After surviving a substantial break-up with my college sweetheart in 2004, my four-walled apartment began closing in on me and each day tested my fragile existence. I felt like a flimsy piece of paper, set free into the wind and left to figure it out on my own — a Paper Plane simply trying to make it to the other side.
Below is a video discussion of the behind-the-scenes background of Paper Plane, track #5 on my new album Another Gleam — a revealing look at the inspirations, the meanings behind the song, the songwriting process, the recording experience and much more. Enjoy.
PAPER PLANE
by tyler stenson © 2008
Fold me up like a paper plane
That you never want to come back.
She believes in something unfortunate-
I believe in that.
Ruin me like a paper plane
That somehow refuses to fly.
All my wings are bent and broken
And I’ll never make it to the other side.
Forgive me,
Forgive me,
But I’m the only paper plane I know
And it’s hard not to let it show.
So, I’m trying to get up the nerve to leave
Cause my apartment won’t let me sleep-
It’s breaking down like you and me
And it’s hurting everywhere I bleed
And my heart aches inside of me
And it’s hard not to let it show
(That I’m the only paper plane I know).
THERE ARE MANY VERSIONS OF THIS SONG:
Live at Mississippi Studios (2007)
See That Gleam (2008)
Another Gleam (2011)