Lyrics for Chain Lightning as interpreted by AbFab

Chain Lightning Lyrics
Some turnout, a hundred grand;
Get with it, we'll shake his hand.
Don't bother to understand;
Don't question the little man.
Be part of the brotherhood;
Yes, it's chain lightning,
It feels so good.

Hush brother, we cross the square;
Act nat'ral, like you don't care.
Turn slowly and comb your hair;
Don't trouble the midnight air.
We're standing just where he stood;
It was chain lightning,
It feels so good.

[solo and fade]

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  • 13 Comments
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Doctor Wu
12-12-2005

Rated 0 
Adolph Hitler and the rising og the third reich.

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GreyBlueEyes
08-24-2006

Rated 0 
But the lingo is so not Nazi Germany.

Surreal treatment of the topic.

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thermo4
10-08-2006

Rated 0 
There's a demo of this song floating around...on this demo, in between the verses, you hear Fagen whisper the words "Thirty years later..."

That pretty much sews it up for me. The first verse is about two German youths attending a fascist rally in late-30's Germany, wanting to meet 'the great man' and shake his hand, while being "part of the brotherhood".

The second verse is the same two people going back to the same site thirty years later, and casting their memories back to what they were a part of back then.

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mtmoore
01-08-2007

Rated 0 
I'm stunned at the subject of this song. Guess I should have listened to the lyrics better. It's such a laid-back, feel-good sounding song. What a disjoint.

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scogmo
02-07-2007

Rated 0 
I always thought this song was about a gang rape or a girl "pulling the train". Don't question the little man.

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rainwalk
03-25-2007

Rated 0 
Wow, yeah. At first I laughed at the first review, assuming it was another smarta$$. But upon reflection, I'm convinced without too much argument.

I always assumed it was about going to a concert with a chance to meet some sort of musical great - I met Tony Williams once, shook his hand. It kind of felt like this tune.

I'm a tantric, and so don't quite buy the fact that good and evil are separate poles, so to me there's maybe not so much cognitive dissonance here. That 'chain lightning' feeling comes in many forms, and always feels good, no matter if it's right or wrong.

That's the dangerous part.... make sure you're on the right side before you whip out that chain lightnin'.

Now that I think about it, that slow, lilting groove that this tune lays down actually does have that same feeling of standing in a place where you know something big once happened. I've been to Dealy Plaza, and felt that. Also been to the Place de la Concorde, Notre Dame cathedral, etc... similar feeling. Heavy and constant, just like this rhythm. Good tune.

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ProfessorKnowItAll
09-14-2007

Rated 0 
I always thought it was a about the jazz scene--especially the rise of bop--and how it's not supposed to be music for the uninitiated (don't bother to understand/don't question the little man), "brotherhood"/"brother " being a term of camraderie between black musicians.

But the Hitler/Nazi interpretation works well, too.

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Danfan
02-19-2008

Rated 0 
Wow. A song about Hitler or jazz. There are so few lyrics to get a clear idea but the Hitler one sounds plausible. The lyrics to Dan songs are so cryptic and obscure the interpretations could go anywhere! Its like an everlasting journey albeit a fascinating one.

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myfriendvlad
06-09-2008

Rated 0 
Taking the Nazi interpretation..the lightning bolts were the insignia of the SS see: http://www.adl.org/hate_symbols/neo_nazi_symbols.asp

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mumajor
08-06-2009

Rated 0 
In Metal Leg, Becker and Fagen say "you'll never guess":

http://granatino.com/sdresource/9lyrics.htm

Fagen also says it's "40 years later" he was going to say, but decided not to because it didn't work musically.


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liveswithanevilb
11-12-2009

Rated 0 
I believe this song is about two young Black jazz musicians who are getting either their first gig period, or their first big gig. They are nervous and they are speaking to each other and trying to comfort each other as they approach their destination:
Some turnout, a hundred grand;
Get with it, we'll shake his hand.
Don't bother to understand;
Don't question the little man.
Be part of the brotherhood;
and:
Hush brother, we cross the square;
Act nat'ral, like you don't care.
Turn slowly and comb your hair;
Don't trouble the midnight air.
We're standing just where he stood;
I hate to break it to you all, but even the vernacular is African American in origin. The word "natural" is purposely spelled "nat'ral" to emphasize the accent of an African American male. Also, using terms like "hush, brother", and "don't trouble", not only suggest African American males, but Southern males - many of whom came from the South and changed the musical landscape with jazz, blues, etc.
In this particular case, however, these men are excited because they get a chance to play on some sort of hallowed ground in their line of work - the Apollo perhaps?, (We're standing just where he stood). Chain lightning is self explanatory, but it suggests the siphoning off of talent/success from that person to them. That's my opinion, anyway.


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AvidVide
11-17-2009

Rated +1 
The SS insignia has nothing to do with lightning, they were simply using the rune letter for the S. I still think the Hitler theory is plausible though.

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AvidVide
11-17-2009

Rated 0 
But, it is of course possible that F & B also thought that the SS insignia looked like chain lightning.

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