| Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – O'Malley's Bar Lyrics | 19 years ago |
| God I love death | |
| Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – God Is in the House Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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God doesn't seem to be threatening or intimidating at all. In fact I don't think God is even present. It's a satyrical criticism of small-town christianity. They ignore everything that is going on around them, thinking themselves so self-righteous because they have God. The breeding 'all the kittens white' thing is clearly racial point. And they try to hide their prejudices by explaining that they 'have a woman for a mayor'. The key to this song is the progression of the penultimate lines of each chorus: "No cause to worry now" shows a blind confidence. "And noone's left in doubt" suggests more that there is doubt. "Any day now he'll come out" getting a little bit panicky "Oh I wish he would come out" could they be on their knees 'as quiet as a mouse' for something that isn't there. If they were not surrounded by all of this degradation and sin then how do they no about it. |
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| Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – And No More Shall We Part Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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I'm not sure about him killing himself... but he definitely knocks her off. It wouldn't be out of place on 'Murder Ballads'. This song has always reminded me of the Robert Browning poem 'Porphyria's Lover'. It's about a Lady (like Lord) who visits the gardener (or servant or local hand or whatever) for some lurve (Lady Chatterley's Lover kinda thang). Anyway he's pissed right off cos he wants her all to himself and so, when she is in her arms, he strangles her with her own hair ('That moment she was mine, mine, fair,/Perfectly pure and good: I found/A thing to do, and all her hair/In one long yellow string I wound/Three times her little throat around,/And strangled her'). He then sits with her all night, with vague connotations that he's been indulging in some death-sex ('And thus we sit together now,/And all night long we have not stirr'd,/And yet God has not said a word!'). Mind you that's well off the point; just a cool poem. I don't see how he kills himself. The birds are singing 'to your beautiful heart'; not 'our beautiful hearts'. In this song God does have something to say about it (unlike in Porphyria). However, God's lines are implied as we only hear the (clearly insane) narrator. The conversation probably goes something like this God: Nick ol' son... what in the name of FUCK have you just done? Nick: Chill out man. Don't go off on one. I had to do it cos I never was free. God: You stupid little prick. What the fuck are you talking about. You were always free. I fuckin gave you free will and look what you've done with it. ASSHOLE!!! Listen I know the missus was a bit of a nag, and ok yeah it did look like she was about to leave you, but to silence her 'chain of command'... what are you sick? Nick: Whoaoa. Dude... this is when I need you most. Don't go down now. I was never free. What are you talking about? The narrator thinks that by 'lock'ing the 'ring upon the finger' he will be able to stop his wife's independent thought. The only way he can 'lock' it on is by removing her ability to take it off. So he kills her. |
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| Tom Waits – What's He Building in There? Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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What a song!!!!!!!!!!!! I agree with the idea that we should be looking more at the townsfolk than 'he'. All of the information that we're given is either heresay from the reliable 'Mr Stiches' (or 'I heard he was up on the roof last night signaling with a flashlight') or not particularly incriminating ("oh shit his lawn is dying"). But Waits never gives us a clear answer. There is always an ambiguity. And noone can deny that, although the actions of the man have been recorded to a ridiculous extent, the guy's still pretty sinister. His distance from the other townsfolk and that chilling whistling that closes the song can confirm that his actions are justifiably suspect. |
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| Bob Dylan – Ballad of a Thin Man Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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I'm not going to pretend that I've sat down and analysed these lyrcs. However I cannot comply with this homosexual subtext. The points that have been made, with such confidence, are extremely tenuous. Some of lyrics that have been drawn upon to express this theory do contain certain words that could be interpretted as having gay connotations. But only today. This was the 60s and these words didn't possess such associations. It is an obvious remark to say this is a criticism of a journalist or the press; the misunderstanding of the beat culture. But who can pretend that they would not be severely freaked out by the crazy shit that's going down. It's too easy to criticise the character of Mr. Jones, because we all hold Dylan, the man, the persona, or the idea, very close to our hearts. But Jones aint that bad. I don't think Dylan is intending to make Mr. Jones out to be a bad guy. You could criticise him as being too eager, over-confident, or he could even be someone out of his depth having his first acid trip. But the fact that the events are so surreal, the lyrics bordering on nonsense verse, suggests to me that Dylan could be having more of a dig at the pretention of the arty types. It seems much more like the other characters are trying to fuck with Mr Jones. They read like characters from Alice in Wonderland. I'm not denying that there is a strong anti-press sentinment. However, I would argue that the narrator is a character Dylan adopts and should be as open to criticism as the thin man himself. The aggressive tone in which he sings the refrain doesn't sound like the character-Dylan in other contemporary songs. Its one of the freaks. It's the cheshire cat. The poor guy seems to have been sent to this crazy party or other world in order to write an article and is abused verbally and physically. He's well read and clearly successful; just out of his depth. All I really am trying to say is that we should all chill-out a bit when it comes to Mr Jones. It's not his fault he doesn't understand why a dwarf would be screaming 'NOW'! |
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