| James Taylor – Family Man Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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Nostalgia ain't what it used to be. This JTboppingblues song was more fun than Jocko, but now a kid might need wiki to look up the aging references within song! Things that aren't here anymore or are not doing well or mostly no longer create an image for the younger crowd: What Does it picture instantly to say "station wagon"(minivan or suv, etc now)? Besides Bo Diddley and Harlan Sanders being gone, and Raising Cane's & others are causing KFCs to Close round here, What is Howard Johnson's as a restaurant, Sears pretty much is Going Out of Business, Briggs & Stratton makes the engine, but another Brand is on the Mower for Sale, and a Dad uses the Remote or his Cell to mess with the tv. which is now just a Monitor for some other device/box or wifi or Bluetooth or ? Thank God as a Dad I still lie down on the sofa to gather the strength to get up 'Later on...' to walk my dog, baby... But if I ever lose my blues, I walk on over and look for the Remote. 'I'm a Man' is the Bo Diddley song originally the B-side of 'Bo Diddley' his 1st single release in 1955. Both huge hits, and both very new beats and of much impact on later rocknrollers & blues dudes. James Taylor ends his Family Man song with Bo Diddley, and JT also has Bo Diddley in these lyrics from 'RockNRoll is Music Now' "Mama knows and papa knows that rock 'n roll is music now. Baby's been cutting his teeth on Bo Diddley's, I'm a man, man, Listen to the Wolfman howl." Taylor was 7 years young in 1955, I was 2yo. All those references to station wagons and companies still made sense when Taylor released this song in 1976, our bicentennial and my wedding year. So I finally found out, I am a Family Man. Song's a great dogwalking beat to have banging round yo head, walking yo dog. |
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| Paul Simon – All Around the World or the Myth of Fingerprints Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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At song end, a lesson is that we must learn to live alone. Not good, not bad. Life. Theory is A FINGERPRINT is uniquely me or uniquely you, it is FACT that identifies me, you. It proves we were there, we touched it, we owned it. But the talk show host contrary lyrics are that we are all the same, plus additional lyrics, that it is not just me and its not just you, also speak against our uniqueness. Something, the song suggests, is all around the world (watermelon is too, as well as human nature) I guess, with years passing, learning to do well alone is an art. The attraction of the power of the FINGERPRINT MYTH is that it is true and important. That abandoned army post in an ocean, so important at first, to have it, to build it, to take that spot from someone as one's own, to profit by it. But long abandoned, even during a war, which was its purpose (we in USA have Fort Jefferson west of Florida, obsolete and unsustainable even as it was being built). The song has war imagery somewhat, sun gets weary early in lyrics, sun gets bloody later in lyrics. LOS LOBOS recorded this with Simon, one member at least was angry about credit (one post in this chain has Berlin's comments about Simon at ultimateclassicrock, and Wiki mentions this conflict over writing credits, origin, ownership at this site: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graceland_(album) . What are ya gonna do? An ocean army post and writing credits, there's no doubt about it, that's the Myth of Fingerprints. Part of the song title inspired a movie, Myth in title. Who is the mentor is telling us (Simon) that wisdom? A Chevy Chase friend too, Johnny Carson maybe. Someone who drives into Burbank from over the mountain down in the valley, his retreat & privacy, where he can live alone/private family, drives in from there to Talk to Everyone, he has seen them all and man they are all the same. They ARE their own patent product, as actors, singers, show biz, they are what they are selling to make a living, they need to have a fingerprint in the credit. So, Simon the songwriter, the little red hen, who actually finishes the song, gets it published and recorded and long series of steps to promote the album to success or not, so many incomes depending on success of song&album, he the finisher/gets it profitable, he Simon has seen it all too, he gets disrespect as an a** because he leaves the writing credit simply as me? That show biz, fingerprints. Everyone wants a piece of whatever thing the public likes. The talk show host who has seen them all assures songwriter, there is no doubt about it, it was the myth of fingerprints, that so many, in show biz too, all the same. Simon spreads it wider maybe, when someone asks 'what's a better thing to do' (our demand for property rights, credit, profit) well, Myth of Fingerprints wisdom, not me alone, not you only, it IS all around the world. like a watermelon (wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watermelon). Watermelon is all around the world. Most of us would like fingerprint credit for our part of something that works. Watermelon started in South Africa, like Graceland album, but claims of origin and/or impact are from Egypt, China, Europe, USA, Hawaii USA, cultivarsUSA, all wanting credit for fingerprints. And it continues, new ones, round, square, mini. These are some of the thoughts I get with Paul Simon songs, an idea, a specific origin, the music is top goal, but lyrics matter, but we the listener matter too. So Simon songs feel like a baseball diamond. Song is at home plate, but the field expands out massively to left to right, just as the song meaning grows massively to what we hear in it. He can claim there is no meaning, just a song, because we add to the song. Great skill, his method. Simon is funny as in humor, so humor is in there. Black pit town, watermelon has black pits, what... really? Maybe? Hmm. Anyway, how funny that Fingerprints we accept as Fact are in this song a Myth. The talk show host implies if you have seen one show of his 1000's, one guest even, that we Have Seen Them All-- Yet his show, staff, our culture depend on the newness, the uniqueness. The sun goes up, gets weary or bloody, goes down. It will come back after a half day rest to at it all again. LIKE US, Right? Like us, but no... we turn on the lights, lights come up in our black pit towns, we don't want to rest. Somebody says, what's a better thing to do (not resting, owning, claiming credit, profiting, selling ourselves, having late night talk shows, building useless army posts?...) well, not just me not just you, its all around the world. Song Meaning-- don't get so shook up about other people, how we interact. Like watermelon, what is a better thing to do?-- should we breed to remove the black pits, is seedless better? Does it matter, watermelon is great in many forms, all around the world. Same as us, all the same, yet unique, just live. Enjoy music. I liked the comment that Simon might have meant 'ever since the WORLD BEGAN' but it sounded better as ever since the WATERMELON. world began/watermelon-- now that's a Simon song lyric. Let it be the most fun lyric!!! We noticed and wonder about the watermelon lyric, who is the talk show host, what means the black pit town, how funny that it doesn't bother us to fret this: "that's why we must learn to live alone." The song ends that way, but we don't really believe it, it just seems wise, cool poetry. Maybe, but Nah. Doubt it. Song says there is no doubt about it, BUT This site wouldn't be here, with active members if we really had to live alone. So, its all good. Like writing credits. Yep. The song is simple, complex. Thoughtful yet silly&fun and mysterious too. The music of course rocks, it has a good long intro, it barely needs lyrics. But the words make us think. Song here at home plate, our thoughts out of the park, bam! |
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