submissions
| Grateful Dead – Loser Lyrics
| 1 year ago
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@[twogunterror:51800] I've always associated 'I can tell the queen of diamonds...' with the hypnotized assassin in Manchurian Candidate (1962), because it was the queen of diamonds. See my comment for other discussion |
submissions
| Grateful Dead – Loser Lyrics
| 1 year ago
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There's potentially a pretty deep, dark theme in there, once you go fuzzy with the lyrics. 'Ace' is expert. To draw is also to create. Drawing aces could refer to training pros. Mercenary - 'gold'. One good hand is enough to pull the trigger. But is asking to be paid to do a job, or demanding payment -not- to do something the other person wouldn't want? He's no pussy cat. And he's full of secrets. No booze, early start. Then we really fall down the rabbit hole. An event, lots of people drinking wine. But he's interested in the 'queen of diamonds'... think Manchurian Candidate (1962), which features an assassin hypnotically programmed to respond to the queen of diamonds. An 'inside straight' is also called a 'gunshot', and in poker, is a straight with a gap in the middle... resembling a gunsight. 'Come to daddy', etc. Got no chance of losing... Maybe he gets paid if he does it, or gets paid if someone who stands to lose pays him not to do it. |
submissions
| Phish – Simple Lyrics
| 3 years ago
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Bands are great but they carry responsibility which, if misused, can result in a sort of '911' phone call being placed to the Lord above and various unfortunate results can follow. |
submissions
| Phish – Sample In A Jar Lyrics
| 3 years ago
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Seems like the song could be about a ghost, a sample of a human, after the narrator (foggy and groggy) crashes his car (jar), no thanks to the guy who 'helped me to my car' or to the 'binding belt' (seatbelt?) He wanders, he 'doesn't belong' because he's dead and sees things like Elihu (associated with Job in the Bible) and so on. He now sings this song to the conscience of whoever 'you' happens to be.. the person who was "unheeding all the times I raise my cup" and is accused of trickery, yet ultimately the narrator has himself to blame. Could be completely wrong, of course, but that's the sort of imagery I'm getting from the lyrics. Whose world? Who is he talking to? I have no idea who 'Leemor' is, but often it sounds as if it is being sung as 'Nemo', which could be all sorts of things, starting with Capt. Nemo from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. |
submissions
| Grateful Dead – Terrapin Station Lyrics
| 6 years ago
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As with many Dead tunes, there are many ways to experience meaning in this song. I'm not going to try to fully explore this song here, but a couple thoughts... The matter of the fan is not simple. At a glance, this seems a test of valor. Who will risk death to save my fan? How great is your love? Reconsidered, is it a test of foolishness? Would you leap to danger for a simple thing, a fan, falling under the spell of a person's apparent influence? And what sort of person would ask someone to risk his life over a hand fan, anyway?... But with a change in homophonic lighting, the entire scene changes. Perhaps her fan is not a thing but a who. Ah, the plot thickens. Daniel thrown to the lions. Who will save him? And so on. |
submissions
| Grateful Dead – Uncle John's Band Lyrics
| 6 years ago
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Good lyrics can be both specific and general. Robert Hunter is a master lyricist, and also a student of American history and culture. While the song may also be about a specific band (New Lost City Ramblers), it also projects abstractions. One being an image of an amorphous group sharing an idea about human existence, as colonists shared an idea in founding the U.S. Live by force and dictators, or live by consent and mutual aid? Fire or ice? If you enjoy liberty, do you have the character to properly care for it?... Are you kind? If you're living "easy street", your cup is full and it might be time to challenge yourself or expect to be called upon to help some others struggling despite being surrounded by silver. A person, community, or religion born in freedom can become tyrannical. Cannonballs that defend liberty can become a means to oppression. And amid oppression, new defenses against being tread upon can emerge. No one wants to be stuck in a circus. John could be a band manager, John from the Bible sharing the works and writings of Jesus. John Lennon (Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band had been released in '67, UJB appeared '69). Who is Uncle John? I don't know... Who is John Galt? |
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