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I hate this old place
And what it represents
And I hate who I was
And who I ended up since
But if you learned how to swim in case you'd drowned
Don't ask her for the water
Cause shell swallow you down
And she's ten miles of peace
And the hardest of nights
And her belfry's got arch
But her rooftops all right
But down here in the sewer
I'm smelling a rat
Don't ask her for the Whiskey
Cause her waters all that
And what horses we rode
Through what somber fields
With our lovers at war
And the dust on their heels
And the infidels screamed its all but a lie
Don't ask her for the water
Cause shell teach you to cry
Don't ask her for the water
Cause shell teach you to cry
And her weapon of choice is a red patterned dress
And a sac full of stones
With her hands on her chest
And a book full of quotes
And a tight fastened lip
Don't ask her for the water
Cause you'll sink like a ship
Don't ask her for the water
Cause you'll sink like a ship
And what it represents
And I hate who I was
And who I ended up since
But if you learned how to swim in case you'd drowned
Don't ask her for the water
Cause shell swallow you down
And she's ten miles of peace
And the hardest of nights
And her belfry's got arch
But her rooftops all right
But down here in the sewer
I'm smelling a rat
Don't ask her for the Whiskey
Cause her waters all that
And what horses we rode
Through what somber fields
With our lovers at war
And the dust on their heels
And the infidels screamed its all but a lie
Don't ask her for the water
Cause shell teach you to cry
Don't ask her for the water
Cause shell teach you to cry
And her weapon of choice is a red patterned dress
And a sac full of stones
With her hands on her chest
And a book full of quotes
And a tight fastened lip
Don't ask her for the water
Cause you'll sink like a ship
Don't ask her for the water
Cause you'll sink like a ship
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"and her weapon of choice
is a red pattern dress
and a sack full of stones
with her hands on her chest
and a book full of quotes
and a tight fastened lip"
She killed herself in a river with stones in her pocket...and she was a writer. Not saying the song's about her but this is surely a reference, no?
The question is, why would Virginia Woolf be using her death as a weapon? I think Ryan Adams must have admired her to reference her. So one can interpret this and say that she makes lovers/admirers cry from grief.
This is also not the first woman writer who Mr. Adams has written about. He also wrote about Sylvia Plath...I guess he has a thing for women writers.
What I don't get is the first half of the song.
wtf is a belfry?
what it represents
and i hate who i was
who i ended up since.....'cause she'll swallow you down
it's just 10 miles a piece
and the hardest of nights
and her bellfries got arch
but her rooftops alright
down here in the sewer"