Smog – Let Me See the Colts

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Knocked on your door at dawn
With a spark in my heart
Dragged you from your bed
And said let me see the colts

Let me see the colts
That will run next year
Show them to a gambling man
Thinking of the future

Have you been drinking? No,
Nor sleeping
The all-seeing all-knowing eye is dog tired
And just wants to see the colts

We walked out through
The dew dappled brambles
And sat upon the fence
Is there anything as still as sleeping horses
Is there anything as still as sleeping horses

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Lyrics submitted by thither


Let Me See the Colts song meanings
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13 Comments

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  • -1
    General Comment:I agree with coasts, the narrator is tired from the struggles of life and seeks hope by watching innocent young racehorses who's failures or successes have yet to be written.

    This is a beautiful song and the lyrics mean a lot to me, these days I too am struggling to find hope.
    Flag starsinmyeyeson November 28, 2011   Link
  • -1
    General Comment:the colts represent hope and possibility. the narrator has grown tired from the struggle of life and needs to see something young and beautiful.
    Flag coastson April 30, 2011   Link
  • -1
    General Comment:my interpretation follows powercut's, to me the song is about being truly comfortable and at peace with your thoughts/actions and being unimpeded by the pressing influences of others.

    smog has, for now, given up on his quest for empowerment/knowledge and is finding more pleasure in the everyman's life - watching/talking sport is about as unpretentious a past time as possible.

    The fact the lyrics are about sports, a topic so avoided and under-represented in music, shows smog is content with how he leads his life and isn't phased about following trends.

    Fuck it, I just wanna watch the game!!
    Flag pollutedmindon September 09, 2010   Link
  • -1
    My Opinion:it's about enjoying the simple and beautiful things in life. Horses sleeping, dew-dappled branches, sitting on a fence with someone, etc. and putting aside "thinking about the future" since "the all knowing all seeing eye is dog-tired"........
    Flag vinylmineron July 07, 2009   Link
  • -5
    General Comment:you have no idea, even though i spent four paragraphs explaining it. :)
    Flag gueveraliveson October 25, 2008   Link
  • -1
    General Comment:I think this guy is asking this girl to show herself. He's taken an interest in her and now he wants her to show more of who she is...so he can decide if he wants her...to gamble on her and take the risk...
    Flag NoDressRehearsalon October 23, 2008   Link
  • -1
    General Comment:Stupid people. This song is obviously a reference to the wonderful folks in the national football league and their tireless contribution to American and global culture. LET ME SEE THE COLTS!!!! I live in northern California, by the way.
    Flag tapdanceon October 18, 2008   Link
  • -1
    General Comment:The great thing about good lyrics is that they can mean vastly different things to different people. I would have never drawn the same conclusion as gueveralives, but there is no wrong answer.

    I saw Bill Calahan a week or so after my grandfather's funeral. I wished I would have choose this song to play there. My grandfather owned race horses and was also a tough-as-nails paternal figure. I love the line "the all knowing all seeing eye is dog tired and just wants to see the colts". Also, the metaphor of the future is very powerful in the context of death.
    Flag underthemoochon October 11, 2008   Link
  • -1
    General Comment:Yeah I have no clue where gueveralives got that interpretation, I always saw this tune as an expression of self-determination and curiosity. The colts are things in life that can be learned from and taken advantage of, and Bill seems to find this beautiful. Or at least I do.
    Flag ussleepon September 13, 2008   Link
  • +4
    General Comment:My interpretation of this would be that the narrator is someone who has sought an intellectual understanding of the world and it's mechanisms for a long time. However today they've finally come to the conclusion that easy answers are more dependable and after all that learning and interpreting, they're tired and just want to see first-hand what the odds are; trying to predict the future no longer through enlightenment, but instead more practically, more hands-on.

    If that makes any sense to anyone...
    Flag thepowercuton July 09, 2008   Link

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