Lyrics for Tin Man as interpreted by Ice

Tin Man Lyrics
Sometimes late
When things are real
And the people share the gift of gab
Between themselves

Some are quick
To take the bait
And the catch the perfect prize
That waits among the shells

But Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man
That he didn't, didn't already have
And Cause never was the reason for the evening
Or the tropic of Sir Galahad

So please
Believe in me
When I say I'm spinning round, round, round, round
Smoke glass stain'd bright colors
Image going down, down, down, down
Soapsud green like bubbles

Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man
That he didn't, didn't already have
And Cause never was the reason for the evening
Or the tropic of Sir Galahad

So please
Believe in me
When I say I'm spinning round, round, round, round
Smoke glass stain'd bright colors
Image going down, down, down, down
Soapsud green like bubbles

No, Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man
That he didn't, didn't already have
And Cause never was the reason for the evening
Or the tropic of Sir Galahad

So please believe in me
---
"Tin Man" as written by Dewey Bunnell
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., EMI Music Publishing
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kfe2
02-03-2006

 Rated  0 
It say that what you're really looking for is with you the whole time.

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Frau
02-24-2006

 Rated  0 
Catchy song. I agree with KFE2. You´re depressed, you´re down, because you think you don´t have what you want...and what did Oz gave to the Tin man anyway?

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kfe2
03-14-2006

 Rated  0 
Wow someone agrees with me, thats amazing. Actually thats a great point you brought up, because Oz never gave the Tin Man anything anyway, he didn't get a heart, since he didn't need one, the power for him to love was always there.

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delial
09-27-2006

 Rated  0 
I agree with you also kfe2, one of the reasons that over the years i grew to like the wizard of oz! it's a nice message...and this song is so infectious, it's hard not to enjoy.

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awkward...
09-11-2007

 Rated  0 
everything makes sense except for

So please believe in me
When I say I'm spinning round, round, round, round
Smoke glass stain bright color
Image going down, down, down, down
Soapsuds green like bubbles

i mean, what is that?? plz explain

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rockographer
03-21-2008

 Rated  +1 
This is my take on the song.

1st Verse

Paranoia. Quote Dewey Bunnell (wrote, sang, played guitar for AMERICA) "We were exposed to more and more sophisticated people, and there were times I found myself saying things I wish I hadn't."

Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man that he didn't already have.

Wizard of Oz referenced. Oz never did give the Tin Man anything in the end of the story. The Tin Man already had a heart, he just didn't have faith in it.

Cause never was the reason for the evening or The Tropic of Sir Gallahad - Just because wasn't the reason for the get-together, neither was being chivalrous, being a gentleman.

Spinning round, round - kaleidoscopic imagery

All put together could mean - You may find yourself in a gathering of upper class people. Not sure why you went , you just did. As you talk to sophisticated people, you may feel your mind spinning (round, round, round). Believe in yourself. Just like the Tin Man in the Wizard Of Oz, you may find that there is something inside you that you don't know exhists but it is already there. You just have to believe in yourself, or as the song begs "Believe in me." Like saying "I'm not a dork, I'm just intimidated. Give me some time to get used to this situation I'm in, cause right now my mind is spinning stupid thoughts. There is a reason I was invited but I have no faith in myself right now. I'm working it out in my head and will get back to you once these thoughts have cleared."

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1 Reply  · 
drh_08
06-09-2008

 Rated  0 
Interesting interpretation rockographer. I never thought about the song that way before...

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leonardo217
09-12-2009

 Rated  0 
Perhaps more than any other song, the lyrics to "Tin Man" have been scrutinized by America fans and general observers alike. From Internet chat rooms to TV quiz shows, people have wondered what lyrics like "Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man that he didn't, didn't already have" meant. Over a decade later, Dewey looked back at the unorthodox songwriting method which produced this memorable song:
Great English, that one... isn't it? Good grammar. That line was just lifted straight off the "Wizard Of Oz." In the end all of those characters already had brains and courage and a heart, and so on. And of course Tin Man was the heart. Essentially I do use words very haphazardly. I just put words together and in a lot of cases it's like word association... I hope there's always a positive side to all my songs... No message as such, no, it's just flighty, colorful words. Certainly if that one line suggests that we all have something within us that we may be looking for, then that is the message, to seek within. But I don't like to get too heavy on any of that stuff...

