Album: Third Eye Blind (1997)

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Songfacts®:

• Lead singer Stephan Jenkins explained on his website: "The song 'God of Wine' takes things from the cellular level, where it says, 'And soon cells give way.' And then also it says, 'Every glamorous sunrise throws the planets out of line.' The stars sent out of whack. The universe is expanding and it's crumbling. The universe is mortal. It's disappearing. Everything that we have, everything that we live in is pointless and crumbling. And some people are born with an innate understanding of that. They have this sort of life rage. And this is the melancholy that they find themselves in. It's a song about those people. And it's basically a story about how we turn back to the Irish theme. You turn to drink to escape that condition. In the end of this song, talking about the God of Wine, the Bacchanalian, even that lets you down." >>

  Suggestion credit:
  Brian - Wilmington, DE

Comments: 7

• Graham from Mesa AzI totally agree with Patrick on the song being connected to Motorcycle Drive By, and it I know it's actually about his mother, but I think another take on God of Wine is about someone who loses their spouse or partner in a DUI accident. I think what happened in this song is a couple is driving home from a place where they drank, a bar, a party, whatever. They are both intoxicated, but the guy of the couple is the one who will drive. On their way home the get into a crash (The God of Wine comes crashing through the headlights of a car) and "Took you farther than you thought you'd ever want to go," into the afterlife. With her gone he feels like his whole world is turned upside down, "Throws the planets out of line." From there on he feels like it's his fault, "I can't get clean again" ironically drinks to help kill the pain, "The God of Wine is crouched down in my room" and he can't move on with his life, "The alcohol it permeates." Another detail that sticks out to me is whenever he sings all alone on your face, it sounds like he is about to cry. I imagine (sorry to put this image in your head) when the crash happened, she flew through windshield and she got all cut up. So when he says says on your face, I think he imagines face the beautiful women he loved as all broken and gone. Listening to the song with this in mind, the song to me is about loss of a loved one and thinking it's your fault. I know not all the lyrics make sense it this view of the song, but I though it was a very interesting take on the song.
• Jeannette Gonzales from San Antonio TxI always thought this song was about a girlfriend or former girlfriend of Stephan’s, however when he was on stage and found out his mother who had Alzheimer’s had just passed away he was very emotional, walking back and forth on stage and said his mother had been through so much in her life. He then proceeded to perform “The God of Wine” which he announced he had written for his Mom. Now that gives me a different prospective on the song. When he was interviewed at an event in Baton Rouge he revealed that his mom was an alcoholic and that when he was growing up they were evicted at least 5 times.
• Terri from UsHe said he wrote it for his mother. He spoke about it at the end of a show in Pennsylvania 2018.
• Josh from United States Patrick, that description you gave absolutely describes what I recently went through, in every single way. That's why I love this song so much. Its everything I couldn't say about the situation.
• Patrick from Pearland, TxI feel like the last three songs on the album (Background, Motorcycle Drive-by, and God of Wine) go hand-in-hand; I think they're about the same girl that Stephan was infatuated with. Read what Douge wrote from Westfield, MA about Motorcycle Drive-By; I agree completely. That said, here is my interpretation of this song~ Knowing they're just friends but deeply longing to be more than that, he walks her home. ...That slight nausea from being uncertain about how things will turn out but at the same time feeling content...there's nowhere else you'd rather be than right there by her side. Saving every detail from each moment as it passes; the way she smiles, the flare of her nostrils just before she inhales, the way the wind moves through her hair, or the hue of the sun as it hits her neck just behind the ear...holding onto every detail just in case it's the last time you'll get to...and fearing that it could be....you're scared and confused "the mood you're born into". It's one of those things where if you get together your love could set the world on fire but if not, it might be too painful to remain friends because the what-ifs and could have beens will eat you up inside every time you see her. So he's walking home with her and he's trying to make a conversation happen but nothing is coming out right. And every carefully constructed sentence that comes out of his mouth just sounds worse than the one before. He's stumbling over his words. You ever feel like apologizing after everything you say...well that's him right now...(Every thought that I repent) And she's not making it any easier by being silent and refusing to push the convo forward. The words she could be saying are like "chips" and she hasn't "spent" any of hers...in fact she's "cashing them all in". She's not even interested in playing the game...completely detached from what he is saying and uninterested. I suspect they had a fight or harsh words earlier and he's trying to fix things and she doesn't even want to work on it. He just wants to get "clean again". So they're walking to her house where "sometimes she lets him in" but he's nervous about this friendship and worrying/wondering will it ever be anything more...if so going in could be a great thing...if not it might just feel so awkward because he likes her so much ans she doesn't reciprocate. But, he doesn't let himself get discouraged about it. He walks her to her door and unfortunately she doesn't let him in...but he "takes it on the chin" and doesn't really seem bothered by it...at least not on the surface. Inside it kills him. ...So now he's driving back home in the car that "took him farther than he thought he'd ever wanna go"...he never intended to be this mixed up inside about this girl. She's aware of the tension between them and so after he leaves she has a drink to take the edge off. He knows they can't go back to being friends now. Not like how it used to be. He goes home and drinks about it and feels like he can't "keep it all together". In the end of the song he realizes that there's someone else out there who understands her madness in a way that he cannot and can thus give her something he cannot. But she's still sad that his feelings destroyed their friendship but now he can't take it back... ~Anyway, that's my take on it...Hope you like it...
• Chelle from Hilo, Cai love stephan jenkin's take on science... he brings in so many interesting aspects to his lyrics... i love the dripping sensuality of some of his lyrics... this song to me is about someone who uses alcohol as an escape mechanism... and how he wants to reach out to her so much, but he can't because she's caught up in her own alcoholism...
• Adrian from Gettysburg, PaHoly crap, I found another Wilmingtonian on here!

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