This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.
Careless in our summer clothes splashing around
In the muck and the mire
Careless in our summer clothes splashing around
In the muck and the mire
Fell asleep with stains
Cake deep in the knees
What a pain
Now hang me up to dry
You wrung me out
Too too too many times
Now hang me up to dry
I'm pearly like the whites
The whites of your eyes
All mixed up in the wash
Hot water bleeding our colors
All mixed up in the wash
Hot water bleeding our colors
Now hang me up to dry
You wrung me out
Too too too many times
Now hang me up to dry
I'm pearly like the white
The whites of your eyes
Now hang me up to dry
You wrung me out
Too too too many times
Now hang me up to dry
I'm pearly like the white
The whites of your eyes
Now hang me up to dry
You wrung me out
Too too too many times
Now hang me up to dry
I'm pearly like the white
The whites of your eyes
In the muck and the mire
Careless in our summer clothes splashing around
In the muck and the mire
Fell asleep with stains
Cake deep in the knees
What a pain
Now hang me up to dry
You wrung me out
Too too too many times
Now hang me up to dry
I'm pearly like the whites
The whites of your eyes
All mixed up in the wash
Hot water bleeding our colors
All mixed up in the wash
Hot water bleeding our colors
Now hang me up to dry
You wrung me out
Too too too many times
Now hang me up to dry
I'm pearly like the white
The whites of your eyes
Now hang me up to dry
You wrung me out
Too too too many times
Now hang me up to dry
I'm pearly like the white
The whites of your eyes
Now hang me up to dry
You wrung me out
Too too too many times
Now hang me up to dry
I'm pearly like the white
The whites of your eyes
Lyrics submitted by euthanasia27, edited by dodgerblue
Hang Me Up to Dry Lyrics as written by Matthew Cole Aveiro Jonathan Bo Russell
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Downtown Music Publishing
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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I agree it's about being led on, and the lyric should definitely be changed to "muck and the mire"
What's intriguing about this song, is that the singer is perfectly aware that he's being led on, it almost makes you wonder if he truly wants to be let alone. This song may be entirely sexual. He's telling the "you" that he's been wrung out-- twisted, warped, robbed of juices over and over and over again. At the same time, it's almost as if the singer doesn't have a say in if he may leave the situation or not.
The line "mud caked deep in the knees" is definitely suggestive, just the idea of mud on knees suggests kneeling (and sexual favors ensuing), and the crevice of a knee joint being pact with mud can be taken as rather explicit sexual imagery. (Think about it.)
The second verse is almost trippy. Again, he's aware of how confusing the situation is ("mixed up in the wash"). The song brings accent to the word hot, and the entire line "hot water bleeding out colors" implies that there is a melding of one into another. Those involved (the two or three or more) are bathed, lost, and literally melting into each other in hot water. Again, a sexual reference.
At the end of the whole situation, he is left white (like eyes), colorless, beaten wrung out.. perhaps post-coitus?
For some reason, though, I want to take the "pearly as the whites of your eyes" to mean I'm just like you now. I have no support for this, just a feeling.
Anyone else feel me?
[oh and scuba, let us have our fun :)]
This song is far from an innuendo. I don't think you can interpret this song apart from the narrative of the rest of the album. The album centers around robbers and cowards making confessions to the listener, or hanging up their dirty laundry. In their youth the characters in this album all enjoyed sinning (splashing around in the muck and mire). Eventually they will die carrying the marks of their sins (fell asleep with stains/ caked deep in the knees). Willet is making a remark on how deep man's sin problem runs. But now the laundry faces judgement day, (Hang me up to dry/ you rung me out too many times). No matter how many times the clothes were rung out they could not be cleaned by the sinner. But amazingly they were "pearly like the whites of your eyes." This was due to nothing but the free grace of God who will remove the scarlet stain of sin and give us new clothes as white as snow if only we will believe in the sacrificial work of Jesus Christ who died on the cross to save us from our sins. The closing lines refer to the characters in the album who are all so similar in their depravity (all mixed up in the wash/ hot water bleeding our colors). We are all like each sinner in this album. The only thing that saves us is faith in Christ to be our righteousness for us. This interpretation fits with the "secret track" "Sermons vs. The Gospel." Only grace can save you from yourself. This song is a beautiful and very cryptic Gospel track.