The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight

I was a medic on the REM tour a few years ago. Michael Stipe and I became good friends after he tripped backstage and i had to look at him. This is my favorite song of all time so I couldnt help myself. I asked what it was about. After I healed him up, we went to the hang out room and we sat down, did something that is not socially acceptable and he explained the song line for line to me.

The song is about: Trying to buy Crystal Meth... here is how... Note the fact he repeats lines a lot throughout the song. This is because he was trying to get across how anxious he was to get his fix.

"This here is the place where I will be staying There isnt a number you can call the pay phone Let it ring a long long long long time If I dont pick up hang up call back let it ring some more"

At the time, he didnt have a phone. He was living with people who couldnt know what he was doing. So he told his dealer to call the payphone number when she was able to bring him his stuff. He wanted her to keep calling just incase he had to leave for a minute. If she didnt call, he wouldnt pick up the phone therefore the sidewinder, which is the metal line that links the phone to the booth is called a sidewinder, would just stay in a coil

"Call me when you try to wake her up"

He called his friend who knew the dealer. His friend said she was asleep after staying awake for a very long time. So his friend said he would go try to wake her up, but it didnt look like it was happening.

"Theres scratches all around the coin slot"

While waiting for the call, he was sitting and staring. He noticed all the scratches

"Like a heart beat baby trying to wake up"

He felt as if he was trying to get the feeling of a heart being asleep and then started up again

"This machine can only swallow money"

He kept feeding the machine quarters but nothing happened. It was just swallowing his money. She never picked up and it was a waste.

"You cant lay a patch by computer design"

He used to call lines of meth patches, because it patched him up and made him feel better. The computer design is the phone system. You cant get it through the phone system.

"Its just a lot of stupid stupid signs"

When he would call, he would reach the voicemail of his dealer which was a sign she wasnt ready yet.

"Tell her she can kiss my ass then laugh and say you were only kidding that way she'll know that its really... me"

He told his friend to tell her this. When he got frustrated he would flip out and tell her to kiss his ass. He didnt want her to not call him so he said to laugh about it. It was their thing so it was like a authentification.

"Baby instant soup doesnt really grab me today I need some more substantial"

When he was on meth, all he would eat was a cup of noodles once every couple days. Now that he isnt on it anymore, he needs something more substantial, real food, because his hunger is coming back.

"A can of beans or black eyed peas, some nescafe and ice... candy bar, a fallen star or a reading of Dr. Suess"

He is naming off the foods he liked to eat when he was poor. He associated those foods with being poor and not being able to afford fancy stuff. His favorite author was Dr. Suess. He loved Dr. Suess books. He could never focus and read one when he was on meth. So now that he isnt high anymore, he is able to sit down and read it.

"Cat in the hate came back, wreck a lot of havoc along the way"

He was able now to read Cat in the Hat, however he was going through withdrawls. So the ability to read Cat in the Hat brought havoc in the form of withdrawl symptoms.

"Always had a smile and a reason to pretend"

Basically how he used to treat the dealer. The reason to pretend an smile was he could potentially lose his connect if he was a dick to her.

"There world is flat backgrounds and little need to sleep but to dream"

If you have ever been on meth, after a couple of days on it, if you do not move your eyes, they go black. Its almost as if you are blinded for a moment. So the black backgrounds is all they see in their world, being that of a meth addict. When your on meth, you cant sleep. A few days into a binge, you start to feel like your in a dream. So you dont have a need to sleep but you have a need to dream.

"The sidewinder sleeps on its back"

Still no call.

"I can always sleep standing up"

He is determained to wait for the call

"Weve got to moogie moogie move on this one"

Originally he intended to say boogie, but one of his trademarks is if he screws up, its fine (hence the laugh after "a reading by Dr Suess") He finally decided to move on from this dealer and it actually led to him quitting meth. He started again, but he left that dealer.

So there you have it. Thats what the song is about.