| Simon and Garfunkel – I Am A Rock Lyrics | 13 years ago |
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On occasion the beautiful song can have an obvious, straight-forward meaning. Cutting oneself off from the world socially can seem like a workable solution, but it isn't. Loneliness hurts too, afterall. But ... to do a bit of over-analyzing ... "Safe within my womb": Throwing the common metaphor of the womb being a warm, safe place, consider that the womb is a temporary haven, in less than a year the inhabitant will be thrust into the cold, harsh world. In this case, though, I think they were going for the simple image and rhyme. |
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| Simon and Garfunkel – The Boxer Lyrics | 13 years ago |
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"I am leaving" but the fighter still remains. Intentional ambiguity? On one hand, the 'fighter' remains -- undaunting and keeps fighting, not giving up? On the other hand, he talks of leaving but never does. Personally, I think this song has to do with lies. The lies people tell us, but more the lies we tell ourselves. Our lofty dreams that will never come true. It's all a lie (lie-la-lie-lie lie-la-lie). The music is beautiful too. |
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| Pulp – They Suffocate at Night Lyrics | 13 years ago |
| This song reminds me of "Live Bed Show". The couple used to be in love, but not any more. During the day, they keep busy. At night, they are forced to face the reality that the intimacy is gone from their relationship. | |
| Pulp – 97 Lovers Lyrics | 13 years ago |
| 97 is an odd number. Divide it up, it's not even coupling. At the end of the day, 6 people aren't in love any more. The remaining number -- 91 -- is still an odd number. | |
| Pulp – Something Changed Lyrics | 13 years ago |
| I always thought this song was a welcome break from the loneliness and bleak reality of most of Pulp's songs. It's a simple song about falling in love, with the message that you don't need to question love, just enjoy it. A simple, positive, song that still maintains the beauty and magic consistent with Pulp. | |
| Pulp – Someone Like The Moon Lyrics | 13 years ago |
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I think this song is simply about loneliness and depression. Romance is not only missing from her life, it's never going to happen, she knows it, and it depresses her. Love songs on the radio only serve to mock her. And what makes it worse, none of her friends -- if she even has any -- helps her get through her loneliness. The quiet solitude of a moonlit night provides some comfort, but soon enough day and real life return along with the loneliness. |
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| Erasure – Am I Right? Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I always interpreted this as about a love interest that somehow never developed into a relationship. Something happens, and now it never will. He wanders the city in his melancholy, noticing various things, reflecting. He thinks to himself: Am I right? (Did I really have a chance with this man). Am I wrong? (There's no way he would have been interested in me) Am I just dreaming? (Who am I kidding? It doesn't matter what he thought about me. My love for him was only in my head; I can never love anyone) The imagery reflects the bittersweet meloncholia of the situation. Things are dark, but not exactly negative. Life goes on. Maybe it's not really a loss, because it's the loss of a possibility, and an imagined possibility at that. Of course, this is just my interpretation, biased by my own personal experiences and situation at a time when I heard this song and finally understood how there actually were three distinct possibilities and that "just dreaming" wasn't redundant. It's quite possible I got it all wrong. Either way, though, wonderful song. |
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| Erasure – Hideaway Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I agree, it's about coming out to ones family, and their reactions. This song could almost exactly be about me. I couldn't keep it secret anymore. My mother cried. My father found it awkward to talk to me for awhile. Fortunately for me, though, I was not rejected by the people I cared for. Unfortunately, not everyone is as lucky, especially years ago when this song was written. Ultimately, this is a hopeful song. You are who you are, and there are people who will love you. |
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| The Marshall Tucker Band – Fire on the Mountain Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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First off, how disappointing the publishers are being typical of the music industry and failing to realize that it's bad to try to skrew over the fans. That being said, I have memories about this song. Some time ago, a long long while back (well, maybe not that long), something sparked fragment of a memory, a couple notes of a song that I once heard but couldn't remember. I spend a few years actively listening to the radio (this was before the Internet as we know it, not that it would have helped) trying to figure out which song, based on one or two half-remembered notes. It was starting to drive me crazy. Then ... Success! I heard the opening steel-guitar riff and knew I'd found it. Some months or years later, I learned the Marshal Tucker Band would be in concert at the County Fair that year. Not going into my motivation, I got permission from my parents to take the bus to the fair, though -- I was probably about 10 or 12 at the time -- I had to be home by 8pm. Fates be darned, that was when the concern was scheduled to start. A normally obedient child, I decided whatever trouble I would get into would be worth the risk. Unfortunately, the audience that began to fill the auditorium could best be described as looking like Hell's Angels bikers. Probably nice people, but as a scared little boy alone at the fair, I decided it was best to head home. I would miss my deadline, but not too much. An explaination that I missed my bus (not untrue) plus reasonable parents meant I didn't get in trouble. I did manage to hear snippets of the song I came to hear as I waited for the bus. Flash forward to adulthood, my music tastes have shifted somewhat, and I realize there's still some "need-to-get" music missing from my collection. Normally, I try to get full albums instead of "Best Of"s, but for Marshall Tucker, it was all I could find. Sadly, I was disappointed. "Fire on the Mountain" is still a beautiful song, but almost all the others I don't care for at all. As for the meaning, lyrically it seems pretty straight-forward. Gold-rush/Western era, a man has hopes for himself and his family on the frontier, but ends up murdered. Musically, though, it's fantastic. |
