This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
The music I heard once
Was louder than it is now
I can no longer distinguish
Pained cries from shouts of joy
Perhaps my ears are deaf
Or the interference too great
Still the order I remember
Has given way to discord
And while running wild was exciting
It was so only for a moment
Fleeting as a note
Leaving an even more transparent impression
The music I recall
Was different than it is now
For the new makes the old seem older than it is
To think from that
We grew into a new age
Suggests that ages past
Were not enough for adventuring souls
For stars too bright to be concealed
In a dark but beauteous night
We will paste upon the curled pages words
Like charming and romantic and sentimental
Forgetting that charming is witchcraft
Romantic is love
And sentiment is what makes us human
Was louder than it is now
I can no longer distinguish
Pained cries from shouts of joy
Perhaps my ears are deaf
Or the interference too great
Still the order I remember
Has given way to discord
And while running wild was exciting
It was so only for a moment
Fleeting as a note
Leaving an even more transparent impression
The music I recall
Was different than it is now
For the new makes the old seem older than it is
To think from that
We grew into a new age
Suggests that ages past
Were not enough for adventuring souls
For stars too bright to be concealed
In a dark but beauteous night
We will paste upon the curled pages words
Like charming and romantic and sentimental
Forgetting that charming is witchcraft
Romantic is love
And sentiment is what makes us human
Lyrics submitted by Vulpicide
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[quote] The music I heard once Was louder than it is now I can no longer distinguish Pained cries from shouts of joy Perhaps my ears are deaf Or the interference too great Still the order I remember Has given way to discord[/quote]
reminds me of the radio interference or blown speaks in the car how underlying whispers and chewed apart
And while running wild was exciting It was so only for a moment Fleeting as a note Leaving an even more transparent impression
The music I recall Was different than it is now For the new makes the old seem older than it is To think from that We grew into a new age Suggests that ages past Were not enough for adventuring souls For stars too bright to be concealed In a dark but beauteous night We will paste upon the curled pages words Like charming and romantic and sentimental Forgetting that charming is witchcraft Romantic is love And sentiment is what makes us human