Bitter Apple
"Bitter Apple" is the eighth track on Paper Monsters.
Lyrics
And lost hot nights
No crowded streets to walk tonight
Still the stars shine so bright
Don't need a coat I'll be alright
Then you walked into my life
Halo bright with dark brown eyes
Just standing in her light
Remembered love again that night
Bitter apple take a bite
(It's kind of wonderful)
Fallen star you're mine tonight
(Strange but beautiful)
Bitter apple take my life
(It's kind of wonderful)
If I close my eyes you're mine tonight
Tonight
We laughed so hard it caused some pain
Two strangers standing in the rain
We smoked our cigarettes
(It's kind of wonderful)
Exchanging our regrets
(Strange but beautiful)
Bitter apple
Take a bite
(It's kind of wonderful)
Fallen star
You're mine tonight
(Strange but beautiful)
Bitter apple
Take my life
(It's kind of wonderful)
If I close my eyes
You're mine tonight
Tonight
If I close my eyes
You're mine tonight
Tonight
If I close my eyes
If I close my eyes
Dave's Take
"[Bitter Apple] is a song about being in love and, really, realising that I was feeling love again. It doesn't really have to be about being in love with another person, but just feeling the love and the beauty of everything again. I also wanted it to have this feel about it that I was sitting on this little bar stool in some dirty, Parisian, smoke-filled café — that real sort of feel. That song to me is really innocent and honest, and I didn't want to think too much about words — I just wanted it to sound exactly how I felt."1
My Take
Light and romantic, this song sounds like the soundtrack for an old movie or something. Though, I will say that I actually like the piano treatment given to this song during the live shows much better. That aside, the lyrics give me a sense of someone closing the door to an old chapter in life and starting a new one. And meeting this stranger who "walked into [his] life" is instrumental in that. Of course, I definitely think this song was written about Dave's wife, Jennifer Sklias-Gahan, and when they met. She is most definitely the one with the "halo bright with dark brown eyes" referred to in this song. I only know about her from what I've read and seen, but she seems like an extraordinary woman. And what she has done for Dave in supporting him in his recovery from addiction and also supporting his career among many other things has had a really positive impact on him.
Back to this song, though, I am curious to know what the chorus really means, especially what the "bitter apple" is referring to...apparently, one common use of the term is that it's a colloquial name for the Citrullus colocynthis, a fruit-producing vine that has many medicinal uses, including a laxative.2 I hightly doubt that's the meaning, though!
Music Video
There is no music video for this song.