3rd Eye Blind - God of Wine - Lyrics Meaning

This song is from the band's self-titled, debut album that was released in 1997. The lead singer, Stephan Jenkins has stated that the greater meaning behind the song is the melancholy realization that the world is a mortal place and that everything we know is slowly moving toward extinction in some form or another. To combat this sad realization we turn to medication and drugs to ease the pain, which leads to addiction. The lyrics portray a relationship that the singer is trying to hold together with another person that is deep in the throes of such an addiction. The "God of wine" serves as the addict's alternate persona that comes out when they are intoxicated. In this case, the addiction is causing many more sad and destructive days than good ones and Jenkins is giving up the fight.

The singer says that they cannot keep it together; referring to the difficulty of maintaining a relationship with an alcoholic is too much for him. He goes on to say that the "siren song that is your madness" shows on her face while she is drunk and even though he knows he loves her, he won't be able to stay with her until she gets help for her addiction. Having to let her go is the hardest part because he realizes that he cannot help her. The line, "A sadness I can't erase, all alone on your face" is indicative of this fact. The song is actually a breakup letter.