake, it's an iconic song that most of us can relate to.

Would you believe that we were wrong about what it was about all along???

"Closing time

Open all the doors and let you out into the world

Closing time

Turn all of the lights on over every boy and every girl

Closing time

One last call for alcohol so finish your whiskey or beer

Closing time

You don't have to go home but you can't stay here"

Sounds like a night out at the bar, right? Pretty straight forward. Not so much. The meaning behind the song is totally different.

"Closing Time" was nominated for the Grammy Away for Best Rock Song in 1999 and reached number 1 on Modern Rock Tracks, so it wasn't a vague song only 90's kids remember.

In an interview with Dan Wilson who wrote and produced the song, he explained how people have been misinterpreting the song all along.

The song has a much deeper meaning that we have been missing all along. When Dan Wilson wrote the song, his wife was pregnant with their first child, their daughter, who they named Coco.

"It's all about being born and coming into the world, seeing the bright lights, cutting the cord, opening up into something deeper and more universal," Wilson told Mojo.

Just before recording the hit song, Wilson's wife experienced complications in her pregnancy and Coco was born three months premature, weighing just 11 ounces.

After declining his band-mates offer to postpone recording sessions, the song took on a whole new meaning.

"I know who I want to take me home," referring to Wilson looking forward to the day he could bring his daughter home from the hospital.

Nearly a year after Coco was born, her parents were finally able to take her home. In February 1998, the day she went home, just happened to be the same day "Closing Time" was released as a single.

While much of the song can be interpreted about the bar, some lines really make sense now!

"This room won't be open 'Til your brothers or your sisters come"

When you realize room is actually womb, it changes everything!

Now because it's stuck in your head, here's the song:

Source: Wikipedia / Song Facts / Genius

More Throwbacks

Music

Hootie And The Blowfish Are Making A Comeback In A Huge Way

Hootie and the Blowfish are one of those bands that helped define the 90s. You couldn't go more than two hours without hearing one of their songs after they hit it big.But as is the case with most bands, Hootie and the Blowfish decided to take a break. In 2008, their lead singer Darius Rucker went solo, and became successful on his own. The only time the band has reunited was for Jason Aldean's High Noon Neon Tour when he was in Atlanta, but now they've decided to return in a major way. Kick your Monday off with us

90s

Brace Yourself: The Backstreet Boys Released A New Song And Are Going On A World Tour

The Backstreet Boys have been one of the biggest bands in the country, well, the world for several decades now. After getting their start in the early 90s, they've managed to be one of the very few bands that has stuck together and continued performing. They didn't need a big reunion, because they didn't break up. Well, let's just pretend like that whole Kevin fiasco didn't happen. But anyways, they've been putting out music and performing together for 25 years now, and they have no intention of stopping. To be fair, they did warn of this two decades ago. They

90s

The Spice Girls Announced Their Reunion Tour Dates And We Really 'Wannabe' There

It's been months and months of a "will they or won't they" debate, but we've finally got some concrete details about the Spice Girls reunion tour. It feels like every time they appear on a talk show or make a comment on Twitter they've been contradicting what the others have said, but now it's official, there's no going back, the Spice Girls are going on tour. Well, sort of. There is one catch, Victoria Beckham is not going to be there. We all suspected it for a while, as she herself had said that she didn't want to go on

90s

The Tragic Story Behind Pearl Jam's "Jeremy", Now Those Involved Reveal What Happened

Pearl Jam is one of those iconic 90s bands that everyone remembers hearing. They were edgier than the popular music, instead fitting in alongside Nirvana in the grunge style of music that was becoming popular. Like Nirvana, Pearl Jam originated from Seattle. The band has remained extremely successful in the years since its inception, but one song they wrote definitely brought the band to the attention of a lot more people. In 1992, their song "Jeremy" was released as a part of their debut album. The song was their first foray into more story-driven lyrics, but a lot of people

00s

After 15 Years Apart, BBMak Are Finally "Back Here" Again

As the 90s faded out, and the new millennium rushed forward, a lot changed. Clothes became very shiny, hair became excessively straightened, and people started to get cellphones. There was one thing that didn't change right away though, and that was that boy bands still reigned supreme. Backstreet Boys and *Nsync were obviously the two biggest groups who were constantly in a battle for the crown, but there was an entire league of boy bands that had a whole bunch of hits that a lot of us were completely obsessed with. BBMak was one of those bands. While they may

90s

Remembering NFL in the 90's

NFL in the 90s. The Golden Years of FootballIf you can cast your mind back to what the NFL was like in the 90’s, you can perhaps remember some of the great teams and players of the time, not to mention some of the important milestones as well. Maybe you remember the Dallas Cowboys winning three Super Bowls in four years or when the Denver Broncos won a perfect season in 1998. Of course, there are plenty of memorable player moments too. Like when Dan Marino won the title of the best all-time passing leader. Or when Jerry Rice