Wonderful

Album: Songs From An American Movie Vol. 1, Learning How To Smile (2000)
Charted: 36 11
Play Video
  • I close my eyes when I get too sad
    I think thoughts that I know are bad
    Close my eyes and I count to ten
    Hope it's over when I open them

    I want the things that I had before
    Like a Star Wars poster on my bedroom door
    I wish I could count to ten
    Make everything be wonderful again

    Hope my mom and I hope my dad
    Will figure out why they get so mad
    Hear them scream, I hear them fight
    Say bad words that make me want to cry

    Close my eyes when I go to bed
    And I dream of angels that make me smile
    I feel better when I hear them say
    Everything will be wonderful someday

    Promises mean everything when you're little
    And the world's so big
    I just don't understand how
    You can smile with all those tears in your eyes
    Tell me everything is wonderful now

    (Na na na na na na na)

    Please don't tell me everything is wonderful now

    I go to school and I run and play
    I tell the kids that it's all okay
    I like to laugh so my friends won't know
    When the bell rings I just don't want to go home

    Go to my room and I close my eyes
    I make believe that I have a new life
    I don't believe you when you say
    Everything will be wonderful someday

    Promises mean everything when you're little
    And the world is so big
    I just don't understand how
    You can smile with all those tears in your eyes
    When you tell me everything is wonderful now

    I don't want to hear you tell me everything is wonderful now

    I don't want to hear you say
    That I will understand someday
    No, no, no, no
    I don't want to hear you say
    We both have grown in a different way
    No, no, no, no
    I don't want to meet your friends
    And I don't want to start over again
    I just want to my life to be the same
    Just like it used to be
    Some days I hate everything
    I hate everything
    Everyone and everything
    Please don't tell me everything is wonderful now

    I don't want to hear you tell me everything is wonderful now Writer/s: ART ALEXAKIS, ARTHUR P ALEXAKIS, CRAIG MONTOYA, GREG EKLUND
    Publisher: Capitol CMG Publishing, Peermusic Publishing, Royalty Network, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group
    Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 16

  • Scream Queen from Springfield Virginia This song strikes a cord in me that’s deeper than a black cord it always seems to make me tear up each time I hear it
  • Michael Paschal from NigeriaThe lyrics are great and tells a lot, and really helps me understand more things about song writing
  • Carolyn from Detroit, MiWhen I first heard this song, I was eight years old, and didn't think much of it because I lived a wonderful life with both parents. Now, I'm 19, and yesterday my mom told me she was getting a divorce. I was looking for songs about divorce and this came up, and even experiencing this as an adult, this song describes exactly how I feel.
  • Karen from Metuchen, NjGah! Even thinking of the title of this song makes me cry! Once you're a parent, thinking of things that hurt your children really affect you. I still love the song, but if I'm having a hormonal day and it comes on my iPod shuffle, I have to bypass it!
  • Alexa from Cs, NyI can't even explain how much I can relate to this song. Every line describes exactly how I feel.
  • Rob from Pasadena, Mdi listened to this song and it made me cry so bad because he says everything that really happens to a person whos parents break up , and i would kno because my parents just broke up
  • Steph from Arden Hills, Mnthe first time i heard this song. my older brother was singing it to me. that was 9 years ago and every time i hear that song now i cry... it's a really deep song and it hits really close to home for me
  • Diane from Albuquerque, NmI love this song and it's a song that I listened to a lot after it came out because it reminded me a lot of my home life and problems and how we all wish for everything to be better.
  • Stacey from Someplace, Australiaawesome song the perspective is really sad but in the begining the wording is so cute like a little kid rhyming bad with sad etc and you feel so sad for him then it changes "i don't want to hear you say.."and his more like a teenager. i had a friend wen his parents broke up he was so upset and this song really comforted him and helped him through that part of his life. Also ilove learning how to smile too
  • Sara from Pakenham, Australiaeverclear know just how to find all your weak spots and make cry laugh and feel what their playing. great band great song!
  • Matt from Monroe, LaGreat song....even though Everclear does whine in alot of there lyrics...still a good song...
  • Jerry from Palm Harbor, FlI was in 8th grade when I first head this song. It was right before school- my dad was currently cheating on my mom who was suffering from schizophrenia...

    I felt the first tears in years after hearing this one.
  • Alexandra from Staten Island, NyI can't believe how beautiful this song is. I knew I loved how it sounded, but I just read the lyrics now and I can't get enough.
  • Clint from Bloomington, InThis song is incredible. I hate to admit this because I'm really not a flake but this song defnitely does strike a cord with some people. I had never paid much attention to the lyrics - just liked the sound then one day I paid attention and it was just like I had written the song about my parents break up when I was 5. I couldn't have believed that a song could bring it all back so vividly - I was in the car and almost had to stop driving because my mind was reeling.

    This song is a perfect example of how we're a generation that is fried by our parents' selfishness. I have five kids now and my wife and I argue but I remember how miserable it makes a kid and I know we'll never divorce - I keep working on making sure they know their parents love each other as much as we know we do (even though we argue sometimes). My brother is the other side of the coin, he learned nothing from my parents divore and is just all damage and pain. He has been arrested for domestic violence several times and I know his kids are going to have a horrible life. I wish there was something I could do - my dad thinks we (his four kids) should all just "get over it [the divorce]" but it's not something you forget and he'll never understand - the fool. Strangely, their other song "Father of Mine" is exactly like my dad too, really funny how many of us gen-x and gen-y-ers are fried and don't even know it - some of us do but have no clue what to do. Even though my dad's a hypocrite of a christian, I believe God made me able to prevent my family going the way of my Dad. I love "Woncerful!" Too bad the singer didn't learn the lesson he teaches so well in his song but aren't all of us kids of divorce kind of humpty dumpty whether we know it or not?
  • Madison from Atlanta, Gai remeber listening to this song when i was younger, and understanding that i was sad, but not knowing why. now that i realize that ti has been beautiful, i just couldnt appreciate it, i have been exposed to the harsh reality that is life, its not there.
  • Kristen from Campbellville, CanadaThis song is so amazing, its one of those never could get sick of songs. Once you see the video its like enough to make you cry, and then you watch it again. I can't believe the lack of comments on this song because I know so many people that say this song hit home for them, of course this site was hard to find. This was what made me love everclear, this song and Learning How to Smile. That song should definitly be on your site, because that song is absolutly amazing
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Lori McKenna

Lori McKennaSongwriter Interviews

Lori's songs have been recorded by Faith Hill and Sara Evans. She's performed on the CMAs and on Oprah. She also has five kids.

Michael Bolton

Michael BoltonSongwriter Interviews

Into the vaults for this talk with Bolton from the '80s when he was a focused on writing songs for other artists.

Melanie

MelanieSongwriter Interviews

The singer-songwriter Melanie talks about her spiritual awakening at Woodstock, "Brand New Key," and why songwriting is an art, not a craft.

Rock Revenge Songs

Rock Revenge SongsMusic Quiz

John Lennon, Paul Simon and Lynyrd Skynyrd are some of the artists who have written revenge songs. Do you know who they wrote them about?

Fire On The Stage

Fire On The StageSong Writing

When you have a song called "Fire," it's tempting to set one - these guys did.

Director Nick Morris ("The Final Countdown")

Director Nick Morris ("The Final Countdown")Song Writing

Nick made some of the biggest videos on MTV, including "The Final Countdown," "Heaven" and "Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone)."