This song has always haunted me with it's timeless criticism of capitalistic values, human nature and the means people will sacrifice to reach an end, or possibly just a luddite's lament.
The valuable contributions in this thread about his breakup with CSN are very keen or at least his relationship with the producers that pushed the band into a corner, likely solves the "rose clipped by the bullwhip" lyric which has always troubled me, never really fit in with the rest of the scornful theme.
Then again the entire song may be a criticism of technology of which agriculture was the first incarnation. Humans stopped hunting and gathering the moment they figured out how to use the earth as a tool and not a gift. Thrashers two lanes wide conjures images of International Harvester combines in Kansas.
Basic overtones of the grim reaper also consume this song from beginning to end an inevitable death everyone faces, even if they catch an hour on the sun.
Neil makes it clear that even though adoption of this technology was not his choice he will eventually succumb to the same consequences as everyone else.
This song has always haunted me with it's timeless criticism of capitalistic values, human nature and the means people will sacrifice to reach an end, or possibly just a luddite's lament.
The valuable contributions in this thread about his breakup with CSN are very keen or at least his relationship with the producers that pushed the band into a corner, likely solves the "rose clipped by the bullwhip" lyric which has always troubled me, never really fit in with the rest of the scornful theme.
Then again the entire song may be a criticism of technology of which agriculture was the first incarnation. Humans stopped hunting and gathering the moment they figured out how to use the earth as a tool and not a gift. Thrashers two lanes wide conjures images of International Harvester combines in Kansas.
Basic overtones of the grim reaper also consume this song from beginning to end an inevitable death everyone faces, even if they catch an hour on the sun.
Neil makes it clear that even though adoption of this technology was not his choice he will eventually succumb to the same consequences as everyone else.