For me, this song takes a turn during the saxophone solo in the middle. Clearly, the first part of the song is a father struggling to impress his own realities and priorities upon his son.
I feel the son resents his father's love affair with his own beliefs, his town.... a love affair the young son refuses to buy into. "There's a darkness in this town thats got us too..but they cant touch me now and you can't touch me now" and so... all men must make their way come independence day. FAST FORWARD.
I see the son returning to the town now a man. The town, what its stood for, has changed. The people, the culture, the values that the father tried to impress upon his son previously, have devolved over time. The highway is deserted, people have left town,"theres just people coming down now and they see things in different ways and soon everything we know will be swept away"......... when son returns.... he's not triumphant as he once surely would have been.
Rather, he is too late to preserve the values of his father that he once strived to avoid... and over time... arrived at independently of his father's force.
The use of the word "NOW" changes drastically throughout the song..... and come the end of the song, son is with father, and explaining to him that now he.... the father.... must say goodbye to his own town and values.
"I now know the things you wanted that you could not say.......i swear i never meant to take those things away." Those things being the values, beliefs and traditions of the town that have now abandoned the father, and ironically enough.... the son.... as well.
At the end, a matured grown son aligns with his father, who now must face his own independence day.... and rediscover himself... with his son by his side.
For me, this song takes a turn during the saxophone solo in the middle. Clearly, the first part of the song is a father struggling to impress his own realities and priorities upon his son.
I feel the son resents his father's love affair with his own beliefs, his town.... a love affair the young son refuses to buy into. "There's a darkness in this town thats got us too..but they cant touch me now and you can't touch me now" and so... all men must make their way come independence day. FAST FORWARD.
I see the son returning to the town now a man. The town, what its stood for, has changed. The people, the culture, the values that the father tried to impress upon his son previously, have devolved over time. The highway is deserted, people have left town,"theres just people coming down now and they see things in different ways and soon everything we know will be swept away"......... when son returns.... he's not triumphant as he once surely would have been.
Rather, he is too late to preserve the values of his father that he once strived to avoid... and over time... arrived at independently of his father's force.
The use of the word "NOW" changes drastically throughout the song..... and come the end of the song, son is with father, and explaining to him that now he.... the father.... must say goodbye to his own town and values.
"I now know the things you wanted that you could not say.......i swear i never meant to take those things away." Those things being the values, beliefs and traditions of the town that have now abandoned the father, and ironically enough.... the son.... as well.
At the end, a matured grown son aligns with his father, who now must face his own independence day.... and rediscover himself... with his son by his side.