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Two boys on a playground
Tryin' to push each other down
See the crowd gather 'round
Nothing attracts a crowd like a crowd
Black gold in a white plight
Won't you fill up the tank, let's go for a ride
I don't care 'bout no wheelchair
I've got so much left to do with my life
Moving backwards through time
Never learn, never mind
That side's yours, this side's mine
Brother you ain't my kind
You're a black soldier, white fight
Won't you fill up the tank, let's go for a ride
Sure like to feel some pride
But this place just makes me feel sad inside
Mother, do you know where your kids are tonight?
Keeps the kids off the streets
Gives 'em something to do, something to eat
This spot was a playground
This flat land used to be a town
Black gold in a white plight
Won't you fill up the tank, let's go for a ride
Sure like to feel some pride
But this place just makes me feel sad inside
Black gold in a white plight
Won't you fill up the tank, let's go for a ride
I don't care 'bout no wheelchair
I've got so much left to do with my life
Tryin' to push each other down
See the crowd gather 'round
Nothing attracts a crowd like a crowd
Black gold in a white plight
Won't you fill up the tank, let's go for a ride
I don't care 'bout no wheelchair
I've got so much left to do with my life
Moving backwards through time
Never learn, never mind
That side's yours, this side's mine
Brother you ain't my kind
You're a black soldier, white fight
Won't you fill up the tank, let's go for a ride
Sure like to feel some pride
But this place just makes me feel sad inside
Mother, do you know where your kids are tonight?
Keeps the kids off the streets
Gives 'em something to do, something to eat
This spot was a playground
This flat land used to be a town
Black gold in a white plight
Won't you fill up the tank, let's go for a ride
Sure like to feel some pride
But this place just makes me feel sad inside
Black gold in a white plight
Won't you fill up the tank, let's go for a ride
I don't care 'bout no wheelchair
I've got so much left to do with my life
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No one can feel pride if they are taught that their race is below another. To me that is the entire point for the song. Don't let differences between you and someone else destroy everying in you life.
The second verse refers to the golden age that the speaker remembers, when blacks were segregated. The second chorus then refers to the black man as a 'soldier,' however, this is a 'white fight,' and therefore, he has no place in it. The 'going for a ride' line here can be thought of as when lynch mobs would tie blacks to their vehicles and drag them through the street. The 'feel some pride...' part speaks of the sadness propelling the speaker to commit these hateful acts--the sadness is at seeing blacks being treated equally.
The 'mother do you know where your kids are tonite?' line is a mocking reference to the possible kidnapping and maiming of several black children by the speaker.
The final verse calls for this hatred to be adopted by the white children of today--it will give them 'something to do' and feed their hateful hunger. The final two lines is the speaker reflecting on when 'this spot' used to be a much more racially pure place, free of the tainting presence of blacks.
A very horrific song indeed. The fact that it got so much radio play in the 90's is quite offensive to much of the unsuspecting public. People always speak of hidden meanings in songs--voices that are played backwards insinuating evil acts. Well, the hate is usually as plain as day. Dave Pirner should be tried for hate crimes for some of the horrific acts he endorses.
The meaning of the song has been the topic of many debates. Some fans state that it simply is about racism and/or black soldiers fighting in a war ("You're a black soldier, white fight"). Other disagree and claim it is about the greed for oil (Black Gold is another term for oil). One other theory maintains that it is about the Gulf War and the obvious references to the Persian Gulf in the music video supports this theory. Dave Pirner is shown in the reflection of a pool which mirrors the shape of the Persian Gulf. Many lyrics from the song do match this idea. The lyrics "Two boys on a playground/trying to push each other down" could possibly mean the USA and Iraq fighting over "Black Gold". It has been theorized that the lines "Keeps the kids off the streets/gives 'em something to do, something to eat" could mean young men and women ("kids") joining the military. And there is the fact that at about 1:56 various noises are heard: ambulance sirens, screams, cries, and what appears to be a news cast, which could represent the war. Pirner himself stated that the song was about war at the Dogwood Festival in Fayetteville, NC on April 24, 2010. He also stated that he was against war.
If this song is about the gulf war, then 'fill up the tank' could have a hidden meaning.
If this song is about the gulf war, then 'fill up the tank' could have a hidden meaning.