Status

Elliott Smith Song

Alternate Titles/Versions

Bye Bye
Two Timed
It’s Alright

Written By

Elliott Smith

Recording Sessions

March - July 1996 (The Shop, Humboldt County, CA - Primary Either/Or Sessions)
March-July 1996 (Smith Residence, Portland, OR - Either/Or Sessions at Elliott’s House) - unofficially circulating a) instrumental take and b) “Two Timed” vocal take
June 24, 1996 (Undercover Inc, Portland, OR - Either/Or Session at Undercover)
January-October 2003 (New Monkey Studios, Los Angeles, CA and Smith Residence, Los Angeles, CA - Sessions with Fritz Michaud) - uncirculating, “It’s Alright” version

Availability of Official Release

New Moon

Lyrics

Go on parade and fade, hit the scene and slow,
Spending all your time with some girl you’ll never get to know-
Wound up tight, dressed all in white-some torn mainsail
Blowing out to drift, leave you even if…

You live up in your head, scared of every little noise.
Someone’s always breaking in accidentally, using nothing but their voice-
Shrill and small echo down the hall, repeating in pet names-
Seeing it in your eyes-you’re only passing by.

Go by, go by, go by, go by.

Someone’s in the way with pretty words and inside slurs,
All the things they have to say to perform the work that they’ve rehearsed.
It’s a waste of time-I put it behind me once and for all
And let the hype decline if the problem wasn’t mine.

Go by, go by, go by, go by.
Go by, go by, go by, go by.

Live version performed on June 7, 1999 at the Fez

you waited a little while by where the sunset seeks
and a lady, looking tired, comes along to take away your dream
‘cause he thought you might come by tonight
she thought so too to hear the way he talks
eyes trained to the cross
he lives up in his head, scared of every little noise
someone’s always breaking in accidentally
using nothing but their voice
but he walks along, extremely alarmed, down your one way
across a great divide where no two paths collide
go by, go by
go by, go by
you won’t come by tonight, but if you did you’d only curse
all the things he’d have to say to perform the works that he’s rehearsed
like a happy song that he’d interpret wrong, you’d make him cry
it’s how you’re gonna win, beginning at the end
go by, go by
go by, go by
go by, go by
go by, go by..

Notes

The same song with alternate lyrics was also known under the names “Two Timed” and “Bye, Bye”. In the “Two Timed” version, the chorus replaces “Go By” with “Two Timed,” “some torn mainsail” is replaced with “that’s what I’d say,” while the line “Shrill and small, echo down the hall, repeating pet names” is replaced with “You were quick to follow, anxious to call, using some pet name”. The song was later re-recorded in 2003 as “It’s Alright.” Based on the date of the sole live performance being only weeks before Elliott entered the studio to record Figure 8 and with lyrics that were significantly different from previous incarnations, it is possible he may have recorded this for that album as well.

First Live Performance

1999-06-07 (The Fez, New York, NY, USA)

Audio