This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
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The Night We Met
Lord Huron
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Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
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This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
Just A Little Lovin'
Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
I don't think it's necessarily about sex. It's about wanting to start the day with some love and affection. Maybe a warm cuddle. I'm not alone in interpreting it that way! For example:
"'Just a Little Lovin’ is a timeless country song originally recorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954. The song, written by Eddie Miller and Jimmy Campbell, explores the delicate nuances of love and showcases Arnold’s emotive vocals. It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives." https://oldtimemusic.com/the-meaning-behind-the-song-just-a-little-lovin-by-eddy-arnold/
Head > Heels
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
In his interviews Henley talks about the setting comes from a Hotel referred to as "The Garden of Allah" where the Fitzgerald's and Huxley's of the 1920's frolicked in a Bohemian lifestyle.
The expert appearance lines I think are in reference to the media circus of the OJ Simpson trial.
He does a backhanded jab at a pop group of the time known as "Collective Soul," when he points out it was "a lousy year for rock and roll."
Collective Soul's self-titled album competed head-to-head with Don Henley's "Actual Miles" (on which this song appears. "Collective Soul" (the album) was triple-platinum, and spawned two huge hits, "The World I Know" and "Gel." Collective Soul continues to release albums, and has widespread airplay around the world.<br /> <br /> They're hardly some "pop group of the time." They're still around touring and making albums. When's the last time Don Henley did anything but try to squeeze the last few drops of milk out of the Eagles' udders?
Let's see. I never quite understood what this song was about. But just now reading the lyrics, I find that it's seemingly about the world today and how the devil has nothing left to claim because we are all such sinful and evil people.
The video to this features one of the last appearences of Kirk Douglas as the devil.
This is one of Henley's deepest songs..
The devil is holding evil people accountable for their wrong doing on this earth. If you are not evil, you are not being talked to by henley's devil. the gomorah-by-the-sea comment can refer to any Corporation, institution where wrong doing is taking place. The "i am an expert witness...." and data manipulation, is classic Henley. I get him as if I hand written the song with him. I have dedicated this song to my Coroporation for Discrimination and retaliation. Henley is a philosoper that thinks exactly like me and sings and writes about the racisim that still exits in this country.
Liliana
I think it's: "no more room" and not "no more ruin".
Heavy lyrics! Are we so sinful and evil? Maybe our biggest sin is our ignorance - letting ourselves be misled by the Gods battling each other and gathering our souls as their armies. I sure wish Don Henley would say a couple of words about this song! If anyone sees him, please ask him to do so ;-)
Bitter bitter bitter. Henley's been a disillusioned cynic since (at least) the Hotel California days. And he lets it fly full force on this tune. He's holding nothing back in terms of his distaste for modern global culture.
Being a native Texan of his age, Henley undoubtedly heard more than his share of fire and brimstone in his younger years. And those apocalyptic references are showing more and more in his later work in not so subtle ways..."Building the Perfect Beast" being another example. And this tune is pretty much right in line with traditional Judeo/Christian philosophy in that the devil is the ruler of this world.
There's are lines in Joni Mitchell's "Woodstock" that say: "We are caught in the Devil's bargain" "And we've got to get ourselves back to the Garden" (Eden)
There was the innocence of the 60's with Woodstock. Then Henley wrote "The End of the Innocence". But at this point, the difference is that Henley doesn't see a way out. At least not culturally:
"the serpent's eyes shine as he wraps around the vine"
In other words...we're nearing the end of this experiment.
I'd like to see him do a Gospel album. Maybe find something positive to sing about. Somewhere.