(We're spendin' too much time alone)
Spendin' too much time alone
(And I just ran outta Trojans)
Horses gallop to her throne
(We're behaving like teenagers)
Yes, we're behaving like teenagers
(Making less than minimum wage)
Still inside our parents' homes
(No, I don't live in Denver)
No, I don't live in Denver
(I grew up in Sierra Leone)
And her pink skies will keep me warm
[Chorus]
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Tid bits of intuition that I be gettin' abandon mission
(Sierra Leone)
Abandon mission, you must be kiddin', this shit feelin' different
Shit feelin' too good to me
Glistening, shimmerin' underneath the sunlight, the sunlight
(Sierra Leone)
[Verse 2]
And a new day will bring about the dawn
And a new day will bring another crying babe into the world
(Girl now)
Our daughter's reaching for your nipple 'cause it's time for her to eat (Reaching for ya)
Tonight I'll lay her in the cradle if it's time to go to sleep (Oh, go to sleep, oh, oh)
I'll sing a Lennon lullaby, she can have a pretty dream
Baby girl, if you knew what I know, knew what I know
Na, na na, na na, na...
Na, na na, na na, na...
About
In “Sierra Leone,” Frank talks to a (fictional) younger version of himself who fooled around and got a girl pregnant.
He uses the extended metaphor of Sierra Leone’s “pink skies” to refer to his the girl’s vagina and womb, all the while discussing maturing in the face of impending parenthood. Whilst he’s an aloof and irresponsible “teenager” at the start of the track, he’s a seemingly responsible father figure by the close.
Though the story is fictional, this kind of emotional maturity holds special weight for Frank – his own father left his family when he was five years old, leaving him without this kind of upbringing.
The spoken and sung call-and-response may be a homage to Marvin Gaye’s 1971 track “Save the Children.”
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
- 1.Start
- 3.Fertilizer
- 4.Sierra Leone
- 5.Sweet Life
- 8.Pilot Jones
- 9.Crack Rock
- 10.Pyramids
- 11.Lost
- 12.White
- 13.Monks
- 14.Bad Religion
- 15.Pink Matter
- 16.Forrest Gump
- 17.End