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O Superman. O judge. O Mom and Dad. Mom and Dad.
O Superman. O judge. O Mom and Dad. Mom and Dad.
Hi. I'm not home right now. But if you want to leave a
message, just start talking at the sound of the tone.
Hello? This is your Mother. Are you there? Are you
coming home?
Hello? Is anybody home? Well, you don't know me,
but I know you.
And I've got a message to give to you.
Here come the planes.
So you better get ready. Ready to go. You can come
as you are, but pay as you go. Pay as you go.
And I said: OK. Who is this really? And the voice said:
This is the hand, the hand that takes. This is the
hand, the hand that takes.
This is the hand, the hand that takes.
Here come the planes.
They're American planes. Made in America.
Smoking or non-smoking?
And the voice said: Neither snow nor rain nor gloom
of night shall stay these couriers from the swift
completion of their appointed rounds.
'Cause when love is gone, there's always justice.
And when justice is gone, there's always force.
And when force is gone, there's always Mom. Hi Mom!
So hold me, Mom, in your long arms. So hold me,
Mom, in your long arms.
In your automatic arms. Your electronic arms.
In your arms.
So hold me, Mom, in your long arms.
Your petrochemical arms. Your military arms.
In your electronic arms.
O Superman. O judge. O Mom and Dad. Mom and Dad.
Hi. I'm not home right now. But if you want to leave a
message, just start talking at the sound of the tone.
Hello? This is your Mother. Are you there? Are you
coming home?
Hello? Is anybody home? Well, you don't know me,
but I know you.
And I've got a message to give to you.
Here come the planes.
So you better get ready. Ready to go. You can come
as you are, but pay as you go. Pay as you go.
And I said: OK. Who is this really? And the voice said:
This is the hand, the hand that takes. This is the
hand, the hand that takes.
This is the hand, the hand that takes.
Here come the planes.
They're American planes. Made in America.
Smoking or non-smoking?
And the voice said: Neither snow nor rain nor gloom
of night shall stay these couriers from the swift
completion of their appointed rounds.
'Cause when love is gone, there's always justice.
And when justice is gone, there's always force.
And when force is gone, there's always Mom. Hi Mom!
So hold me, Mom, in your long arms. So hold me,
Mom, in your long arms.
In your automatic arms. Your electronic arms.
In your arms.
So hold me, Mom, in your long arms.
Your petrochemical arms. Your military arms.
In your electronic arms.
Lyrics submitted by pumkinhed
Track duration: 08:21
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but I know you.
And I've got a message to give to you.
Here come the planes.
So you better get ready...
Here come the planes.
They're American planes. Made in America.
Smoking or non-smoking?
And the voice said: Neither snow nor rain nor gloom
of night shall stay these couriers from the swift
completion of their appointed rounds." reminds me of 9/11, although this song was written and sung way before that time.
Always loved the ironic nature of 'Hold me Mom' working as a bookend with the answering machine message from the first stanza -- truly electronic arms wishing you home in the Home of the Brave. Along with so many other things the song portends, it foretells of a time like now when we will communicate electronically and asynchronously.
'Cause when love is gone, there's always justice.
And when justice is gone, there's always force.
This is a nation that is running the world and destroying it at the same time, Here come the planes, they're American planes....has this more to do with America going to war...with other countries for resources like Electronics/Petrochemical....OIL
Mom, in your long arms.
In your automatic arms. Your electronic arms.
In your arms.
So hold me, Mom, in your long arms.
Your petrochemical arms. Your military arms.
In your electronic arms.
Its about War and Greed
This is the hand, the hand that takes. This is the
hand, the hand that takes.
at this (relatively) early stage of her career, Anderson seemed to strive for an effect of ironic distance. even without Vocoder, the line "so hold me Mom" would've been entirely lacking in emotion. add to that the sense of being presented with a set of images only vaguely related to each other. yet she faced scathing criticism--from the self-consciously hip New York art scene--for her work being too sentimental. seems likely she was envied for having achieved a degree of mainstream success.
compare (nearly 15 years later) the directness and vulnerability of the first couple of verses of "Beautiful Pea Green Boat". fortunately for us, she'd never sought to please that milieu.
if you haven't heard the Bright Red/Tightrope LP, you might want to know: Laurie's father had recently died; many of its songs sprung from grief, and the creeping awareness of mortality you feel when your oldest relatives are gone.
But I agree 100% with those for whom "here comes the planes" has a chilling edge now. I like this song and I like people who like it as well.