| Elton John – Rocket Man Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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@[mark2marie:2664] Have to disagree about a few things. First off the wife. When this was written, it was common for a wife to pack her husband a lunch for work each day. She would also pack his suitcase for him before leaving for a trip, even a business trip. I feel that this shows she is being supportive and understanding in what he does. I have a cousin who works in the oil fields. He is gone for extended periods and his wife always packs his bags before he leaves. The fact that she does this the night before shows that she wants to make sure he is ready to go when he needs to leave to catch his 9 am liftoff. I feel that rather than referring to a strained marital separation, it refers to a necessary and agreed upon separation due to work. Again, my cousin in the oil fields is away from his family for a week or more at a time, but he knows the money he is making is building a better life for them. He could move them closer to where he works, but it is not a good place for the kids to be, just like in the song. When then song was written, many people stayed around their family and the grandparents and other relatives helped raise the kids. There is none of that on Mars, no one to raise the kids in the way that will help them become better people. So he leaves each week, sacrificing the time he could be spending with them so that they can be around their relatives. I agree that there is a difference between an astronaut and a rocket man, but I think it is more along the lines of how commonplace the job had become. Rather than have the glory and fame that came with being an astronaut, he is just a Rocket Man. Like a garbage man rather than a sanitation engineer. But he wanted to be one. He enjoys his job. And people don't understand that. Remember that one definition of the phrase "high as a kite" can be to be really excited about something, rather than just a drug reference. He really looks forward to going to work, because he loves his job. He will literally be high as a kite (the rocket taking off) and emotionally because he is back at what he loves doing. I do agree that he is a better man than they think, and that he is frustrated that the people who knew him growing up think he is in a menial, boring job. That he just abandons his family each week, rather than seeing the sacrifices he is making to make things better for his family. The song "Black Sheep of the Family" by John Anderson does a great job of referencing exactly what I mean. Everyone else looks down on him, but he is doing what he loves, his wife is loving and supportive, and he is happy. The rocket man hopes that one day he will come back to find that people finally understand what a great thing he is doing, but he knows it will be a long, long time, if ever, before that happens. A song about a family man doing what he has to do and loving it, despite what others think. |
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| Elton John – Rocket Man Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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@[boredman:2663] While I agree with the comparison to a blue collar job, I have a different take on a few things. I don't think he is so much disillusioned with his job, after all he does say "I'm a Rocket Man" with some pride. Rather than burning out his fuse referring to being burnt out with the way he feels about his job, I think it is more a "spacey" reference to burning your candle at both ends. I think the song is about how he is doing everything he can to make life better for his family, by working at a job that takes him away from them for extended periods. This is the case with many blue collar workers, especially truck drivers and oil field personnel. They could relocate their family to be closer to where they work, but the place is inhospitable and not really something they want their kids around. There are a lot of people who commute long distances because they would rather their kids grew up in the suburbs or the country rather than in the city, which many people feel is cold and impersonal. Rather than sucking out his soul, I think he takes pride in his work. "I'm not the man they think I am at home". I think home isn't his house, his family, but rather his hometown and the people he grew up with. Many people refer to the place and people they knew in school as "home". A lot of people view most blue collar workers as not being smart or skilled enough to get a better job. They don't see how someone could possibly enjoy that work. Their perception is that he is stuck in a menial job, and that he is a bad father/husband because he is gone so much from home. However he is pointing out that he isn't the man they think he is. He LOVES his job and takes pride in the fact that even though he is gone from his family so much, that he is building a better life for them. He is sacrificing the time he could be spending with them so that they can grow up in a better place. There's no one there to raise them, I think, refers to the fact that during this period many families stayed in the same area, with the grandparents and relatives taking an active role in helping to "raise" the kids. If they were to move closer to where he worked, where they could be together all the time, then they would be away from that influence. He would rather they were around those who could help raise them into good people, rather than be isolated in a place that was cold and unwelcoming. I also think that he realizes that it will be a long, long time, if ever, before he is able to convince the people "at home" (from his hometown) that he isn't just someone stuck in a menial job that leaves his family, but that he is much better than that. But he hopes with each "touchdown", or return back, that they will finally "get it". Also I think the fact that his wife packed his backs before he left shows how close they are. Remember that during the time this was written, it was pretty common for the wife to pack her husband a lunch for work, or to pack his suitcase before he left for an extended period of time. She is being supportive and understanding, knowing that he is doing what he feels he needs to in order to support the family. I think this song is really less about him being burnt out and more about his frustration that he can't get others to see that he really is a good person, husband and provider. And that he really enjoys what he is doing. Just like some truck drivers/oil workers/garbage men really do enjoy their jobs. It is more upbeat than a lot of people give it credit for. |
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