This song is about life's journey and his spirit from youth on through death...and trying not to lose his integrity of who he is on the inside.
The first part is the awakening of his spirit no doubt from the dabbling of drugs:
Oh, oh, oh brother totem pole
I saw your legends lined up
And I never felt more natural
Apart, I just came apart
He never felt more natural, having the high remove him from all of the reality that society has served up. An escape. "Apart, I just came apart" is not saying that he had a breakdown but that the high put him in touch with his spiritual side. Then...
Please, please, please sister Socrates
You always answer with a question
Show some kindness to a petty thief
Forgive, you did forgive
The mind expanding and how the high makes you look and search for answers. But it is not a natural high, being drug induced, he is "stealing" the knowledge. So he asks for forgiveness and his mind, he receives it. Then the mind always reverts back to something from childhood:
And watch the migrants smoke in the old orange grove
And the red rocket blaze over Cape Canaveral
You've been a father to me
In 1960's speak
His memories are sprinkled with "1960s speak" meaning he was influenced by the era of the 60s with free love and peace, and no motivation of material gain, and yes even drugs. He goes on more about the feeling of high
Give me comatose joy like we're on TV
While the mountain side was shining
Wild colors of my destiny
psychedelic, yes, but it is also prophetic for him. His spirit is that of purity and simplicity and that is his destiny to be that way.
I watched your face age backwards
Changing shape in my memory
You told me victory's sweet
Even deep in the cheap seats
That part is a memory of whoever was with him (maybe his dad?) in his younger days. "I watched your face age backwards" meaning this person looks much different in his memories than he does now. He taught him to enjoy life, no matter what his status in life is. Sort of a focus on the journey and not the destination.
Hey, hey, hey mother interstate
Can you deliver me from evil
Make me honest make me wedding cake
Atone, I will atone
Then as he got older, he bought into society's idea of what he should be as man. Mother Interstate...getting into the hustle of the secular world. Give up the lax lifestyle, give up the drugs (deliver me from evil), "make me honest, make me wedding cake": is society's cookie cutter lifestyle, the guy is supposed to wise up, get married and atone for the wrong that he's done in the past.
Wait, wait, wait mighty outer-space
All that flying saucer terror
Made me lazy drinking lemonade
A waste, it just went to waste
While he is rushing around and working non-stop and getting off track from his spiritual roots, a fearful reminder of that which is out of our hands: death. Colorful phrasing here where he is telling nature or god to Wait. Outer-space (heaven) flying saucer terror is just another take on the grim reaper. Depression sets in. He feels like everything was a waste.
Like the Freon cold out the hotel door
Or the white rocket fade over Cape Canaveral
You've been a daughter to me
Your buried shoe-box grief
With the death of a close friend,he talks about how quickly someone can leave us, like the cool air going out the door. She fades away the same as the rockets faded out of sight from his childhood memory. He was close to her as a daughter. Buried shoe-box grief eludes that she was simple too.
I felt your poltergeist love like savannah heat
While the waterfall was pouring
Crazy symbols of my destiny
Her spirit was still with him or visits him. Usually people describe a poltergeist visit as a chill or cool breeze but he refers to hers as a savannah heat, making reference to how strong and warm her love is. During this visit, he sees signs in the waterfall and it affirms his destiny.
I watched your face die backwards
Little baby in my memory
You told me victory is sweet,
Even deep in the cheap seats
In his memory she comes to life, or dies backwards...she is alive to him. Her return reminds him of who he really is. A simple man. He accepts it and he knows she accepts it too:
And you don't judge me
That's not your style
But I won't see you for a little while
And there's no worries
Oh lord, Whose got time?
All these changes are going to fill your mind
He wants to be with her again so that he can show her that he is still the pure person he once was. He won't see her for a little while because it is not his time to die yet. "All these changes" refers to how much things have changed since she died...including him. .
Like the citrus glow off the old orange grove
Or the red rocket blaze over Cape Canaveral
It's been a nightmare for me
Some 1980's greed
Gives me parachute dreams
Like old war movies
He said it was a nightmare because he drifted so far from what he really was on the inside.
Talks about how he got off track from the free love, peace and simplicity, to the 80's greed of more, more, more. Gotta have the big house, bmw, etc. Realized that it all wasn't what it cracked up to be...that he had formed the illusions, much the same as a kid dreams of being a war hero when they watch old movies.
While the universe was drawn
Perfect circles form infinity
All the while, his destiny was the same as it was in the beginning. The universe was doing what it would do anyway. This last verse, he returns to what he was, maybe even drifting in death to the spirit world and saying that he stayed simple and was still victorious
I watched the stars get smaller
Tiny diamonds in my memory
I know that victory is sweet
Even deep in the cheap seats
Ultimately, we all have the same demise, no matter our station in life.
