Nicky edited down the lyrics to a way where there’s no other way to view them but as a goodbye or suicide note. I find that very odd since the Manics have gone out of their way to dispel the belief that Richey committed suicide after abandoning his car. Or maybe with close to 15 years gone they now accept the belief?
But in the context of seeing the entire piece, it is clearly not about Richey. It is about an old man on his death bed having one of his final conversations with an old friend. The piece is very long and Nicky used very little of it, using only a few lines from “William” and completely editing out the other end of the conversation from his friend.
But much like Elliott Smith or Kurt Cobain’s last songs, due to the fate of the writer, it’s almost impossible to not view them as a statement of intent. Even though they’re more than likely just misinterpreted character pieces. It’s not like their work wasn’t bleak before their inner-turmoil got too much. By the time they all made their final decisions, writing was probably the last thing they cared about.
Nicky edited down the lyrics to a way where there’s no other way to view them but as a goodbye or suicide note. I find that very odd since the Manics have gone out of their way to dispel the belief that Richey committed suicide after abandoning his car. Or maybe with close to 15 years gone they now accept the belief?
But in the context of seeing the entire piece, it is clearly not about Richey. It is about an old man on his death bed having one of his final conversations with an old friend. The piece is very long and Nicky used very little of it, using only a few lines from “William” and completely editing out the other end of the conversation from his friend.
But much like Elliott Smith or Kurt Cobain’s last songs, due to the fate of the writer, it’s almost impossible to not view them as a statement of intent. Even though they’re more than likely just misinterpreted character pieces. It’s not like their work wasn’t bleak before their inner-turmoil got too much. By the time they all made their final decisions, writing was probably the last thing they cared about.