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True Dreams Of Wichita Lyrics
Signal got lost to the satellite
Got lost in the
Rideup to the
Plungedown;
Man sends the ray of the electric light
Sends the impulse
Through the air
Down to home
And you can stand
On the arms
Of the Williamsburg Bridge
Crying
Hey man, well this is Babylon
And you can fire out on a bus
To the outside world
Down to Louisiana
You can take her with you
I've seen the
Rains of the real world
Come forward on the plain
I've seen the Kansas of your sweet little myth
You've never seen it, no,
I'm half sick on the drinks you mixed
Through your
True dreams
Of Wichita
Brooklyn like a sea in the asphalt stalks
Push out dead air from a parking garage
Where you stand with the keys and your cool hat of silence
Where you grip her love like a driver's liscense
I've seen you
Fire up the gas in the engine valves
I've seen your hand turn saintly on the radio dial
I've seen the airwaves
Pull your eyes towards heaven
Outside Topeka in the phone lines
Her good teeth smile was winding down
Engine sputters ghosts out of gasoline fumes
They say You had it, but you sold it
You didn't want it, no
I'm half drunk on babble you transmit
Through your
True dreams
Of Wichita
Punch it
I got, uh, fed
I got, uh, too much things on bounce, uh, my head
I got to burn 'em up
I got to burn 'em up now
I got to go uptown, uptown
I got a thing
I got a little bit pushed
got to stand on the corner and bellow for mush
I got a bomb
I got a baby bomb bomb
got to stand on the corner and bellow for my friend Tom
I got a thing, I got to thing it
I got to thing--team
I got to run my side
True dreams
He's talking about radio transmissions:
"Signal got lost to the satellite Got lost in the Rideup to the Plungedown" this refers to the fact that satellites have uplinks that beam information to up to them to be transmitted back down over an area.
"Man sends the ray of the electric light Sends the impulse Through the air Down to home" the ray of electric light is a radio transmission
"And you can fire out on a bus To the outside world Down to Louisiana You can take her with you" I think this refers to the fact that you can stay in contact with someone far away through radio transmission, i.e. cellular phones.
"I've seen your hand turn saintly on the radio dial I've seen the airwaves Pull your eyes towards heaven Outside Topeka in the phone lines Her good teeth smile was winding down" again, refering to radio waves and communications.
I think the whole theme is being long distance from someone and communicating with them through the air. I think perhaps theres something sort of beautiful and romantic about that, about that fact that cross country and all over the world there are people staying in touch with each other through transmissions. Sorta like reaching out and touching someone far away..
Beautiful song, I have to say..
big city people versus little small city... In the small city (especially Kansas), people have "big true dreams" Large more popoulated areas tend to have more real world people. In Kansas they are still someone pure. Its about a guy who has seen the world and goes to kansas... "I've seen the Kansas of your sweet little myth. You've never seen it, no," kinda my life story ... weird.
FYI:
The rap at the end was completely improvised.
"And you can stand On the arms Of the Williamsburg Bridge Crying Hey man, well this is Babylon"
Some of my all time favorite Doughty Lyrics.
Wonderful, wonderful song. Mike Doughty is a wonderful poet.
Doughty had to have just felt this. I dont mean to say Doughty like I know him, but when I listen to this it just seems like he just free associated with the rhythm. It's effing great when he holds out on notes and it just sounds like he's sad. I can hear emotion
Doughty had to have just felt this. I dont mean to say Doughty like I know him, but when I listen to this it just seems like he just free associated with the rhythm. It's effing great when he holds out on notes and it just sounds like he's sad. I can hear emotion
He's talking about radio transmissions:
"Signal got lost to the satellite Got lost in the Rideup to the Plungedown" this refers to the fact that satellites have uplinks that beam information to up to them to be transmitted back down over an area.
"Man sends the ray of the electric light Sends the impulse Through the air Down to home" the ray of electric light is a radio transmission
"And you can fire out on a bus To the outside world Down to Louisiana You can take her with you" I think this refers to the fact that you can stay in contact with someone far away through radio transmission, i.e. cellular phones.
"I've seen your hand turn saintly on the radio dial I've seen the airwaves Pull your eyes towards heaven Outside Topeka in the phone lines Her good teeth smile was winding down" again, refering to radio waves and communications.
I think the whole theme is being long distance from someone and communicating with them through the air. I think perhaps theres something sort of beautiful and romantic about that, about that fact that cross country and all over the world there are people staying in touch with each other through transmissions. Sorta like reaching out and touching someone far away..
Beautiful song, I have to say..
tom? mush?
he's a fiening herion addict at the end! hes gotta calm down eh.
BillK is right.
Doughty himself says it's about a long-distance relationship.