‘Give It Away’ by Zac Brown Band – Lyrics & Meaning

Arriving in early September in tandem with ‘Butterfly’ with Dolly Parton, ‘Give It Away’ has largely flown under the radar, courtesy of Dolly's blockbuster feature on its joint release.

However, ‘Give It Away’ is a stellar, uptempo offering that captures the joie-de-vivre and carpe diem outlook Zac Brown Band always endeavour to lace into their music. It's feel-good, it's light-hearted and it pivots around an infectious, earworm hook.

‘Give It Away’ features the irresistible harmonies that Zac Brown Band have become synonymous with over the years, with their smooth, honeyed vocals gliding over the playful, twang-infused instrumental. Especially compared to ‘Butterfly’, the composition is much more built-out and energised, with the bright guitar opening up the track, before Zac's playful, enchanting vocals enter the fray.

“Yeah, we talk too much, maybe we should be listening
And the brakes worn out on the human condition
All in all we let go when we can
Slow it down this just might be our chance”

Zac begins by listing off some of the issues he's observed with people in modern life, such as a desperation to talk and impose oneself on the world, rather than listening and learning from others. He hints at how prevalent burn-out has become, before advising listeners to take a breath, let it all go and slow it on down.

“Every night baby we should be dancing
Every old chain breaking away
We got a long life but we got good love
We got a short time to give it away
Give it away, give it away
We got a long life but we got good love
We got a short time to give it away”

He laments how hurried and busy we've become, with there always being a text to respond to, a task to tick off or a post to scroll past. Zac outlines in no uncertain terms that we're filling our lives with the wrong things, and that we should instead be focussing on the abundance of love we have. And when you've got love inside you, there's only one thing to do with it - give it away to somebody special.

“Take a sip of the sadness of the world and you're gonna feel it
Take a swim in the goodness all around and you're gonna keep it
Plant yourself somewhere you can grow
And share a little light everywhere you go”

Here, Zac implies that, once we start letting the melancholy that the world spits out at us get on top of us, it's a slippery slope. He borrows some wisdom from the Law of Attraction, as he suggests that if we expect sadness, we'll find more of it, whereas if we “take a swim in the goodness all around”, we'll attract more of that joy and happiness.

“Yeah, we talk too much, maybe we should be listening
And the brakes worn out on the human condition
All in all we let go when we can
Slow it down this just might be our chance

-

Every night baby we should be dancing
Every old chain breaking away
We got a long life but we got good love
We got a short time to give it away
Give it away, give it away
We got a long life but we got good love
We got a short time to give it away

-

Take a sip of the sadness of the world and you're gonna feel it
Take a swim in the goodness all around and you're gonna keep it
Plant yourself somewhere you can grow
And share a little light everywhere you go

-

Every night baby we should be dancing
Every old chain breaking away
We got a long life but we got good love
And we got a short time to give it away
Give it away, give it away
We got a long life but we got good love
And we got a short time to give it away
Aw now give it away

-

Every night baby we should be dancing
Every old chain breaking away
We got a long life but we got good love
We got a short time
Give it away, give it away
We got a long life but we got good love
We got a short time to
Give it away, give it away
We got a long life but we got good love
We got a short time to give it away”

For more on Zac Brown Band, see below:

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