| The Civil Wars – The One That Got Away Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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I have to agree with a couple of the comments already about this being autobiographical. If so, that's pretty gutsy to make it the opening single of their brand new album. But as Hank used to say, there's no apologies for a great song. If you're in the line of fire when the writer is creating, you're fair game. Their sudden tour cancellation when they were at the very cusp of exploding in popularity was more than strange. The sexual chemistry of their stage act was obvious to anyone watching. SOMETHING had to happen, or almost happen. And I think this song is one artistic perspective on that. One way or the other it's a heck of a song. This has echoes of some of the great incredibly personal material that filled Fleetwood Mac's "Rumors". Not bad company. I'm glad they're still around. |
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| The Band – The Weight Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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I think what's very interesting and pertinent are the posts from Spotty and SQB87. Too many coincidental details to be wrong. A horse named Fanny. A man named Chester. A dog named Jack. But wait...isn't this about a place where Rick Danko lived? The albums credit Robbie Robertson as the writer. And we all know from WAYYYY back about the horrid feud between Levon and Robbie about songwriting credits that Robbie alledgedly stole. It's also VERY interesting that Robbie couldn't explain anything about what the song lyrics meant when asked years ago. Yet Danko has characters in his direct past that are identical to the characters in the song. And Danko actually SINGS A VERSE on the studio version. So who really wrote this song? My money is on Danko. Maybe Robbie arranged it and put the music to it as a co-write. Then took full credit, just like Levon said he did. But there's no way Robbie could have come up with this elaborate tale using all these named characters from Danko's past without Rick's help. And Rick is not here to defend himself. So Rick Danko deserves a COWRITE for The Weight, at the very least. This is all very interesting to ponder, as right now while I write this Levon is reportedly on his death bed. Peace be with you Levon. Peace to you too Ricky. We all know where the truth resides. |
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| Steve Earle – No. 29 Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| The line "cut back, heard it crack" just kills me. Steve has such a way with describing SO much in so FEW words. When I was 10 I saw the starting QB of our little league team plant his right foot to turn upfield on a sweep at the exact moment the opposing cornerback planted his helmet into his thigh. His femur split clean in half like a toothpick. I'll never forget that sound. | |
| Steve Earle – No. 29 Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Steve said at a show in Atlanta that he made it through high school by "Turning cowboys onto acid". This song was written about a cowboy football playing friend with who he shared some of those late nights, and if I'm not mistaken the guy really was named "Bubba". One memorable quote (Steve has hundreds): Steve and Bubba are laying on the hood of their pickup, in a hallucenogenic state, staring at the night sky. Bubba bursts out: "MAN, DID YOU SEE THAT!!!" And Steve's casual response: "No, Bubba...that was yours." ;) |
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| Steve Earle – Transcendental Blues Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Steve's not really a writer that needs a "song meanings" website. The amazing thing about his songs are how simple and literal they are, but yet they still stand up because the words themselves are so engaging. That being said, this is one of his more opaque tunes, perhaps his most opaque. I wish there was more discussion cause I really don't know what he's saying. But I know Steve well enough to know that he IS trying to say SOMETHING. The only thing I've been able to gather is it's a little about him evaluating his life, sort of an existential crisis. And in the third verse he comes right back where he always was, on the "Nowhere Road", realizing that his choice of profession inherently carries with it certain hazards that never go away. Oh well. |
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| Collective Soul – Crown Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| I was at the show in Atlanta. Our son played in the ASYO. Ed did say it was for his father, and if I'm not mistaken, his father was a minister. They showed his picture on the screen and I believe it said "Rev." I could be wrong. But my interpretation was that Ed couldn't follow his father's footsteps into the ministry, but yet felt he still had a "ministry" of sorts, through music. And this was his way of explaining that to his father. | |
| Don Henley – The Garden Of Allah Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Bitter bitter bitter. Henley's been a disillusioned cynic since (at least) the Hotel California days. And he lets it fly full force on this tune. He's holding nothing back in terms of his distaste for modern global culture. Being a native Texan of his age, Henley undoubtedly heard more than his share of fire and brimstone in his younger years. And those apocalyptic references are showing more and more in his later work in not so subtle ways..."Building the Perfect Beast" being another example. And this tune is pretty much right in line with traditional Judeo/Christian philosophy in that the devil is the ruler of this world. There's are lines in Joni Mitchell's "Woodstock" that say: "We are caught in the Devil's bargain" "And we've got to get ourselves back to the Garden" (Eden) There was the innocence of the 60's with Woodstock. Then Henley wrote "The End of the Innocence". But at this point, the difference is that Henley doesn't see a way out. At least not culturally: "the serpent's eyes shine as he wraps around the vine" In other words...we're nearing the end of this experiment. I'd like to see him do a Gospel album. Maybe find something positive to sing about. Somewhere. |
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| Don Henley – A Month Of Sundays Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| If there's been a better song written about the death of the American farm I've never heard it. Perhaps "The Rain Came Down" by Steve Earle comes close. This is just a beautiful poetic peace of music. Maybe a tad too poetic. Henley played it at the first Farm Aid, and I think it just went right over everyone's heads. Not the right type song to do for a festival crowd. But a great song nonetheless. | |
| Don Henley – Dirty Laundry Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| I think this song gets more prophetic every year. It's now 20+ years old and is more relevant now than ever. You got a collapsing economy, a total mess in Washington...but we don't really get that. We get hours and hours of Tiger Woods running into a fire hydrant. | |
| Gillian Welch – Everything Is Free Lyrics | 16 years ago |
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Mickzzzzz is correct. Gillian is known to be very anti-file sharing, and is one of the few artists in the bluegrass/folk genre that doesn't allow concert "taping". I asked her specifically backstage at MerleFest if this song was about Napster and such, and she said, "There might be a little of that in there...", spoken with a wry smile. The first verse should be "WE'RE gonna do it anyway"...in other words, the artists are supposed to keep trudging along even if their work is given away. But by the third verse it gets personal, "I'm gonna do it anyway". She comes to the conclusion that she will do nothing different (thoughts of a straight job notwithstanding), regardless of whether or not she is properly compensated. Gillian owns her own label and has her own website on which she sells downloads. She's determined to make her living as an independent songwriter/artist, a tough thing to do in today's economy. Especially in the rather obscure genre that she represents. |
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| Gillian Welch – Time (The Revelator) Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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I think Paega's right on the money here. This song seems like Gillian's answer to her critics who question her "Appalachian authenticity" because of the fact she grew up as a California valley girl. "Who could know, if I'm a traitor? Time's the Revelator"...i.e...only time will tell if her songs will stand up to the classics of Ralph Stanley, Carter Family, etc... The line about the "Fortune Lady" could be a reference to Emmylou Harris, who was the first major artist to record one of Welch's songs (Orphan Girl). But maybe not ;) The line "watch the waves and move the faders" seems like a direct reference to recording in a digital type (Pro Tools) environment, where the audio waveforms actually move across the computer screen, and the faders are the volume sliders on the mixing console. This once again points out the collision between "then" (when records were sung into one mic, straight to acetate disk) and "now". But waves also serve as a double reference, with their more obvious meaning being the California ocean. The last two lines are particularly revealing, and are sung (especially live) with quite an edgy, somewhat bitter tone. "Queen of fakes, and imitator"...almost as if those are the vicious words coming straight out of a critic's mouth. This is a heck of a song, lyrically AND melodically. David Rawlings has one of the keenest sence of harmony I've ever heard. He perfectly comlements Gillian on this tune. |
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