Source: Comprehensive History: America Revisited
http://www.accessbackstage.com/america/hist01.htm


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General Comment
marcopolo
12-24-2009

 Rated  0 
Quote Dewey Bunnell (wrote, sang, played guitar for AMERICA) "We were exposed to more and more sophisticated people, and there were times I found myself saying things I wish I hadn't."

Over a decade later, Dewey looked back at the unorthodox songwriting method which produced this memorable song:
Great English, that one... isn't it? Good grammar. That line was just lifted straight off the "Wizard Of Oz." In the end all of those characters already had brains and courage and a heart, and so on. And of course Tin Man was the heart. Essentially I do use words very haphazardly. I just put words together and in a lot of cases it's like word association... I hope there's always a positive side to all my songs... No message as such, no, it's just flighty, colorful words. Certainly if that one line suggests that we all have something within us that we may be looking for, then that is the message, to seek within. But I don't like to get too heavy on any of that stuff...

He didn't write it. Sorry Dewey.
Fraud in the entertainment biz doesn't end with Ashley Simpson, The Monkeys, Beach Boys, Milli Vanilli. Ghost writing is much more prevalent in the business then you'd ever imagine.
1st Verse
Gift of gab = Art of persuassion = politics = political ideas
The simplified explanation..
Sometimes when it's in the 11th hour before a crisis
People exchange political ideas amongst themselves
Some fall for the promises only to find it's the same old stuff

It's really a little more than that but this good enough, to explain the rest requires a lot of background.

2nd Verse
evening = the results at the end of the day = actions taken
Governments never did anything for the common man that he wasn't able to do for himself
And the stated Causes are never the reason for the actions taken. (example: we didn't go into Iraq for WMDs. But you can substitute anything..Global Warming..Healthcare, etc)

3rd Verse
Smoke Glass stain bright color = TV = Media
We're getting spun and propagandized all the time by the madison ave money machine

The group is a America. The song is a cautionary tale to beware the lures of Socialism.

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My Interpretation
marcopolo
12-24-2009

 Rated  0 
Can't believe I forgot Sir Galahad.

tropic meaning remotely

Causes were never the reason for the actions taken at the end of the day
or anything remotely close to well meaning Chivalrous, galant .. you get it

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Song Meaning
j50weLLs
03-26-2010

 Rated  0 
My take on the song is that America did have a specific meaning to it but possibly said all that jargon to the press out of embarassment? If you read into the meaning of the song it seems to say that the Tin Man was a nobody lonely guy. "Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man. That he didn't already have." In truth Oz didn't give the Tin Man a heart. He didn't get anything from Oz (heart) "that he didn't already have" (not a heart). The Tin Man represents a hollow shell of a man in a lonely orchard rusting away. The song also talks about other people having the gift of gab and then seems to say that some will take the bait, (of trying to fit in) and when they fail they will be put on the shelf.

In the chorus he says "Please believe in me". Whoever wrote the song is explaining himself. He's the Tin Man and has been put on the shelf but is wanting people to believe in him.

Spinning round....image going down represents the heartache of being shelved and thus being a Tin Man.
It seems as if the writer wrote the song to express himself. Song writers do this quite often. Songs that come from the heart tend to have more feeling and meaning. And when you listen to the song you can feel it. I think the writer may have been embarassed of the song and its meaning as he got older and so said those things to the press.

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General Comment
spotomorse
11-19-2010

 Rated  0 


Experiencing life transcends its interpretation. It's spontaneity and creativity and not direction
or causation that promotes our being and the sharing of self with others.

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Song Meaning
americanscientist
01-21-2011

 Rated  0 
When a situation has already transpired,
And convincing people talk amongst themselves
Some of them are quick to buy into the "BS"
And reap the comfort/satisfaction of knowing they've diverted a crises/accomplished a solution

Believe in yourself/have no doubt in your own ability/don't be convinced b/c it's convenient.
Don't take comfort in someone else's "pitch" b/c things do not happen "just because" or as a result of benevolence.

Here is the one truth. It's all "BS."
Too many convincing opinions are floating about
It is causing confusion and blinding us from the truth that we naturally seek

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My Interpretation
ConductivePigeon
06-01-2011

 Rated  0 
Whatever you think it means, it's still an amazing, catchy song.

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General Comment
jenniferkatz
08-21-2011

 Rated  0 
I think this song means that he didn't feel like he could keep up with how people talk, and relate to each other, so f**k em, and he'll just go get high on acid and have a lovely trip while everyone else is playing head games with each other!

