submissions
| Steely Dan – Sign in Stranger Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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And further to this, the protagonist in TTHOA appealed to Michael and Jesus. Having been rejected, he is now offered the chance to "be born again". |
submissions
| Steely Dan – Sign in Stranger Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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I'm wondering if "zombie" is in reference to SD's earlier song Turn That Heartbeat Over Again. In that song they say "zombie see and zombie do" and are obviously involved in criminal activity that went wrong. Maybe the zombie in Sign in Stranger is the protagonist from the earlier song. |
submissions
| Steely Dan – Through With Buzz Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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This song seems very Beatles-esque to me. I take Donald at face value in his explanation of the lyrics. The "Maybe he's a fairy" line seems to vindicate this and suggest it's not about drugs. |
submissions
| Steely Dan – Only A Fool Would Say That Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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Some have commented about how this song might be a repudiation of the late 60's/early 70's idealism of Lennon and other musicians. I think it's more complicated than that. While there are a number of SD songs of that era which were critical of the counterculture, I do believe that both Don and Walt were sympathetic to the ideals - it was just that they didn't think the counterculture was doing anything productive toward achieving those ideals.
In that respect, it seems to me that this song is more Randy Newman-esque in giving voice to a character outside of themselves. A character who is ridiculing the Lennons as well as a lot of straw men, but also thinks that only a fool could believe in a better world.
In other words, this song is a dig at both sides of the argument. Walt and Don always keep you guessing. |
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