This song is about life's journey and his spirit from youth on through death...and trying not to lose his integrity of who he is on the inside.
The first part is the awakening of his spirit no doubt from the dabbling of drugs:
Oh, oh, oh brother totem pole I saw your legends lined up And I never felt more natural Apart, I just came apart
He never felt more natural, having the high remove him from all of the reality that society has served up. An escape. "Apart, I just came apart" is not saying that he had a breakdown but that the high put him in touch with his spiritual side. Then...
Please, please, please sister Socrates You always answer with a question Show some kindness to a petty thief Forgive, you did forgive
The mind expanding and how the high makes you look and search for answers. But it is not a natural high, being drug induced, he is "stealing" the knowledge. So he asks for forgiveness and his mind, he receives it. Then the mind always reverts back to something from childhood:
And watch the migrants smoke in the old orange grove And the red rocket blaze over Cape Canaveral
You've been a father to me In 1960's speak
His memories are sprinkled with "1960s speak" meaning he was influenced by the era of the 60s with free love and peace, and no motivation of material gain, and yes even drugs. He goes on more about the feeling of high
Give me comatose joy like we're on TV While the mountain side was shining Wild colors of my destiny
psychedelic, yes, but it is also prophetic for him. His spirit is that of purity and simplicity and that is his destiny to be that way.
I watched your face age backwards Changing shape in my memory You told me victory's sweet Even deep in the cheap seats
That part is a memory of whoever was with him (maybe his dad?) in his younger days. "I watched your face age backwards" meaning this person looks much different in his memories than he does now. He taught him to enjoy life, no matter what his status in life is. Sort of a focus on the journey and not the destination.
Hey, hey, hey mother interstate Can you deliver me from evil Make me honest make me wedding cake Atone, I will atone
Then as he got older, he bought into society's idea of what he should be as man. Mother Interstate...getting into the hustle of the secular world. Give up the lax lifestyle, give up the drugs (deliver me from evil), "make me honest, make me wedding cake": is society's cookie cutter lifestyle, the guy is supposed to wise up, get married and atone for the wrong that he's done in the past.
Wait, wait, wait mighty outer-space All that flying saucer terror Made me lazy drinking lemonade A waste, it just went to waste
While he is rushing around and working non-stop and getting off track from his spiritual roots, a fearful reminder of that which is out of our hands: death. Colorful phrasing here where he is telling nature or god to Wait. Outer-space (heaven) flying saucer terror is just another take on the grim reaper. Depression sets in. He feels like everything was a waste.
Like the Freon cold out the hotel door Or the white rocket fade over Cape Canaveral You've been a daughter to me Your buried shoe-box grief
With the death of a close friend,he talks about how quickly someone can leave us, like the cool air going out the door. She fades away the same as the rockets faded out of sight from his childhood memory. He was close to her as a daughter. Buried shoe-box grief eludes that she was simple too.
I felt your poltergeist love like savannah heat While the waterfall was pouring Crazy symbols of my destiny
Her spirit was still with him or visits him. Usually people describe a poltergeist visit as a chill or cool breeze but he refers to hers as a savannah heat, making reference to how strong and warm her love is. During this visit, he sees signs in the waterfall and it affirms his destiny.
I watched your face die backwards Little baby in my memory You told me victory is sweet, Even deep in the cheap seats
In his memory she comes to life, or dies backwards...she is alive to him. Her return reminds him of who he really is. A simple man. He accepts it and he knows she accepts it too:
And you don't judge me That's not your style
But I won't see you for a little while And there's no worries Oh lord, Whose got time? All these changes are going to fill your mind
He wants to be with her again so that he can show her that he is still the pure person he once was. He won't see her for a little while because it is not his time to die yet. "All these changes" refers to how much things have changed since she died...including him. .
Like the citrus glow off the old orange grove Or the red rocket blaze over Cape Canaveral It's been a nightmare for me Some 1980's greed Gives me parachute dreams Like old war movies
He said it was a nightmare because he drifted so far from what he really was on the inside.
Talks about how he got off track from the free love, peace and simplicity, to the 80's greed of more, more, more. Gotta have the big house, bmw, etc. Realized that it all wasn't what it cracked up to be...that he had formed the illusions, much the same as a kid dreams of being a war hero when they watch old movies.
While the universe was drawn Perfect circles form infinity
All the while, his destiny was the same as it was in the beginning. The universe was doing what it would do anyway. This last verse, he returns to what he was, maybe even drifting in death to the spirit world and saying that he stayed simple and was still victorious
I watched the stars get smaller Tiny diamonds in my memory I know that victory is sweet Even deep in the cheap seats
Ultimately, we all have the same demise, no matter our station in life.