| Pink Floyd – Crying Song Lyrics | 5 months ago |
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@[joaquim:49312] The stone refers to the stone blocking the entrance to the tomb where Jesus was said to have been placed after the crucifixion. Surprisingly, this reference stands alone, without much connection to the rest of the lyrics. Nonetheless, it adds a lot to the song's interest. |
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| U2 – Mysterious Ways Lyrics | 2 years ago |
| There\'s the other side to it: "she\'s sliding down... she moves in mysterious ways" | |
| They Might Be Giants – Last Wave Lyrics | 4 years ago |
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The vimeo video I say helps make sense of some of these lyrics. The "Tyler" lyrics about the last wave seem to acknowledge his passing into irrelevance: he probably won't get another "wave" after this one. Meanwhile, I'll be humming TMBG's upbeat and catchy vocals about death and the grave for quite a while, I suspect. Maybe someone can fill me in on something: Is this a dub onto an existing DMC video? That's the only way I can make sense of Tyler's desire for antlers. |
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| Pink Floyd – Fearless Lyrics | 5 years ago |
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This is one of my favorite Floyd songs, but I seem to have a different interpretation than most folks here. I read the first several lines as a bit of comic dialog between Gilmour and his wife / girlfriend. She calls his bluff about wanting to climb a hill and he "cops out", saying he'll pick the time. I interpret that line as meaning that the time will never come. Given that interpretation, the lines about what he sees and hears at the top of the hill are his fantasy of what he'll experience on that day. The second half with the fool and the magistrate suggests some sort of historical setting to me, like an Arthurian era public gathering at a castle. The fool's actions reveal the magistrate to be the real fool. Both sections end with a sense of tenderness toward others balanced by a commitment to acting in a way true to yourself, even though it may well be frightening. |
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| Elvis Costello – Our Little Angel Lyrics | 5 years ago |
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The singer could be the uncle to a woman being wooed by what he views as an unsuitable suitor. While his catalog of the faults and motives of this suitor are devastating, the attack is extremely witty and funny. The first two lines are ambiguous as to the place: a wedding chapel, a bar, a cabaret? I suppose any of them could be where Elvis himself could think he made life-changing "mistakes". |
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| Burl Ives – Aunt Rhody Lyrics | 5 years ago |
| It's funny. All the geese are upset, but maybe Aunt Rhody is happy because she can make her feather bed now. | |
| Cat Power – Stay Lyrics | 5 years ago |
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I see that this is something of a cover of a popular song performed by Rihanna, one that I was unaware of. Cat Powers' (Chan Marshall's) soulful rendition and lyrical changes make this a much better song to me. For me, the heart of the song is in the lines: "Funny you're the broken one but I'm the only one who needed saving" After reading comments on Rihanna's version, I realize that these lines could be read in two different ways: 1) (the way I read it) that they both knew that he was broken in some way, but it turns out he wasn't really in need of saving, and only she was, and 2) they both knew that she needed saving, but it turns out that he's the broken one. For me, the first reading makes more sense, and makes the song more emotionally revealing on Chan's part. The delightful syncopated rhythm of the lines adds to their heft. I also enjoyed the way that the word "round" connects to both adjacent verses: she wants him to stay (a)round. Overall a very beautiful, moody piece. |
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| Elliott Smith – Needle in the Hay Lyrics | 5 years ago |
| A quick observation: "hay" could be a way of seeing hairs (at the injection point). | |
| Beck – Devil's Haircut Lyrics | 6 years ago |
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@[classifiedm10:26322] The "stealing kisses" line seems mainly to be very funny -- a play, in a way, of how zombie body parts might just detach. Likewise, the "smiling eyes" line presents 2 different images. We say eyes are smiling because of the way the muscles around the eye move when we are genuinely happy, but if an eyeball was out of its socket, the concept would be meaningless. Having 2 contradictory images is jarring, in a way that I can enjoy. |
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| Big Star – September Gurls Lyrics | 6 years ago |
| He's only a few months younger than his September girl, but she's in a higher grade, which puts him at a disadvantage, all through the school years. | |
| Supertramp – Goodbye Stranger Lyrics | 6 years ago |
| The main vocal part is of a man leaving a relationship, while the falsetto part is of his partner. The words "goodbye stranger" are ironic, because his partner thought that they had been closer. It is a kind of accusation. | |
| Joni Mitchell – Coyote Lyrics | 6 years ago |
| @[TrueThomas:22160] Also, it may have been just one waitress. | |
| The Beatles – Lady Madonna Lyrics | 7 years ago |
| Many good comments here. Before reading the many lines of argument about her being a prostitute, I heard it as a judgment against a single mother, and not a celebration of her ability to provide somehow. It seems to function as a cautionary tale. Were the boys tired of paying alimony, or taxes to support welfare moms? | |
| King Crimson – Dinosaur Lyrics | 9 years ago |
| Most explanations here seem to touch on the notion of "dinosaur rock" (rock music, I suppose, from an earlier generation) as the notion underlying this song. This doesn't seem necessary to me. It works perfectly well as a comedic song sung from the point of view of an actual dinosaur (as opposed to a metaphorical one). | |
| King Crimson – People Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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A rockin' good tune, but also, very real. That some of us would pay to watch each other other box is treated as equal to some of us living in igloos, is amusing. |
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| The Moody Blues – The Land Of Make-Believe Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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I've always loved this song and found it inspiring, but now that I listen to it carefully, it becomes distinctly fragmented, and the fragments each seem to tell a different story. First, there are the "we" sections. Either the singer is singing to the loved one, or the singer is telling the audience about how he and the loved one feels. In both cases, he's not very sure; love has fooled him / them so many times before. It is a kind of faith that maybe this time it will work out, even considering all the failures before. It's better to not let it show, since it is so fragile. Even calling it love or showing that it is love might be enough to break it. Then there's the section where the singer is singing to a bird, telling it to fly etc. This is also quite beautiful, but it reminds me of 2 related stories. One is from the Bible, where each day a bird is released by Noah. If I recall that story correctly, it was the return of the bird that gave the true message - whether the waters had receded. The other bird story is more of an image: birds released to symbolize a hero's death. Finally, there are the "you" sections of the song. There is no mystery to these: the singer is directly advising us, the audience, to open ourselves up to love, and to clean out the cobwebs in our daydreams, for instance. He reminds us that we know the benefits of this, and that it is the only way. He wants us to explicitly agree. Altogether, the song should seem somewhat fragmented, but it all holds together remarkably well, I suppose due to the fantastic artistry of the Moodies. |
