Getting Started

Album: Seventeen Going Under (2021)
Charted: 47
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Sam Fender's parents split up when he was 8. At first he lived with his father, but when his stepmother kicked him out, he moved back in with his mum. She suffered from fibromyalgia, which affected her mental health and her ability to work. Here, the acerbic troubadour recalls being 18 and wanting to get on his with his life, only to return home and find his mother in turmoil.

    "'Getting Started' is about a conversation between us," Fender told Apple Music. "Me going like, 'This is s--t, but I need to just be a kid, to go out and live my life. I've just turned 18. I want to go out to the pub, to see my mates.' I needed my escapism."
  • During the first verse, Fender admits to earning much-needed cash from some shady characters.

    When you're out of luck and your mother's in need
    I made my money for the crooks and pushers
    In the hopes that I claw somethin' together for tonight


    When Fender was 18, he had a job that led to him mixing with some charming but rather suspect people. "They ended up disappearing and getting charged for things," he told The Guardian, "but I wasn't involved in anything illicit, I was on the sidelines."
  • I came home and you were on the floor
    Floored by the letters and the council rigmarole
    What I wouldn't do to get you out this hole


    During the second verse, Fender describes finding his mother overwhelmed by all the paperwork she needed to complete in order to get support from the local council and the DWP (Department for Work and Pensions). The stories he tells in the song are personal to him, but his mum's frustration with the DWP is universal. "How you're trapped as a person who's fallen on a hard time by your government," Fender said, "is a unanimous story for so many millions of people in this country."
  • Fender also touches on his mother's financial troubles and mental health issues in "Seventeen Going Under." That song is set a year earlier.
  • Fender wrote "Getting Started" solo. His longtime friend and go-to producer Bramwell Bronte helmed the track.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Randy Houser

Randy HouserSongwriter Interviews

The "How Country Feels" singer talks Skynyrd and songwriting.

Jonathan Cain of Journey

Jonathan Cain of JourneySongwriter Interviews

Cain talks about the divine inspirations for "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Faithfully."

Sarah Brightman

Sarah BrightmanSongwriter Interviews

One of the most popular classical vocalists in the land is lining up a trip to space, which is the inspiration for many of her songs.

Justin Hayward of The Moody Blues

Justin Hayward of The Moody BluesSongwriter Interviews

Justin wrote the classic "Nights In White Satin," but his fondest musical memories are from a different decade.

Jesus Christ Superstar: Ted Neeley Tells the Inside Story

Jesus Christ Superstar: Ted Neeley Tells the Inside StorySong Writing

The in-depth discussion about the making of Jesus Christ Superstar with Ted Neeley, who played Jesus in the 1973 film.

Paul Williams

Paul WilliamsSongwriter Interviews

He's a singer and an actor, but as a songwriter Paul helped make Kermit a cultured frog, turned a bank commercial into a huge hit and made love both "exciting and new" and "soft as an easy chair."