Am I Ever Gonna Change?

Album: III Sides To Every Story (1992)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • In this song, Extreme lead singer Gary Cherone takes a hard look at himself and wonders if he's on the right path. These are tough questions, asking if he's holding true to his values or living a lie. It's tinged with religious imagery as he looks to the afterlife:

    This peace I seek
    Till thy kingdom comes


    Cherone is Christian, and questions of faith often show up in his lyrics. The most blatant example is the 1995 Extreme song "There Is No God," which has a different meaning than the title implies.
  • Gary Cerone told Songfacts that this is one of the band's most important songs, calling it "powerful" and "lyrically, self-reflecting."
  • The song is part of a 22-minute orchestral suite called Everything Under The Sun that's part of the third Extreme album, III Sides To Every Story. It's the second of three sections, following "Rise 'n Shine" and "Who Cares?" The band used a 70-piece orchestra for this section recorded at Abbey Road studios in London.
  • The spoken interlude at the four-minute mark ("Indulgentiam, absolutionem...") is in Latin, delivering the statement a Catholic priest would say at the end of a confessional. It roughly translates to:

    May the almighty and merciful God
    Grant you indulgence, absolution, and remission of all your sins


    According to the liner notes in the album, the priest is voiced by Dr. Edward de R. Cayia.
  • The III Sides To Every Story album is the follow-up to Pornograffitti, which contains Extreme's two big hits, "More Than Words" and "Hole Hearted." III Sides To Every Story had just two minor hits, "Rest in Peace" and "Stop The World," but is more ambitious, with a "three sides" concept. The first side is a collection of rocked-out songs called "Yours," followed by the more mellow "Mine," and finally "The Truth," which is made up of the Everything Under The Sun orchestral suite.

Comments: 1

  • JoshThis is, imo, the best song off of III Sides
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Art Alexakis of Everclear

Art Alexakis of EverclearSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer of Everclear, Art is also their primary songwriter.

La La Brooks of The Crystals

La La Brooks of The CrystalsSong Writing

The lead singer on "Da Doo Ron Ron" and "Then He Kissed Me," La La explains how and why Phil Spector replaced The Crystals with Darlene Love on "He's A Rebel."

Trans Soul Rebels: Songs About Transgenderism

Trans Soul Rebels: Songs About TransgenderismSong Writing

A history of songs dealing with transgender issues, featuring Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Morrissey and Green Day.

Lajon Witherspoon of Sevendust

Lajon Witherspoon of SevendustSongwriter Interviews

The Sevendust frontman talks about the group's songwriting process, and how trips to the Murder Bar helped forge their latest album.

Jon Anderson of Yes

Jon Anderson of YesSongwriter Interviews

From the lake in "Roundabout" to Sister Bluebird in "Starship Trooper," Jon Anderson talks about how nature and spirituality play into his lyrics for Yes.

Angelo Moore of Fishbone

Angelo Moore of FishboneSongwriter Interviews

Fishbone has always enjoyed much more acclaim than popularity - Angelo might know why.