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| R.E.M. – The Wrong Child Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I agree that the obvious interpretation is the child is disabled somehow, and that keeps him from going outside to play with the other children. I've never heard the interpretation about it being related to coming-out as gay. I never heard it that way myself (I am also gay). But upon reflection, I see how it could apply. Finally, whether or not intended this way, lyricsapoetry's interpretation relating it to Aspergers or other social handicap is how it usually strikes me. The child sees the other children playing and wants to join. When he gets the chance, he's at a loss of what to do. But it's not a totally bleak and hopeless song. The child makes a friend; the other children want to interact with him. The frustration, though, is that he knows there's something wrong with him that keeps him from interaction socially as others do. But it won't stop him from trying. One thing I saw once: A child wandering a playground, kids all around him were playing. Even though he physically was amongst them, he was just looking, as if from the outside. He wanted to join in, but didn't know how, even when invited. Made me think of this song. |
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| R.E.M. – World Leader Pretend Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I do not think this is meant about any political figure, real or imagined. It's a about a formerly self-centered person realizing his self-absorbed mentality doesn't work. He realizes that no, he's not the center of the world; it's not all about him. He thought he was or should be the leader of the world, but now realizes he's just been pretending to himself. An additional point -- not necessarily related to this song, but probably -- even miserable wretches can be self-centered. I once met a woman who was so wrapped up in her grief that she had made it her identity; it was her world. She's build up the walls, and it's up to her to knock them down. |
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| Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark – Electricity Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| If this was a They Might Be Giants song, we would take the lyrics at face value and conclude it's simply a song about ... Electricity! No deeper hidden meaning, no ulterior motive. Just a bit of fun talking about the movement of electrons. Why should OMD be held to a different standard? Unless there's a verified statement from OMD to the opposite, I say this song is nothing more than a simple song about electricity. (For what it's worth, I can totally envision a TMBG song with these exact lyrics.) | |
| Yazoo – Ode To Boy Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| Back in the days when I fancied myself a poet, I tried endless times to express the feeling of longing and admiring a beautiful and troubled young man. Upon hearing this song, I quit. The lyrics here express it much better than I could, complete with almost the same imagery I sought. Especially that last line. | |
| Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark – Stanlow Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I'm surprised there's not more information about this song, here or otherwise. All I've been able to gather is that there is a Stanlow oil refinery in England. It seems a stretch to link the lyrics to a refinery, though. |
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| The Smashing Pumpkins – Disarm Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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meeyowzah sums it up. Not too many people realize the pressures put on siblings of special needs children, particularly the pressure to be "the normal one". I'm not a huge fan of Smashing Punkins, but I count this as one of the best songs every produced. Ever. Both musically and lyrically, it is powerful and beautiful. After reading here the history of the song, all I could think of was "yup, that's it exactly". But ... I do want to add a paraphrase of another artist said about lyrics when asked what they meant: "I don't know, I just liked how it sounded". |
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| The Cure – Friday I'm in Love Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Three things I have to say about this song. 1) When it came out, I hated it, and it signaled the end of The Cure as a creator of superior music and lyrics. 2) My hatred for it did lessen when I saw them in concert with an ex, and in my mind gave it a sarcastic, cynical point of view -- making fun of happy love songs, and long in general. "Hey it's Friday, let's be in love!" 3) The lyrics are consistent with the theme of "It's Friday, time to relax/party". I'm fairly certain in one version of the song he sings "It's Friday I'm in love with." I agree with the comment about the lyrics about dancing. Eating at midnight? On Friday you can stay up. No school/work the next day. Friday is the start of the weekend, after drudging the whole week. Or maybe it's about drugs. Gotta wait till Friday so's to not be intoxicated at work. |
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