Singer Brooks Nielsen and music director/guitarist Matt Taylor met in high school in the beach town of Dana Point, California, bonding over surfing, skating, and partying. When offered the chance to perform at a house party, the duo quickly wrote their first six songs in a single day, leading to the first incarnation of the band that would eventually become The Growlers.
After releasing a handful of self-recorded cassettes and CDs, The Growlers issued their first studio album, Are You in or Out? in 2009 on Everloving Records. Aquarium Drunkard described it as “consistent in sound and tone that is as enjoyable straight through or on shuffle… Taken as a whole, the record is a beautiful mix of late 60’s freak-out, folk calmness and surf rock.” Their second album, Hot Tropics, was released in 2010, also on Everloving Records. The band's third album, Hung at Heart, the first to feature Anthony Braun Perry on bass and Jason Kaiser on percussion, was released in 2013. The band originally worked with Dan Auerbach to record the album, but the finished version never saw official release. Instead the band recorded a new version of the album in Costa Mesa, CA with Mike McHugh at his Distillery Recording Studio, to get a more lo-fi sound.
Chinese Fountain, their new "more grown up, well polished" album was released September 23, 2014. This album was produced by JP Plunier at Seahorse Studios in Los Angeles, CA. While touring the album, the band expanded their live band with percussionist Nick Murray.
The band's fifth studio album, City Club was released by Cult Records on September 30, 2016, while they embarked on a supporting tour in the same month. It was the first Growlers album to be credited solely to Brooks Nielsen and Matt Taylor, as opposed to the whole band. Nielsen and Taylor wrote and recorded demos for the album over a span of 2 to 3 months with the help of Kyle Mullarky at his studio in Topanga Canyon, CA. It was preceded by the title track as a single produced by Julian Casablancas, who also owns the label. Neither drummer Scott Montoya nor bass player Anthony Perry feature on the album. On September 25, the band confirmed Montoya's departure from the band and stated that Perry was set to return in the near future. The band toured for this album with Brad Bowers on bass, Adam Wolcott Smith on keyboard, and Richard Gowen on drums. Whether their membership in the band is permanent is currently unclear.
The band released Casual Acquaintances on July 27, 2018, a collection of demos and unused material from the City Club sessions.
Allegations of misconduct
In July 2020, allegations of sexual misconduct surfaced against the band, along with other artists associated with Burger Records and the Southern California surf and garage rock music scene. Arrow De Wilde, the lead singer of the L.A. rock band Starcrawler, shared a personal encounter on her Instagram. In her post, Arrow claims she was assaulted by a male stripper hired by The Growlers while they were on tour together in Australia. In a statement issued via Instagram on July 31, 2020, Growlers singer Brooks Nielsen took "full responsibility and accountability for the behavior of all Growlers' band members, past and present," and announced that Matt Taylor would temporarily leave the band. Additionally, former Growlers touring keyboardist Adam Wolcott Smith admitted to an incident of abuse on his Instagram, while on tour with his band Zen Mother.
Naked Kids
The Growlers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I had an epiphany, babe, a realization
Babe I knew that I couldn't stay down
I had to find a way to be brave
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
I've grown strong enough and I got wise
Emptiness has opened up my eyes
Now I see that I want you back in my life
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
And if your heart thinks I'm a crock of shit
Then I must submit and you can follow it
And I will follow you, my love
I'll just be a friend
Although I know that means I'll never see you again
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me
I'm not asking you to forget
I'm only asking to be forgiven
So keep your memories good or bad
And your head, I don't care about that
It's your heart I wanna live in
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
I picked myself above the ground
I had an epiphany, babe, a realization
Babe I knew that I couldn't stay down
I had to find a way to be brave
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me
The Growlers' "Naked Kids" is a heartfelt song about forgiveness and second chances in love. The lyrics suggest that the two people in the song were once close and had a falling out, possibly over a mistake or wrong-doing. The opening lines, "I picked myself above the ground, I had an epiphany, babe, a realization," suggest that the singer has had a moment of clarity and is ready to move forward. He acknowledges that he couldn't stay down and had to find a way to be brave.
The chorus, "I'll forgive you friend, forgive me, and we can be in love again" highlights the theme of forgiveness and reconciliation. The singer wants to put the past behind and start anew. He also acknowledges that they were once children who have lived their lives since then, but he has grown stronger and wiser. The line "emptiness has opened up my eyes" suggests that this situation has left him feeling hollow and realizing that he wants the other person back in his life.
The bridge, "And if your heart thinks I'm a crock of shit, then I must submit, and you can follow it," shows the fragility of the situation. If the other person rejects him, he will have to respect it and let her go. However, he still wants to follow her and be a friend, even if it means never being together romantically again.
Overall, the song is an emotional plea for forgiveness and second chances. The singer has realized his mistakes and wants to move forward with the person he loves.
