Part of the strength of the lyric is that it makes hints and suggestions without ever tying things down or being really specific. It's very Dylanesque in this sense and also in the vocal phrasing - the way she sings the phrase ends reminds me of Dylan singing North Country Blues (written when Dylan was only 22, which just goes to show that young minds can also run very deep).
I feel the message of the song is a criticism of those who deceive, those who 'preach and pray and teach' , i.e. religious types, who are always anxious to offer facile answers to life's deep questions. Of course they always 'fall short' and the night 'explodes in laughter'. The second verse seems to mock those who try to anchor their philosophy and beliefs in an ever-shifting world, which you simply can't 'command all still'.
Although the song criticises religion, it also expresses understanding and empathy for the natural human weaknesses on which religion feeds. As for the chorus and the 'lion's roar', I think this is the roar of not knowing, the roar of doubt, of loneliness and of being vulnerable in an uncertain world. It's enough to make anyone feel a coward, perhaps even someone of a skeptical turn of mind who in moments of weakness may also be tempted to incline towards easy answers.
The song then seems to talk directly to a person that she wishes was 'more predictable', although I suppose this person may be metaphorical or even allegorical. Actually, I think the song may be about the same boy that she wrote 'Hard Believer ' for. She has said that he was very religious and I think 'the old, old winds blowing you back 'round' is him reverting to his old religious dogma, despite her best efforts to open his mind to other possibilities. Rosemary Hill was an author who wrote God's Architect, a biography about an actual architect. I don't see this reference as directly commenting on the author and book. Rather, I think Rosemary Hill is a beautiful metaphor to describe a place which gives sanctuary from the lion's roar of uncertainty and doubt. She shares her boyfriends fears but, unlike him, won't succumb to surrendering her mind to preachers. But she still loves him and dreams of singing him back to her and away from the deceiving preachers. Yes, the lion's roar is no better than a children's book, just old and dusty scriptures that we've all heard before. They draw their power by invoking the fear and loneliness that lies within us all, conjuring up our human frailty and making us cry 'the lonely wail of a lion's roar'.
Now, having thought a little about the song's meaning I like it even more. It really is a classic and very profound and beautiful.
Part of the strength of the lyric is that it makes hints and suggestions without ever tying things down or being really specific. It's very Dylanesque in this sense and also in the vocal phrasing - the way she sings the phrase ends reminds me of Dylan singing North Country Blues (written when Dylan was only 22, which just goes to show that young minds can also run very deep).
I feel the message of the song is a criticism of those who deceive, those who 'preach and pray and teach' , i.e. religious types, who are always anxious to offer facile answers to life's deep questions. Of course they always 'fall short' and the night 'explodes in laughter'. The second verse seems to mock those who try to anchor their philosophy and beliefs in an ever-shifting world, which you simply can't 'command all still'.
Although the song criticises religion, it also expresses understanding and empathy for the natural human weaknesses on which religion feeds. As for the chorus and the 'lion's roar', I think this is the roar of not knowing, the roar of doubt, of loneliness and of being vulnerable in an uncertain world. It's enough to make anyone feel a coward, perhaps even someone of a skeptical turn of mind who in moments of weakness may also be tempted to incline towards easy answers.
The song then seems to talk directly to a person that she wishes was 'more predictable', although I suppose this person may be metaphorical or even allegorical. Actually, I think the song may be about the same boy that she wrote 'Hard Believer ' for. She has said that he was very religious and I think 'the old, old winds blowing you back 'round' is him reverting to his old religious dogma, despite her best efforts to open his mind to other possibilities. Rosemary Hill was an author who wrote God's Architect, a biography about an actual architect. I don't see this reference as directly commenting on the author and book. Rather, I think Rosemary Hill is a beautiful metaphor to describe a place which gives sanctuary from the lion's roar of uncertainty and doubt. She shares her boyfriends fears but, unlike him, won't succumb to surrendering her mind to preachers. But she still loves him and dreams of singing him back to her and away from the deceiving preachers. Yes, the lion's roar is no better than a children's book, just old and dusty scriptures that we've all heard before. They draw their power by invoking the fear and loneliness that lies within us all, conjuring up our human frailty and making us cry 'the lonely wail of a lion's roar'.
Now, having thought a little about the song's meaning I like it even more. It really is a classic and very profound and beautiful.