| Peter Murphy – Indigo Eyes Lyrics | 5 years ago |
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I can't quite pull it all together. The first verse is either a description of the apocalypse or the scene of a fatal fire. I can't quite figure out if the red angels are supposed to be actual angels of death or if they are meant to represent firefighters. In any event, our protagonist dies in the first verse. The chorus refers to a watchful deity, either exacting his/her revenge on the world or looking on in judgment of the soul of our protagonist. The second verse tells us that the deity finds our protagonist's faith to be lacking and he is not accepted into heaven. The playmate is a reference to the tale of Orpheus and Eurydice, but probably more directly a reference to the 19th century comic opera. In any event, our protagonist's salvation is the subject at hand. But alas, our deity is not persuaded by pleas for mercy. The third verse explains the revelation, that our protagonist was not evil, but merely estranged, and only when he witnessed the "angel's light burst waves" did his faith pull him from the fog of uncertainty, but of course, it is too late by then. I don't know much about this, but I believe that Indigo represents not only the transition for one life stage to another, but also is a reminder that one must take responsibility for one life, choices, beliefs, etc... At least I think this is the general idea. |
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| Genesis – Driving The Last Spike Lyrics | 5 years ago |
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I dusted this one off recently after hearing of the new tour. I’ve been listening to it for a few weeks. The song is so brilliant. I got to thinking there had to be more to it than just a story about the Navvies. To me, the key to unlocking the secret is found in the chorus. The narrator is asking a rhetorical question, “will you learn from my mistakes?” But what are his mistakes, and who is he talking to? The song tells not one, but three stories from the perspective of three successive generations. The first is literal, the second stories are more metaphorical. The generations are represented as such: The grandfather leaves his family and goes to work on the railroad. The father leaves his family and goes to war, then upon returning puts all of his efforts into his career. The son is a musician, leaving his family for a life on the road. Each story is being told concurrently and starts at the beginning. The verses progressively walk through each stage of each of the characters’ lives: young adulthood (innocence), adulthood (experience), and old age (enlightenment). Adulthood is separated by the conflict in each of the stories, when each character suffers a midlife crisis (the tunnel collapsing) losing both the vitality and the naivety of his youth. He realizes the meaning of life is to be a good person and put your family and those you love first. Each generation believes they are the greatest generation but inevitably fails to live up to its promise. So the lyric: “ they’ll never see the likes of us again” is a double entendre. In the first instance, displaying the hubris of youth. That is, “we were the greatest generation.” The second instance is meant to be ironic, “we were a generation of fools.” Except, in the case of the son, his story is not yet told, so he is asking both himself and his generation, “will we learn from the mistakes of the past?” So the song concludes with the chorus which is all three stories asking the listener, “are you going to learn from our mistakes?” Driving the last spike is a metaphor for finishing what you started, living up to the promise of your youth and the promise of your generation. It is a double entendre for putting the final nail in your own coffin. Putting the final ending on your own story. The tunnel represents tunnel vision. And its collapse marks the point in life when we realize that our youth is over. There are some wonderful tidbits in here if you look for them. I’ll break down my interpretation of the end of the song or “old age” section. “How we worked, how we worked like The devil for our pay Through the wind, through the snow And through the rain” Simply put, we put our life’s work ahead of everything else. “Blasting and cutting through Gods country like a knife Sweat stinging my eyes, there has to be a better life” In this case, God’s country is a metaphor for life, and we wasted it on work and looking for something better when we had it pretty good all along. “But I can hear my children's cry I can see the tears in their eyes Memories of those I've left behind Oh just still ringing in my ears Will I ever go back again Will I ever see her face again 'cause I'll always remember that night As they waved goodbye to their fathers” Now as old men, all are the haunted by memories of leaving their families and there is no chance to go back and fix it. “We came from the North And we came from the South With picks and with spades And a new kind of order Showing no fear of what lies up ahead They'll never see the likes of us again” This is a prideful exclamation, “we were the greatest generation.” “Driving the last spike Lifting and laying the track With blistering hands And the sun burning your back” The significance here is the sun burning your back, symbolizing turning away from enlightenment and happiness. The Buddha always meditated facing the east, or the rising sun. “But I can hear my children's cry I can see the tears in their eyes Oh memories of those I've left behind Still ringing in my ears 'cause I'll always remember that night As they waved goodbye to their fathers” Regret for his choices sneaks into his memories once again. “We followed the rail, we slept under the stars Digging in darkness and living with danger Showing no fear of what lies up ahead They'll never see the likes of us again” He concludes ironically, we were not the greatest generation, we simply did what we had to do to survive, and we sacrificed true happiness along the way. “Can you hear me Can you see Don't you hear me Don't you see” Or for all I know, it could just be about a railroad accident. |
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| Roxy Music – If There Is Something Lyrics | 6 years ago |
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I just got into Roxy Music over the past several months. I do not know if Bryan Ferry ever disclosed an official meaning for this song, but my interpretation is that this is a narration of the fall of man from the point of view of Adam. Adam is the young man in the Garden of Eden at the beginning. The second stanza is him speaking to God, basically saying, "You and me used to be good. But then I find out you created me only to tempt me and see me fall. I could have been happy all by myself sitting in the garden and growing potatoes." Then finally, in the last section he is chatting with Eve about life before the fall. If this was accurate, man what a genius Bryan Ferry is, and what a masterpiece this song was. What was he, like 25 years old? |
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| R.E.M. – Beat A Drum Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| A tribute to drummer Bill Berry - who halfway through his life (and after an aneurysm) decided he would rather be a farmer than a pop star. After all, Bill Berry was the one who used to "Beat a Drum" for REM. | |
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