submissions
| Primus – Jerry Was a Race Car Driver Lyrics
| 1 year ago
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I always assumed Captain Pierce is a comparison to Jerry. Jerry's life is over quickly because he's reckless, but the Captain is eventually put out to pasture, too. The end is inevitable no matter how responsible you are. |
submissions
| Tears for Fears – Head Over Heels Lyrics
| 2 years ago
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IIRC, this song draws a lot from the writings of psychotherapist Arthur Janov.
Basically it's about a man recognizing that the intense attraction he feels for this woman, and their mutual inability to really connect, is rooted in the traumas both experienced as children. They've both had unhealthy examples set for them by their own parents, and the writer is realizing that he's been playing out that same drama over and over in a series of infatuations/relationships, desperately trying to gain the acceptance of someone who can't quite accept him, because of her own traumas.
"One little boy, one little man".
Might be the most surprisingly deep song love song I've ever heard. Sounds like happy pop music but there's a lot to it. Like one of those videos where a person steps into what they think is a puddle only to find themselves submerged up their neck, lol. |
submissions
| Peter, Paul and Mary – Three Ravens Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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This is a very old song. It was already an old folk ballad when first transcribed about 400 years ago. It's pretty much what it appears to be, if I'm not mistaken-- just three ravens discussing what they should eat that morning. They consider a slain knight, but he's still attended by his loyal hawk and hounds. His pregnant lover (leman is a sweetheart) bears him away, buries him, and then commits suicide.
It ends with a comment how fortunate the knight was to have such loyal companions. |
submissions
| Clutch – The Regulator Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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I always took this as something written from the perspective a man who's either planning to kill his cheating lover, or already has done it and is sitting in prison awaiting execution. |
submissions
| Wye Oak – Civilian Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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This song seems to me like it's written from the perspective of a woman who's relationship has ended. The line about 'you still sleep in the bed with me' is, I think, more metaphorical. Like they linger there in her memory. The 'baby teeth' line kind of ties into it, describing a person who really holds onto their past tightly. |
submissions
| The Police – Synchronicity II Lyrics
| 14 years ago
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It's also interesting to note that the man is always 'staring into the distance', and this monster is 'many miles away'. That's a big part of what makes me think the monster is a metaphor for his own mental state. |
submissions
| The Police – Synchronicity II Lyrics
| 14 years ago
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I think this song is just about the desperation of modern life, and the way this man's sanity is hanging by a thread. Apparently it's starting to show externally as well, as no one hassles him when he goes through the picket line that day.
I think the monster and the Scottish lake are metaphors for his psychological state. Something primal is coming up from the depths. The 'shadow on the door' is a pretty suspenseful bit of imagery to end with, and I think it implies that something has broken, or at least changed in this man's mind. |
submissions
| Talking Heads – Once In A Lifetime Lyrics
| 14 years ago
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This is one of those songs that seemed like just a bunch of nonsense lyrics when I first heard it at 17, but has made and more sense as time has passed.
I think it's about the way we can coast through life, just doing the things we think we're 'supposed to do', one thing leading into another; college, career, marriage, kids...
And one day you sort of pull your head up above the surface and look around and wonder where you lost yourself. It feels like it's been buried under a pile of titles and possessions and responsibilities and you've drifted into a place you never intended to go. |
submissions
| Beck – Farewell Ride Lyrics
| 15 years ago
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Definitely agree with your interpretation of it being an echo of the Blind Lemon Jefferson son. As for the speculative "may be your last farewell ride", it seems to me like this is an non-religious response to the original's religious theme.
Jefferson's version mentions how he 'now believes what the Bible said' and all of that. This guy is saying death is the end, he's going to be buried and that's it. |
submissions
| The Decemberists – On the Bus Mall Lyrics
| 16 years ago
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I always took the line, "I will not mourn for you", to be related to the way the one boy's family felt about him. His mother was "grieving" for him, either because he'd come out, or because he'd run away from home.
The narrator is also family, but doesn't condemn him. |
submissions
| The Decemberists – The Soldiering Life Lyrics
| 16 years ago
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I love this song, and I definitely agree with all the people noting the homoerotic angle. In the context of the rest of the lyrics, the line, "my brother in arms" seems to have a double meaning.
It seems like it's about a man who's in a terrifying situation, and also in love. "Never felt so much life" describes how I would think that might feel. That'd be a very emotionally intense situation. |
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