House of Balloons / Glass Table Girls
Intro
Woah, Woah-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-ohUhUh huhYeah-eahVerse 1
Been on a further level since you came, no more painYou look into my eyes, you can't recognize my faceYou're in my world now, you can stay, you can stayBut you belong to me, ooh, you belong to mePre-Chorus
If it hurts to breathe, open a window (Woo-ooh)Oh, your mind wants to leave (Yeah), but you can't go, ohChorus
This is a happy house (A happy house)We're happy here (We're happy here)In a happy houseOh, this is fun, fun, fun, funFun, fun, fun, funFun, fun, fun, funWoahWoah, Woah-Oh-Oh-Oh-Oh-Oh-OhVerse 2
Music got you lo-o-ostNights pass so much quicker than the days didSame clothes, you ain't ready for your day shiftThis place will burn you u-u-upBaby, it's okay, them my niggas next doorAnd they working in the trap, so get naughty if you wantSo blame it on me that you didn't call you homeOh, just don't blame it on me girl, 'cause you wanted to have funPre-Chorus
If it hurts (Woo, woo) to breathe, open a window (Yeah, yeah, yeah)Oh, your mind wants to leave, but you can't go (Ooh)Chorus
This is a happy houseWe're happy here in a happy houseOh, this is fun, fun, fun, fun (This is fun)Fun, fun, fun, fun (This is fun to me)Fun, fun, fun, funWoah (Woah)Woah, Woah-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-ohSegue
Bring the 707 outBring the 707 outBring the 707 outBring the 707 outBring the 707 outBring the 7Verse
Two puffs for the lady who be down for thatWhatever, togetherBring your own stash of the greatest, trade itRoll a dub, burn a dub, cough a dub, taste itThen watch us chase itWith a handful of pills, no chasersJaw clenching on some super-sized papersShe bad and her head badEscaping, her van is a WonderlandAnd it's half-past sixRead skies 'cause time don't existBut when the stars shine back to the cribSuperstar lines back at the cribAnd we can test out the tablesWe got some brand new tablesAll glass and it's four feet wideBut it's a must to get us ten feet highShe give me sex in a handbagI get her wetter than a wet napAnd no closed doorsSo I listen to her moans echo"I heard he do drugs now"You heard wrong, I been on it for a minuteWe just never act a fool, that's just how we fuckin' live itAnd when we act a fool, it's probably 'cause we mixed itYeah, I'm always on that okey-dokeyThem white boys know the deal, ain't no fuckin' phonyBig O know the deal, he the one who showed meWatch me ride this fucking beat like he fuckin' told me"Is that your girl, what's her fucking story?""She kinda bad but she ride it like a fucking pony"I cut down on her man, be her fuckin' storyYeah, I'm talking 'bout you, man, get to know meAin't no offense, though, I promise youIf you a real man, dude, you gon' decide the truthBut I'm a nice dude with some nice dreamsAnd we could turn this to a nightmare: Elm StreetOutro
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, laI'm so gone, so goneBring out the glass tables (Ooh, ooh)Bring the 707 outLa, la, la, la, la, la, la, laI'm so gone, so goneBring out the glass tables (La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la) (Ooh, ooh)The 707 outLa, la, la, la, la, la, la, laI'm so gone, so goneBring out the glass tables (La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la) (Ooh, ooh)Put the 707 outLa, la, la, la, la, la, la, laI'm so gone, so goneBring out the glass tablesPut the 707 out (La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)707 out (La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)707 out (La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)Oh (La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)(La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la)What the song means
The song opens inside a party house where the narrator and a lover are caught in a cycle of pleasure, possession, and numbness. He tells her she belongs to him and that she can stay in his world, while the chorus repeats that they are "happy" and having "fun." The contrast between that forced cheer and the lyrics around it is the heart of the track. Lines about the place wearing someone down and about nights passing faster than days show that the fun is really a way of escaping.
The mood gets darker as the song moves on. The pre-chorus image of opening a window when it hurts to breathe suggests a need for air, but the mind wants to leave while the body stays put. The second half, "Glass Table Girls," turns to drug use, sexual boasting, and gossip about other men. The narrator seems to be showing off his excess while also sensing that it could go wrong. The reference to a nightmare on Elm Street suggests the party could turn into horror. The closing repetitions of "I'm so gone" and the wordless "la la la" blur the song's ending into a haze, as if the narrator has lost track of himself.
Key images such as the "happy house," the glass tables, and the open window work as symbols of comfort that hides danger. The song presents glamour and intoxication as both appealing and empty, and the listener is left with the sense that the high cannot last.
Key phrases explained
- roll a dub
- rolling a twenty-dollar bag of weed — Slang for rolling a joint from a small bag, part of the drug-use imagery.
- working in the trap
- working at a drug-selling spot — "The trap" is street slang for a place where drugs are sold.
- turn this to a nightmare: Elm Street
- turn this into a horror story like A Nightmare on Elm Street — A film reference suggesting the party could turn into something frightening.
- wetter than a wet nap
- much wetter than a damp wipe — A crude, exaggerated sexual comparison typical of the song's boasting.
- ten feet high
- extremely high on drugs — An idiom for intoxication used to describe the glass tables' purpose.
Song info
- Release date
- 2011-03-21
- Album
- House of Balloons
- Written by
- The Weeknd, Doc McKinney, Illangelo, Siouxsie, Steven Severin
- Produced by
- Doc McKinney, Illangelo
- Samples
- Siouxsie and the Banshees – Happy House, Ebi – Goreez
- Interpolates
- The Weeknd – Glass Table Girls (Demo), The Weeknd – XO (Demo), Snoop Dogg – Drop It Like It’s Hot
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