This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
Curiosity was far greater than our fear
It felt so simple, so prodigious at the same time
Incredible things are happening in the world
Magical things are happening in this world
Across the river there are all kinds of magical instruments
While we really keep on living like monkeys
Incredible things are happening in the world
Magical things are happening in this world, yeah
It felt so simple, so prodigious at the same time
Incredible things are happening in the world
Magical things are happening in this world
Across the river there are all kinds of magical instruments
While we really keep on living like monkeys
Incredible things are happening in the world
Magical things are happening in this world, yeah
Lyrics submitted by Mellow_Harsher
Peng! 33 Lyrics as written by Timothy John Gane Laetitia Sadier
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Hayalperest
Hayalperest
Holiday
Bee Gees
Bee Gees
@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
No Surprises
Radiohead
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
Has any other Iron & Wine fan read "One Hundred Years of Solitude?" I've been a fan of this song for awhile, and just tonight began reading that book. I only got to page eight when I stopped dead at the words "It seemed so simple and so prodigious at the same time..."
Upon further investigation I found that these lyrics are taken from pages seven and eight (in my edition) of the book. The book reads "donkeys" not "monkeys," but I don't think this alters the meaning.
To understand the lyrics you'd have to know what they mean in the context of the story:
The character thinking these thoughts lives in a remote town composed of twenty houses that is visited annually by gypsies hawking the wonders of the world, like magnets and false teeth, that are so foreign to the inhabitants of the remote village they seem magical. The character is frustrated that all these things are already boring/established/history to the rest of the world, hence the "across the river... monkeys" comment.
The one thing I have yet to understand is the song's title.
yeah I actually am latinamerican and ... Gabriel Garcia Marquez is nobel prize winner Author, "Cien Años de Soledad," as it was originally named, transalted to english a "Hundred Years of Solitude", is one of the best books ever written, I Own a spanish copy and is practically a must read in my culture before you graduate highschool(yeah we 3rd world country people have schools). ya damn Yanks. but yeah I din't know about this
I AM TOTALLY just reading that book.!! . again.. only on page 8. I too, am a huge fan of this song, and I started reading that and I was like.. holy shit -- it mean it's pretty much word for word from Peng! 33. So I started looking around online -- I'm SO glad that we made the same discovery! I love when connections like this are found. This really makes the song more special for me because I love literature. ! SO cool!!! : )
I was reading the book on an airplane yesterday and had the same experience: "wait, where do I know that from?"
Woah I too just had my mind completely blown when I read that. Such an amazing connection. What a song, What a cover! and my God what an amazing book. I'm almost euphoric right now...<br /> <br /> Magical Realism
@wanderlove just did the exact same thing! been listening to this song for years and was on page 8 of 100 years of solitude and stopped at the word prodigious, found peng 33 playing in my head and the following words were the lyrics to the song as well! i don't understand the title either.
hahahaha....he did A nice work with the original.....but sam beam's is better...beam's voice is so much more.....I have not the words to describe it....but it makes me wanna live more
I love this, it sounds like such a song of discovery, like suddenly the singer has discovered new life and is going to move beyond his/her old life, where it says "While we really keep on living like monkeys". It's beautiful and I would like to hear the original version.
the monkey reference is definitely there to make us question our position on the evolution chart. he's saying there's a whole lot more progress to be made in the world, and if we fear it instead of diving headlong into the new with "curiosity", we'll be the ones left behind like cavemen and other less evolved ancestors of the modern human.
@wanderlove- The title comes from a cartoon appropriated for the cover art of the Sterolab album Peng! I forget the story, but the final panel of the cartoon was the character shooting and the sound of the gun was Peng!
These lyrics are based on lines from the opening pages of “100 Years Of Solitude”.
“Incredible things are happening in the world”
and
“Right across the river there are all kinds of magical instruments while we keep on living like donkeys.”
are directly from the book.
I always thought the "While we keep on living like monkeys" was "Are there really people living like monkeys?" when I listened to it. Then again, I never listened very carefully.
Man I hate Stereolab. But he did a good job with this.