The Carpenters: Rainy Days and Mondays Meaning

Song Released: 1971

Rainy Days and Mondays Lyrics

Talkin' to myself and feelin' old
Sometimes I'd like to quit
Nothing ever seems to fit
Hangin' around
Nothing to do but frown
Rainy Days and Mondays always get me down.
What I've got they used to call the blues
Nothin' is really wrong
Feelin'...

1. Chachi

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   Nov 9th 2021 !⃝

   It's clearly about bipolar, " what I feel has come and gone before, we don't need to talk it out, we know what it's all about". And I speak from experience.
2. anonymous

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   Apr 11th 2021 !⃝

   I don’t think the “you” in the lyric refers to a person, especially not to a boyfriend or girlfriend. Rather, I think the “you” is the audience: When I am feeling alone and/or unloved, I can perform before an audience that I know “loves” me in a way that is reassuring, but by no means a real substitute for emotional or physical intimacy. Many performers feed on this “love,” what is really adulation, from an audience as a compensation for the love they desperately desire, but never seem to receive from the ones around them. “Funny how it seems I always WIND UP here with you. Nice to know SOMEBODY loves me (even if it’s not the somebody I want or need).” And the last line clearly dismisses whatever therapy is supposed to remedy the problem: “What I feel has come and gone before. No need to TALK IT OUT (the endless “talking cure” of psychiatry), we KNOW what it’s all about.”
3. Randy

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   Jun 4th 2019 !⃝

   I think that the beauty of the song is that it can relate to anyone at anytime. We can and do all feel "down" at many points in our lives. But when we find that special person, the depression goes away. Truly a love song and one that my wife and I played at our wedding 45 years ago.
4. anonymous

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   Dec 20th 2018 !⃝

   Rainy Days and Mondays by The Carpenters, the real meaning is seen at songfacts and there are meanings at songmeanings website. I think the girl is depressed during rainy days and on Mondays. The girl knows she has depression and when she experiences it, she runs to a guy who loves her. I think they hang out, they don't talk about her depression and be silent. She feels it's nice to know that someone loves her. Sorry you feel this way too. I think you have to talk to a doctor about your eating disorder.
   
   Hope you feel better too. Have a good night.
   Ask God to give you strength and help you to be not depressed.
   
   - Same person who made comments recently
5. anonymous

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   Dec 19th 2018 !⃝

   What I’ve got they used to call the blues (form of sadness) noting is really wrong (physically wrong) feeling like I don’t belong. Walking around some kind of lonely clown(outsider, loner) rainy days and mondays always get me down (makes my deepression worse because rain gives me no sunshine) funny but it seems I always wind up here with you (suicidal thoughts. Pills. Anorexia) nice to know somebody loves me. (They’re always there, you can turn to them). Funny but it seems that it’s the only thing to do. (Starve. Take pills think suicidal). Run and find he one who loves me. (Running to those things because no one else is there for you) what I feel has come and gone before (deep depression) no need to talk it out, we know what it’s all about( been here before. Use to it all now. Comfortable with it.) hanging around (being here, just existing with no purpose) nothing to do but frown (having no expression. It’s all blank because of the depression) rainy days and mondays always get me down. I often feel this way too and I too struggle with an eating disorder. I’m depressed and doing it brings me a sort of comfort now.
6. anonymous

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   May 18th 2018 !⃝

   To me, this is a song about depression, and having to deal with it day in, day out. How it becomes ‘normal’ or ‘comfortable’ over time, even preferable.
   Real meaning in brackets…
   
   Talkin' to myself and feelin' old (thinking about how life is passing you by)
   Sometimes I'd like to quit (suicide, packing up and leaving to a new place)
   Nothin' ever seems to fit (trying new things, but they don’t fill the void)
   Hangin' around
   Nothin' to do but frown (just existing, feeling no purpose or meaning, just continuing on)
   Rainy days and Mondays always get me down (triggers the depression, even less to do when it’s raining, stuck inside, can’t go out, metaphor for your life)
   
   What I've got they used to call the blues (clinical depression)
   Nothin' is really wrong (physically nothing wrong)
   Feelin' like I don't belong (feeling like an outsider, no purpose being here)
   Walkin' around
   Some kind of lonely clown (in public, has to put on a ‘face’ so people won’t think anything is wrong)
   Rainy days and Mondays always get me down
   
   Funny, but it seems I always wind up here with you (drinking, pills, suicidal thoughts)
   Nice to know somebody loves me (those things are always 'there for you’)
   Funny, but it seems that it's the only thing to do (drinking, pills, suicidal thoughts)
   Run and find the one who loves me, the one who loves me (going to do it now, drinking, pills, suicidal thoughts)
   
   What I feel has come and gone before (deep depression)
   No need to talk it out
   We know what it's all about (been there before, a little comfortable with it, it’s become ‘normal’)
   Hangin' around
   Nothin' to do but frown (feeling sad, crying)
   Rainy days and Mondays always get me down
7. anonymous

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   Jun 24th 2014 !⃝

   This is a song about her eating disorder. If you listen to the vocals with headphones on you can hear an occasional word is overlaid twice. Our brains fill-in the blank with what we've been told she's saying but if you listen closely she actually is saying "rainy days and mondays really make me frup." I think they laid her saying 'throw-up' and 'frown' over each other. It is almost impossible to hear without headphones.
   This is a sad song about being compelled to deal with her feelings of depression and being un-loved and being overweight, truly sad. What wasted talent.

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