Album: The Rainy Season (1993)

License This Song 

• Don't know much about you
  Don't know who you are
  We've been doing fine without you
  But, we could only go so far
  Don't know why you chose us
  Were you watching from above
  Is there someone there that knows us
  Said we'd give you all our love
  
  Will you laugh just like your mother
  Will you sigh like your old man
  Will some things skip a generation
  Like I've heard they often can
  Are you a poet or a dancer
  A devil or a clown
  Or a strange new combination of
  The things we've handed down
  
  I wonder who you'll look like
  Will your hair fall down and curl
  Will you be a mama's boy
  Or daddy's little girl
  Will you be a sad reminder
  Of what's been lost along the way
  Maybe you can help me find her
  In the things you do and say
  
  And these things that we have given you
  They are not so easily found
  But you can thank us later
  For the things we've handed down
  
  You may not always be so grateful
  For the way that you were made
  Some feature of your father's
  That you'd gladly sell or trade
  And one day you may look at us
  And say that you were cursed
  But over time that line has been
  Extremely well rehearsed
  By our fathers, and their fathers
  In some old and distant town
  From places no one here remembers
  Come the things we've handed down Writer/s: MARC COHN
  Publisher: Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
  Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 7

• Tommy Boy from OhioPersonally I consider this one of the finest written, arranged and sung . I still cry every time I listen to it. At 70 I can see my dad and grandfather in things " I do and say".
• Kristen Durante from ChicagoThis comment is for Brian, from Chicago - Marc is still alive. He released music in 2019.
• Bob from York, Pa UsaThis is a haunting song. The part where he sings about the sad reminder of things we've lost along the way and "maybe you can help me find her in the things you do or say" paints a picture of a sad father to be awake alone at night, hoping that the birth of his child might heal a troubled marriage or repair a broken one. I sense his wife is gone, either literally or in spirit.
  
  His self-deprecating words speak to me of a husband who has poor self esteem and is accustomed to being the inferior partner in the marriage.
  
  This can be a hard song to listen to.
• Volker from HamburgBesides the one by Art Garfunkel, other cover versions of "The Things We've Handed Down" by Anthony Miltich, Briana Corrigan, Carol Lang, Fester Spunk, James Steensma, Jeremy Sassoon, John Gorka, Susan Anton and Tommy Fleming can be found on Spotify – one more romantic and tender than the other.
• Brian from Chicago, IlI love this song! It captured and added to my experience of expecting a new baby. It got me more in touch with the incredible thing it is to have your genes past on and from where these genes came from. I am even more excited for my new baby!
• Brian from Chicago, Il"On August 7, 2005 Marc Cohn was shot in the head during a random attempted carjacking after a concert in Denver."
  
  I found the above tid bit on his website http://www.marccohn.net/about/MC_Bio.aspx
  
  There is much more about him and his influences in his bio. I didn't want to post it for fear of some kind of plagiarism allegation.
  
• Stu from Suffern, NyWhile the songwriter deserves much credit, a cover version by Art Garfunkel has Mark's version beat for smoothness and beauty.

More Songfacts:

All StarSmash Mouth

"All Star" was written as a confidence builder for fans who were bullied for liking Smash Mouth.

MacArthur ParkRichard Harris

Richard Harris, who played Professor Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter movies, had a hit in 1968 with "MacArthur Park."

Bad RomanceLady Gaga

Lady Gaga is a big fan of horror movies; listen for the names of these three Alfred Hitchcock films in the lyrics to "Bad Romance": Psycho, Vertigo, Rear Window.

The Battle Of EvermoreLed Zeppelin

"The Battle of Evermore" is the only song Zeppelin ever recorded with a guest vocalist. It features Sandy Denny from Fairport Convention duetting with Robert Plant.

Put Your Records OnCorinne Bailey Rae

Corinne Bailey Rae's 2006 hit "Put Your Records On" borrows the opening line ("Three little birds sat on my window") from the Bob Marley song "Three Little Birds." Both songs have the same message: Don't worry, because every little thing's going to be alright.

Coming HomeDiddy - Dirty Money

"Coming Home" by Diddy - Dirty Money was originally iwritten for for T.I., who was getting out of prison at the time.

Editor's Picks

Lita FordSongwriter Interviews

Lita talks about how they wrote songs in The Runaways, and how she feels about her biggest hit being written by somebody else.

Pam TillisSongwriter Interviews

The country sweetheart opines about the demands of touring and talks about writing songs with her famous father.

Jon Oliva of Trans-Siberian OrchestraSongwriter Interviews

Writing great prog metal isn't easy, especially when it's for 60 musicians.

Joe Elliott of Def LeppardSongwriter Interviews

The Def Leppard frontman talks about their "lamentable" hit he never thought of as a single, and why he's juiced by his Mott The Hoople cover band.

Tony Joe WhiteSongwriter Interviews

The writer of "Rainy Night in Georgia" and "Polk Salad Annie" explains how he cooks up his Louisiana swamp rock.

Early Days of MTVFact or Fiction

If you can recall the days when MTV played videos, you know that there are lots of stories to tell. See if you can spot the real ones.