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General Comment
TruthConveyor
10-04-2011

 Rated  0 
Dewey Bunnell penned the lyric and he says:

"The song is jumbled in my mind--there's not a lot of cohesiveness. I had really liked the chords, those major-sevenths. It was up and kind of bouncy, with a little Latin-y feel to it. That's how it is: I get the chords and the melody, and then I have to get some words."

"My favorite move of all time was probably The Wizard Of Oz, it still amazes me how great that movie is. And here's my classic use of bad grammar: 'Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man...' Another god-awful use of the language. But it served the purpose. But that was really the only cohesive thought I had. How do I convey that? The first verse--I guess that was a little bit of paranoia. We were being exposed to more and more sophisticated people, and there were times that I found myself with my foot in my mouth, saying things I wish I hadn't. The first verse is very ambiguous. 'The Tropic of Sir Gallahad' is a whole other image to me about being chivalrous or a gentleman. 'Spinning round, round, round, smoke glass stain bright colors...'--that's all just purely kaleidoscopic imagery. The melody definitely dictated those words, because it was a swirling, rising thing."

Read more: http://www.accessbackstage.com/america/song/song036.htm

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Song Meaning
Myche
11-08-2011

 Rated  +1 
Tropic of Sir Galahad obviously means heaven or nirvana or spiritual matrix, ecstasy, walk about, spiritual quest, etc. Because the dictionary definition of the word tropic is "area of' and Galahad was on a spiritual quest for the Holy Grail and he attained heaven.

Cause could have to continuous explaining your actions or behaviors or continuously rationalizing or justifying oneself. In the hippy sense meaning we do not have to have a reason for everything or there is not necessarily a meaning or reason for everything or every action. Also it could have to do with the fact that explaining something does not make it happen.

LSD trips were often very dissociative.

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2 Replies  ·  Song Meaning
Myche
11-08-2011

 Rated  0 
Tropic of Sir Galahad obviously means heaven or nirvana or spiritual matrix, ecstasy, walk about, spiritual quest, etc. Because the dictionary definition of the word tropic is "area of' and Galahad was on a spiritual quest for the Holy Grail and he attained heaven.

Cause could have to continuous explaining your actions or behaviors or continuously rationalizing or justifying oneself. In the hippy sense meaning we do not have to have a reason for everything or there is not necessarily a meaning or reason for everything or every action. Also it could have to do with the fact that explaining something does not make it happen.

LSD trips were often very dissociative.

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Song Meaning
Mofowizard
01-23-2012

 Rated  0 
"Sometimes late when things are real and people share the gift of gab between themselves."

"Some are quick to take the bait and catch the perfect prize that waits among the shells.

Sometimes late at night when people have nothing better to do, they congregate at parties, clubs and social scenes. Many people enjoy talking and many of them talk even then they have nothing particularly relevant or interesting to say. They just want to try to fit in with the social scene. They feel important when others listen to them. These people are interposers and social opportunists.

This is a shell game because what the interposer has to say may be relevant and interesting to the others and they could be encouraged to continue, i.e., "catch the perfect prize among the shells". Or, probably more likely, the interposer fails to entertain and is deemed irrelevant to the established socialites and intellectuals.

"But Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man that he didn't, didn't already have."

The interposer, or "Tin Man", is seeking to be made whole through social acceptance in situations where he or she may not belong. But the other people may also be tin men in their own right. Although they seem socially connected, they each have their own deficiencies, fears self doubts. It is impossible for these people to give the Tin Man what he really needs, that being self confidence to go out and make his own mark.

"And Cause never was the reason for the evening or the tropic of Sir Galahad."

The interposer or Tin Man should realize that he is in this place by choice and he could easily wake up and realize that he would be better off somewhere else. Other people's opinions are not as important as his own opinion of himself. Everyone won't fit in every place. It is up to each of us to find where we belong. The the problem of social acceptance will be solved.

"So please believe in me when I say I'm spinning round, round, round, round..."

Note to self: although I'm trying hard to fit in here, I really don't think that this is working out for me. Believe me when I say that I'm really confused about what my next move should be. I feel like I'm spinning out of control, wasting my time and I'm not thinking clearly. In my heart, I know that I'm going in the wrong direction but I really need to work on my self confidence and perhaps I need to pray for direction and purpose. I'm going to work hard to figure this out so I can do better. I owe myself that much. I'm going to make a conscious decision to believe in myself from now on.

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1 Reply  ·  General Comment




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