| Tom Waits – Widow's Grove Lyrics | 12 years ago |
| Pretty straight-forward murder ballad. | |
| Tom Waits – (Looking For) The Heart of Saturday Night Lyrics | 12 years ago |
| Tom Waits was in his early 20s when he wrote this song. Jesus. A paean to the youthful Saturday night and he was barely out of his teens himself. That's a fantastic talent. | |
| Tom Waits – Bad as Me Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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I see two possible interpretations of these lyrics: The first is that it is about a mutually destructive couple and is probably the most readily apparent reading. The second has a more sinister angle: 'the mattress in the back / the old gunnysack', references to blood, 'the thunder and the roar', 'your teeth have been wired', 'the one with gun... if you cut me I bleed'. It makes me think of a delusional guy pursuing a woman who he is sure is leading him on or provocative in some way ('Mother Superior / Wearing only a bra' - she pertains to be good but he sees the 'truth'). In the first verse the narrator describes what 'she' is, according to him: he compares her to things that somehow barb or stick in the craw. In the final verse he indicates what he is to her: 'the mattress in the back / the old gunnysack'. The message seems to be: 'this is where you're gonna end up honey. In the gunnysack, on my mattress in the back of my van'. In the middle verse we see the pursuit: "You skid in the rain / you're trying to shift'. Of course, this just as easily fits the first interpretation: a destructive couple that nonetheless can't get away from each other. But there's nothing really ruling out the second interpretation, which is the mark of a good song. |
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