@[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.
I am for a life around the corner
That takes you by surprise
That comes leaves all you need
And more besides
I am for a life and time by numbers
Blast in fast 'n' low
Add 'em up, account for luck
You never know
I am into friendship and plain sailing
Through frenzied ports o' call
O shake the hand to beat the band
With love is all
Or nothing to the man who wants tomorrow
There's one in every town
A crazy guy, he'd rather die
Than be tied down
I am for the man who drives the hammer
To rock you 'til the grave
His power drill shocks
A million miles away
I am for the revolution's coming
I don't know where she's been
For those who dare because it's there
I know I've seen
Now and then I've suffered imperfection
I've studied marble flaws
And faces drawn pale and worn
By many tears
I am that I am from out of nowhere
to fight without a cause
Roots strain against the grain
With brute force you'd better
Hold out when you're in doubt
Question what you see
And when you find an answer
Bring it home to me.
That takes you by surprise
That comes leaves all you need
And more besides
I am for a life and time by numbers
Blast in fast 'n' low
Add 'em up, account for luck
You never know
I am into friendship and plain sailing
Through frenzied ports o' call
O shake the hand to beat the band
With love is all
Or nothing to the man who wants tomorrow
There's one in every town
A crazy guy, he'd rather die
Than be tied down
I am for the man who drives the hammer
To rock you 'til the grave
His power drill shocks
A million miles away
I am for the revolution's coming
I don't know where she's been
For those who dare because it's there
I know I've seen
Now and then I've suffered imperfection
I've studied marble flaws
And faces drawn pale and worn
By many tears
I am that I am from out of nowhere
to fight without a cause
Roots strain against the grain
With brute force you'd better
Hold out when you're in doubt
Question what you see
And when you find an answer
Bring it home to me.
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Holiday
Bee Gees
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Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
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Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
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/
MANIFESTO
MANIFESTO, song and album. Roxy Music have had their share of accolades for their music, but are vastly underrated as lyricists.
I'm starting with "Manifesto" for the sole reason that I believe it did not have the critical acclaim it deserves.
MANIFESTO ( Ferry/Manzanera) title track and album.
I was a Roxy fan from the outset, and even into the "crooning years" but initially could not get along with "Manifesto". But persistence has its rewards. The title track "Manifesto", which critics dismiss as too long, is in fact a perfect example of form reflecting content. The insistent drum beat in the long preamble, overlaid by a discordant guitar is ominous and tells us we are not about to hear about some boy meets girl thing.
The whole song ( and indeed album) is an examination of opposites, a juxtaposition of determinism/free will. A "life around the corner, that takes you by surprise" is pitted against a "life and time by numbers". A safe life following societal norms is pushed against the man "who will not be tied down"
In the conclusion we have, "I am that I am from out of nowhere to fight without a cause,"
Ultimately there are no answers to these questions. There is just the compulsion to ask them: "Question what you see And when you find an answer Bring it home to me."
And so it is for much of the remainder of the album. "Trash" is the next track, immediately followed by "Angel Eyes", two very differing interpretations of women, one idealised, one outright rebellious. ( "Trash" is harsh and grating, the overly smooth "Angel Eyes" is harmonious- content dictating form yet again.)
To return to "Trash" we have the dichotomy yet again: "Are you customised or ready made?" , which I take to mean are people born with a certain destiny which predicts their behaviour, or are our actions a result of our experiences? (Interestingly, Bowie in "Rebel Rebel" embraces the woman described in "Trash", whereas Ferry has neither encouragement nor judgement)
And so to the final song in this "trilogy"- "My little girl"- a melodious, almost elegiac sound. But we are tricked because "my little girl" is possibly "a woman of the world"- the angel/ whore dichotomy yet again. I am aware that "Manifesto" had lukewarm critical reception, but I would urge everyone to give it another try.
@jill102096 <br /> ["I am that I am from out of nowhere / to fight without a cause,"<br />
@NomadMonad, I wrote this interpretation before I changed my username. I need to comment on "Tryptych". I think it is difficult to discern whether Ferry has faith, but he certainly is searching for spirituality, yet his songs do not speak of a belief in a beneficent deity. He seems preoccupied with the question of free will versus predetermination.<br /> <br /> This is very apparent in the above song, and also in "More than This" where essentially the same questions are asked but "there is no way of knowing". Of COURSE there's no way of knowing, but endemic in the human condition is the struggle to know the unknowable. <br /> <br /> "More than This" is a later song, complemented by a video which reinforces my interpretation of the song, but we have no conclusion, so I'd say the writer's position remains unchanged. Agnostic but not optimistic.<br /> <br /> Ferry reminds me of Samuel Beckett:-<br /> "Nothing to express, no power with which to express, together with the obligation to express."
No comments?
I dont think 'Manifesto' was their best album, but this song is really weird...in a good way.
This and 'Angel Eyes' are very very decent.
@mirandajune I think "angel eyes" is superficial, and was definitely a nod to the disco years, but understood in the context of the whole album , juxtaposed with "Trash" and "My little girl" then it is apparent that the song is exploring opposites and asks the eternal question about the human condition- to which the song has no answer.
For some reason this is my favourite Ferry lyric - I haven't got a clue what it's about, but the words are pure perfection
I too love this lyric and the forward motion of the music. A Manifesto is a statement of belief and purpose. It can be personal or representative of a movement. This song affirms life, individuality, and the wonderful messiness thereof.
Given Ferry's preoccupation with Dylan, I wonder if the last line of the song:- "And when you find an answer/ Bring it home to me " is a nod, subconscious or not, to Dylan's masterpiece "Bringing it all back home"?
I'd be interested in reading other opinions.