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| Duran Duran – Rio Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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I get the impression that Rio is not very smart. She's incredibly good-looking (in a "cherry ice cream" way, that Le Bon "supposes" is very nice), so much so that she doesn't need to understand just how shallow she really is. Mostly Le Bon doesn't mind, he still wants her, after all, she is beautiful and famous (she's been on TV!), but it slips out every once in a while, like when he sings that she means *so* much to him, except he compares her to something as common as a "pretty view" or a birthday. I like some of the other interpretations here of Rio representing the USA, and combining those notions with mine shows he has the same outlook of desire for and condescension of America. A few notes: 1) the mirror way out west would be Hollywood. 2) so many places draw water from the the Rio Grande river that in some areas it is not much more than a trickle. Someone *could* almost dance across it. |
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| Steely Dan – The Boston Rag Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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The Curative Powers of the Song within a Song Lonnie's OD is the crisis at the center of the action. The order might be a little jumbled, but the protagonist / singer variously tries to get help from "you" [Lady Bayside?], tries to leave town (via 7th avenue), and playing music for the catatonic Lonnie. The Boston Rag, the song-within-a-song, is what finally awakens Lonnie. If it can do that, we should indeed bring it back. The singer makes his case. |
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| Wilco – Poor Places Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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I think of the chorus "His jaw's been broken ... want to see you tonight" as being addressed to his girlfriend, as a kind of apology. He's been abusive, but now his fangs are pulled, he's humbled himself, and so now she might be willing to see him again. The "singer you love so much" is him. Maybe she was originally a fan. So he's been drinking. The overseas places he's thinking of are from his ham radio, He hears the YHF call sign, and stays in his air conditioned room. |
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| Wilco – The Lonely 1 Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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I just wanted to mention that the mention of "the alarm" seemed a little jarring at first, but now I realize this mundane detail emphasizes the emptiness of the fan's life. Nice touch. |
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| Wilco – The Lonely 1 Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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What a great site here, and a great song. I really enjoy reading the many perspectives and nuances. For this song I find that is is possible and natural to consider the entire song as from a single perspective, that of a fan. The fan likes the musician because of the musician's skill at conveying loneliness and sadness. It is a "comfort" to hear the sadness because the fan isn't entirely alone anymore in feeling this way. In this case, the fan might also happen to be a musician, so the other perspective is right below the surface. And the last few lines can be read as ambiguous - we might have to read his mind to know just who "you" is. |
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| Wilco – The Lonely 1 Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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I interpret "the ones" to be yesterday's phone messages, and yes it is sad. I don't think the "ones" would be songs in this context. |
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| The Beatles – Junk Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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I always thought of it as a general message against consumerism, but now, 40 years after first hearing it, I notice that so many of the things that are junk are about the two of them. They became junk because of the split of "you and me". The breakup has made all those loved things into junk, because the loved one is no longer there to share them and give them meaning. The singer wonders why he should care about anything at all. Since it mentions "old and new", it suggests "borrowed and blue", and that the breakup is literally a divorce. A beautiful, haunting song and melody. note: I posted these comments under a different username in the section for Paul Mccartney's version. |
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| Eels – That Look You Give That Guy Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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Somehow, after repeated listening, I find the lyrics remain fresh and evocative. There is a directness and simplicity to the hook that really highlights the honesty of the feeling. I guess we don't quite know what "that look" really is, but I always interpret it as "admiration", and the singer's desire is to *become admirable*, rather than just to get "that look" without deserving it. It's part of the spell of the song that we put aside doubts about the singer's logic. We *might* have some ability to make ourselves more admirable, but we certainly don't have the ability to make others appreciate us and to give us "that look". But who would want to interrupt and quibble over another's direct and guileless expression of a desire to become more admirable, and more deserving of that look? The singer may be romanticizing. He's willing to give up everything, just for that look. But could that look last? would it be worth everything, even if sincere? What happens next? And would he truly be worthy of that look into the future, or would it just be some trick or illusion that one or both of them suffer from? After all, the "real" person, the protagonist, isn't admirable enough yet, and what could this alternate version of himself be but a kind of phony? We sense the fragile confidence the singer has that he can make a positive change, and become strongly drawn into his cause -- we're rooting for him to get that look, because it means that we too might become more admirable ourselves, and someday someone might notice and appreciate this. We might deserve that look, and get it too. By the way, Lotte Kestner does a cover of this song that is just as beautiful and haunting as the original. Her version is very faithful to the original. She changes a few pronouns and such, so that she's singing about a guy that's looking at another girl. In one way these sentiments are universal, but in another way, its as if it is an entirely different song. |
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