| Dire Straits – On Every Street Lyrics | 6 months ago |
| I just had a revelation on what this song really means. It's so obvious, I can't believe I haven't pieced that together sooner. Every single line fits like a glove. The song is about missing someone who has passed away. The longing in the melody only highlights it. When someone you hold dear dies, the world feels so surreal, like how are they not here? They don't EXIST anymore. Here's a breakdown of the whole song, line by line: "There's gotta be a record of you some place; You gotta be on somebody's books (...) Somewhere your fingerprints remain concrete" - they HAVE TO be somewhere; he struggles with coming to terms that they aren't anywhere, he's looking for any traces of their existence. "The lowdown - a picture of your face; Your injured looks; The sacred and profane; The pleasure and the pain" - just describing human existence. I was thinking "your injured looks" could even literally mean an injured body "And it's your face I'm looking for on every street" - it's so hard to imagine a world where they don't exist, they have to be somewhere so he's always looking for them; on every street, as in everywhere, all the time, cause he will never find them. AND HERE'S THE KICKER, CAUSE THIS HAS KEPT ME UP AT NIGHTS "A ladykiller - regulation tattoo; Silver spurs on his heels" - he means the Grim Reaper! The Angel of Death. "ladykiller" - could maybe mean that the person who had died (who Knopfler is looking for) is a woman, "regulation tattoo" - this someone has a tattoo that means regulation (could be metaphorical as in it is so evident in their presence it could just as well be tattooed on them). Regulations are 'rules or laws established by an authority to govern behavior or control an activity', and isn't that what reapers do? They are often portrayed as the 'by-the-book' kind of folks, who control the lives of all. "Silver spurs on his heels" - isn't the Grim Reaper one of the four HORSEMEN of the Apocalypse??? By mentioning spurs, Knopfler obviously refers to someone riding a horse, ergo confirms my theory even further. "Says - what can I tell you as I'm standing next to you, She threw herself under my wheels" - Here, Knopfler's using a metaphor that he's talking to the grim reaper, who says to him that she had committed suicide. "It's a dangerous road, and a hazardous load" - This could either mean that love is difficult and risky sometimes, and him loving her has now caused him so much pain, or this could be in reference to the previous line that life is difficult and hard to bear, and she just couldn't take it. "The fireworks over liberty explode in the heat; And it's your face I'm looking for on every street" - fireworks over liberty could mean that the person who had died is now free of the worldy pains, but also with the repetition of the main line, creates an eerie contrast since the singer is forever bound to the person, always looking for their face in the crowd (opposite of free). "A three-chord symphony crashes into space" - Here again, I have two possible readings: one that the three-chord symphony could be used to describe the person who had died ascending into space (heaven, whatever you wanna call it), or just the creation of this song, how the events impacted him and how this song is so powerful it could crash into space. "The moon is hanging upside down" - I believe here he's explaining how the world has turned upside down for him without her, how nothing's right, and the way it should be. "I don't know why it is I'm still on the case; It's a ravenous town; And you still refuse to be traced; Seems to me such a waste" - I guess, here he questions again why he's even doing it, knowing it's futile since she's not here anymore. "And every victory has a taste that's bittersweet" - I love this line, it showcases how, without her, all good things are bittersweet, cause she's not there to witness it. | |
| Dire Straits – On Every Street Lyrics | 6 months ago |
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I just had a revelation on what this song really means. It's so obvious, I can't believe I haven't pieced that together sooner. Every single line fits like a glove. The song is about missing someone who has passed away. The longing in the melody only highlights it. When someone you hold dear dies, the world feels so surreal, like how are they not here? They don't EXIST anymore. Here's a breakdown of the whole song, line by line: "There's gotta be a record of you some place; You gotta be on somebody's books (...) Somewhere your fingerprints remain concrete" - they HAVE TO be somewhere; he struggles with coming to terms that they aren't anywhere, he's looking for any traces of their existence. "The lowdown - a picture of your face; Your injured looks; The sacred and profane; The pleasure and the pain" - just describing human existence. I was thinking "your injured looks" could even literally mean an injured body "And it's your face I'm looking for on every street" - it's so hard to imagine a world where they don't exist, they have to be somewhere so he's always looking for them; on every street, as in everywhere, all the time, cause he will never find them. AND HERE'S THE KICKER, CAUSE THIS HAS KEPT ME UP AT NIGHTS "A ladykiller - regulation tattoo; Silver spurs on his heels" - he means the Grim Reaper! The Angel of Death. "ladykiller" - could maybe mean that the person who had died (who Knopfler is looking for) is a woman, "regulation tattoo" - this someone has a tattoo that means regulation (could be metaphorical as in it is so evident in their presence it could just as well be tattooed on them). Regulations are 'rules or laws established by an authority to govern behavior or control an activity', and isn't that what reapers do? They are often portrayed as the 'by-the-book' kind of folks, who control the lives of all. "Silver spurs on his heels" - isn't the Grim Reaper one of the four HORSEMEN of the Apocalypse??? By mentioning spurs, Knopfler obviously refers to someone riding a horse, ergo confirms my theory even further. "Says - what can I tell you as I'm standing next to you, She threw herself under my wheels" - Here, Knopfler's using a metaphor that he's talking to the grim reaper, who says to him that she had committed suicide. "It's a dangerous road, and a hazardous load" - This could either mean that love is difficult and risky sometimes, and him loving her has now caused him so much pain, or this could be in reference to the previous line that life is difficult and hard to bear, and she just couldn't take it. "The fireworks over liberty explode in the heat; And it's your face I'm looking for on every street" - fireworks over liberty could mean that the person who had died is now free of the worldy pains, but also with the repetition of the main line, creates an eerie contrast since the singer is forever bound to the person, always looking for their face in the crowd (opposite of free). "A three-chord symphony crashes into space" - Here again, I have two possible readings: one that the three-chord symphony could be used to describe the person who had died ascending into space (heaven, whatever you wanna call it), or just the creation of this song, how the events impacted him and how this song is so powerful it could crash into space. "The moon is hanging upside down" - I believe here he's explaining how the world has turned upside down for him without her, how nothing's right, and the way it should be. "I don't know why it is I'm still on the case; It's a ravenous town; And you still refuse to be traced; Seems to me such a waste" - I guess, here he questions again why he's even doing it, knowing it's futile since she's not here anymore. "And every victory has a taste that's bittersweet" - I love this line, it showcases how, without her, all good things are bittersweet, cause she's not there to witness it. |
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| Dire Straits – On Every Street Lyrics | 1 year ago |
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