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Elliott Smith – L.A. Lyrics

19 years ago

What an underappreciated song. Pure pop, but better than anything you're likely to hear on the radio these days. I think the juxtaposition of "living in the day" and "cars parked in the sun" with "last night I was about to throw it all away" says a lot about Elliott's disposition not being in sync with his sunny California environment. Also, if you believe what Benjamin Nugent has to say in his book "Elliott Smith and the Big Nothing," "things I'd never done" could be an allusion to heroin or crack. That's right, kids: according to Nugent, Elliott didn't become a junkie until the final years of his life in L.A.

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Elliott Smith – Coast to Coast Lyrics

19 years ago

I'm just speculating here, but it sounds like this song may have something to do with Elliott's relationship with Jennifer Chiba at the time of his death. Seriously, look at the lyrics: "I've got no new act to amuse you," "Streaming feathers out your hat" -- these sound like the sort of things a semi-famous, hugely talented guy like Elliott would say to a considerably less-famous musician girlfriend who he'd been seeing for all of a year. Consider the line "I'll do what I can so you can be what you do"; I take this as a direct reference to Elliott's production work on Chiba's band's single, the one that apparently never panned out. In other words, he's saying "I'll do you this favor so you'll have something to back up this rock star attitude you've assumed." Of course, I have no idea what Chiba is like or was like at the time of Elliott's death, so, like I said, just speculation. But still, pretty interesting if you think about it..."Coast to Coast" could refer to the jetset lifestyle of a rock star, or perhaps someone who fancies herself a rock star without really having anything to show for it.

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Elliott Smith – King's Crossing Lyrics	19 years ago
A suicide song if I ever heard one. Actually, "From a Basement on the Hill" could be THE definitive suicide album, which is unfortunate because its great and should have been a precursor for even better stuff (if that's possible).

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Elliott Smith – Bottle Up and Explode Lyrics

19 years ago

I think dorareever is right in a sense: this song does have something to do with a troubled relationship, but I don't know if it's as blatant as the narrator's lover being a cheat. I think there's some suspicion there, but ultimately it's about two people on opposite ends of a spectrum and the narrator's realization that the only way to make things work with this particular person is to give in to what she expects, for better or for worse (probably worse). "I'll get through becoming you" pretty much spells this out, and "bottle up and explode" means just that -- keeping your frustrations inside until you blow a gasket, kind of like "red, white and blue" fireworks.

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Elliott Smith – A Distorted Reality Is Now a Necessity to Be Free Lyrics

19 years ago

I think this song addresses a couple of things, the first being the inherent hypocrisy of human beings in general, and then the more flagrant hypocrisy of those in positions of authority. Really, the first few verses may be seen as an autobiography of sorts; Elliott's struggle with substance abuse -- and his friends' various interventions -- probably inspired him to write something to the effect of, "Look, we're all a little screwed up, we all do things that are bad for us, so don't point the finger at me until you've cleaned up your act." There's a lot of truth in saying we all "doll up" our public faces in "virgin white," but, ultimately, I think Smith was using some classic junkie reasoning. Drugs had taken over his life at this point, people tried to help him, so he lashed out. More interesting is Smith's take on the people "rakin' in on the world." In this day and age, I think this probably means the bureaucratic hypocrites that lead us into unnecessary wars. Take the line "But God knows why my/country don't give a fuck" for example; I can only take this as a fairly direct allusion to what was going on in the U.S. at the time of Smith's death, the so-called aftermath of a supposedly "just" war in Iraq. If my assumption is true, it probably means that this is the most overtly political stance Smith ever took in his music. All in all, the "distorted reality" of this song refers to the justifications we make for the way we act on a personal and global scale.

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Elliott Smith – Wouldn't Mama Be Proud? Lyrics

19 years ago

This may be the most literal, straight-up pop song Elliott Smith ever made -- and that's not a bad thing considering the source. I think it's fairly obvious that the narrator is more or less weighing his position in life -- assumedly that of a semi-famous rock star -- against what he feels inside and the expectations of those around him. Elliott said at least once about his Oscar nomination that he was happy that his mother would be proud of his accomplishment, hence the title of this song. The line about `a silver lining in the corporate cloud' can be seen as a near-direct reference to his Dreamworks contract in that he was always something of a "prestige artist," or one who would lend legitimacy to a record label through his talent but probably wouldn't move many discs. The "heavenly host" is almost certainly a stewardess, and the airplane setting -- up in the clouds, probably on tour or some sort of press junket -- comes in sharp contrast to the note of desperation the narrator hits in the third verse. "If I call (I've seen this as `crawl'; either way, it works) to keep it together/like you say I can do" means just what it says -- this is a fragile guy who maybe wasn't meant to carry the mantle he's been given by the press or the fans or whomever. Like I said, this is possibly Elliott's most obvious song, but it's a great, great pop song -- definitely one of my favorites.

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