What if we think of there being two "narrators" in this song? The intro verse uses the word "you" several times. So this person is reaching out, or wishing they could reach out, to the other, who is broken down and depressed. It is a whispered prayer... "if I could just pick up the phone."
The rest of the song is in the voice of the depressed person. They are stuck in their fear, their sadness, their sense of being abandoned (who's gonna break my fall). They never use the word "you."
The poetics of this are brilliant, and capture the essence of someone whose depression allows them to be done-in by the path of least resistance. The pain is evident in the words and in Brandi's incomparable voice.
If these two people are former lovers, it shows the lasting impacts of love lost as they try to navigate their grief.
What if we think of there being two "narrators" in this song? The intro verse uses the word "you" several times. So this person is reaching out, or wishing they could reach out, to the other, who is broken down and depressed. It is a whispered prayer... "if I could just pick up the phone."
The rest of the song is in the voice of the depressed person. They are stuck in their fear, their sadness, their sense of being abandoned (who's gonna break my fall). They never use the word "you."
The poetics of this are brilliant, and capture the essence of someone whose depression allows them to be done-in by the path of least resistance. The pain is evident in the words and in Brandi's incomparable voice.
If these two people are former lovers, it shows the lasting impacts of love lost as they try to navigate their grief.