Line by Line Meaning
I picked myself above the ground
I rose up from my low point and had a moment of clarity
I had an epiphany, babe, a realization
I had a life-changing realization and saw things in a new light
Babe I knew that I couldn't stay down
I realized that I couldn't let myself stay in a negative state
I had to find a way to be brave
I needed to find the courage to face my problems and overcome them
We was children, have lived our lives since then
We were young and inexperienced, and now we've grown and learned so much
I've grown strong enough and I got wise
I've become stronger and wiser through my experiences
Emptiness has opened up my eyes
The feeling of emptiness has helped me see things more clearly
Now I see that I want you back in my life
I realize that I still have strong feelings for you and want you around
And if your heart thinks I'm a crock of shit
If you think poorly of me, I will accept it
Then I must submit and you can follow it
I will back off and give you space if that's what you want
And I will follow you, my love
I will always be there for you as a friend
I'll just be a friend
I accept that we can only be friends and nothing more
Although I know that means I'll never see you again
I accept that our relationship will never be the same as it was before
I'm not asking you to forget
I don't expect you to erase your memories
I'm only asking to be forgiven
I just want you to forgive me and move forward
So keep your memories good or bad
Your memories of us are your own and I won't interfere
And your head, I don't care about that
I'm not worried about what you think of me intellectually
It's your heart I wanna live in
I want to be in your heart, as a friend or more
I'll forgive you friend
I am willing to forgive you for any mistakes you've made
Forgive me and we can be in love again
If we forgive each other, we can try to make our relationship work again
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: ANTHONY BRAUN-PERRY, BROOKS NIELSEN, KYLE STRAKA, MATTHEW TAYLOR, SCOTT MONTOYA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@kikemucino8983
Naked Kids"
I picked myself above the ground
I had an epiphany, babe, a realization
Babe I knew that I couldn't stay down
I had to find a way to be brave
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
We was children, have lived our lives since then
I've grown strong enough and I got wise
Emptiness has opened up my eyes
Now I see that I want you back in my life
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
And if your heart thinks I'm a crock of shit
Then I must submit and you can follow it
And I will follow you, my love
I'll just be a friend
Although I know that means I'll never see you again
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me
I'm not asking you to forget
I'm only asking to be forgiven
So keep your memories good or bad
And your head, I don't care about that
It's your heart I wanna live in
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
I picked myself above the ground
I had an epiphany, babe, a realization
Babe I knew that I couldn't stay down
I had to find a way to be brave
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me
@moondog50002000
Dm
I picked myself up off the the ground
Bb F
I had an epiphany, babe, a realization
Dm
Babe I knew that I couldn't stay down
Bb F
I had to find a way to be brave
A
I'll forgive you friend
Dm
Forgive me and we can be in love again
We was children, have lived our lives since then
Bb F
I've grown strong enough and I got wise
Dm
Emptiness has opened up my eyes
Bb F
Now I see that I want you back in my life
A
I'll forgive you friend
Dm
Forgive me and we can be in love again
And if your heart thinks I'm a crock of shit
Bb F
Then I will submit and you can follow it
Dm
And I will follow you, my love
I'll just be a friend
Bb F
Although I know that means I'll never see you again
A
I'll forgive you friend
Dm
Forgive me and we can be in love again
FF Dm
I'll forgive you friend
Bb
Forgive me
Am - Dm - Am - Dm - Am - Dm - Bb - A
(Repete intro)
DmDm
I'm not asking you to forget
Bb F
I'm only asking to be forgiven
Dm
So keep your memories good or bad
Bb
In your head, I don't care about that
F
It's your heart I wanna live in
A
I'll forgive you friend
Dm
Forgive me and we can be in love again
Dm
I picked myself up off the the ground
Bb F
I had an epiphany, babe, a realization
Dm
Babe I knew that I couldn't stay down
Bb F
I had to find a way to be brave
AA
I'll forgive you friend
Dm
Forgive me and we can be in love again
FF Dm
I'll forgive you friend
Bb
Forgive me
F- Dm - F - Dm
@gonzogrl9365
I picked myself above the ground
I had an epiphany, babe, a realization
Babe I knew that I couldn't stay down
I had to find a way to be brave
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
We was children, have lived our lives since then
I've grown strong enough and I got wise
Emptiness has opened up my eyes
Now I see that I want you back in my life
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
And if your heart thinks I'm a crock of shit
Then I must submit and you can follow it
And I will follow you, my love
I'll just be a friend
Although I know that means I'll never see you again
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me
I'm not asking you to forget
I'm only asking to be forgiven
So keep your memories good or bad
And your head, I don't care about that
It's your heart I wanna live in
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
I picked myself above the ground
I had an epiphany, babe, a realization
Babe I knew that I couldn't stay down
I had to find a way to be brave
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me and we can be in love again
I'll forgive you friend
Forgive me
@killnick88
The ending riff never gets talked about.... It's legendary 👌🏿
@jeanneymar2603
cannes?
@devoncooley5505
Obviously
@briandiaz4373
I seriously listen to it on repeat every time. Glad to know im not the only one.
@richardsoliz2612
💔 Broken of the ending reminds me of reality....and it's scary how life is. We all got to face it
@nick42085
I feel weird searching the name of this song.
@lunasfangirk4546
nick42085 same
@ianbubbles5784
We're all on a list now
@Kennylopezxp
Lol ur not the only one before it plays im like its a song 😂
@bigbud6842
Just type the bands name first dude lol