I'm wheels, I am moving wheels
I am a 1952 Studebaker coupe
I'm wheels, I am moving wheels, moving wheels
I am a 1952 Starlite coupe

En route, les Souterrains
Des visions do Cody, Sartori a Paris
Strange spaghetti in this solemn city
There's a postcard we're all seen before

Buck wild-haired teens in dark clothing
With hands-full of autographed napkins
We eat apples in vans with sandwiches
Rush into the lobby life of hurry up and wait
Hurry up and wait, hurry up and wait
For all the odd-shaped keys
Which lead to new soap and envelopes

New soap and envelopes

Hotel room homesickness on a fresh blue bed
And the longest-ever phone call home

No sleep, no sleep, no sleep, no sleep, no sleep
And no mad video machine to eat time
A city scene, I can't explain the Seine alone at four AM

The Seine alone at four AM, the insane alone at four AM
Neal and Jack and me
Absent lovers, absent lovers

Neal and Jack and me
Absent lovers, absent lovers
Neal and Jack and me
Absent lovers, absent lovers
Neal and Jack and me
Absent lovers, absent lovers
Neal and Jack and me
Absent lovers, absent lovers
Neal and Jack and me
Absent lovers, absent lovers, absent lovers
Neal and Jack and me
Absent lovers
Neal and Jack and me
Absent lovers


Lyrics submitted by kornchick

Neal and Jack and Me Lyrics as written by Anthony Charles Levin Adrian Belew

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

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Neal And Jack And Me song meanings
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7 Comments

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  • +4
    General Comment

    Yeah props to edu for getting this one right. If you all read "On the Road" and recognize Kerouac's "spontaneous prose" as he coined it, youll find that Belew is actually writing these lyrics how Kerouac would write in "On the Road". As for the homoerotic references, I doubt that Belew is referencing the band cause those guys are all married. Most of the Beats were gay, by the way. Kerouac fooled around with a dude but freaked out and never felt right about it again. Ginsberg, William S. Burroughs, and the rest of the beats used to have boy toys. Neil Cassady, too.

    omfgitsdtcon May 17, 2010   Link
  • +3
    General Comment

    My guess on the "Absent lovers" lyric is rather than it being some kind of homo-erotic reference, it means the travelers are absent from their lovers, who are waiting at home.

    zorgoniteon July 04, 2007   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    The whole album is dedicated to the BEAT generation

    eduon August 10, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Another Autobiography of life on the road as a famous musician, tough life, no doubt. I must be too homophobic to take the last line literally, esp any of the 'boys in the band' at this time: Fripp, Levin, Belew, Bruford.

    drds63on March 30, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    i dont think the last line is literal. he is probably talking about neal cassady and jack kerouac. he mentions kerouac's books in french "en route"=on the road. "des visions of cody"=visions of cody."les Souterrains"=the subterraneans. etc... what can i say, i love jack kerouac and this band is cool for making reference to him.

    21matchstickson July 31, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    i dont think the last line is literal. he is probably talking about neal cassady and jack kerouac. he mentions kerouac's books in french "en route"=on the road. "des visions of cody"=visions of cody."les Souterrains"=the subterraneans. etc... what can i say, i love jack kerouac and this band is cool for making reference to him.

    21matchstickson July 31, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I personally agree with drds63 in that I think it's about the life of a travelling rock star. There are references to several aspects of the travelling life, such as new culture (strange spaghetti), the local night life (Past wild-haired teens in dark clothing With hands-full of autographed napkins we eat apples in vans with sandwiches), living in hotels (Hurry up and wait for all the odd-shaped keys Which lead to new soap and envelopes), and finally homesickness (the last 7 lines)

    seigion May 30, 2006   Link

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