Minarets

-God has grown alone- We have isolated God from ourselves -till a man looking glass in his hand- until he became so detached so as to seem like a fortune teller. -He is holding up to you- he holds the looking glass up to you, the glass is between God and YOU, so you're looking at God through the looking glass -What you see is human- because God is human and humans are God, we are all one thing and that thing is God.

I don't think this song is too hard to figure out, but the grammer syntax, like a lot of Dave's songs, is somewhat hard to follow.

It's basically saying that religion is to blame for all wars, that all the children lost to war cannot be justified by faith, that in the end mankind will wipe himself out if we allow the war between east and west to rage on on. There are illusions to pain and suffering ("Sister chained...bound, beaten and bleeding") and to our disconnection from that pain and our media being the father figure, rationalizing and sensationalizing all of it, all the while we are forgetting that what's really happening is the beginning of the end of all mankind.

Just a few thoughts:

• Rihanna didn't write the song, Justin Parker, Mikky Ekko did, so I'm highly doubtful it's about Chris Brown

• Not every song in the world is about drug use, most people in the world are capable of having profound experiences and emotions [both good and bad] without the use of drugs or alcohol.

I think it's about two people struggling with intimacy and the sense of vulnerability that comes from realizing you need the other person as well as how fear can cause you to sabotage something you want so badly. That fear is causing her to distance herself out of an unneeded sense of protecting herself and he's calling her on it, reminding her that she needs to be open to receiving love and living life:

"It's not much of a life you're living It's not just something you take, it's given"

And she's admitting that even though she's still struggling with the fear:

"Not really sure how to feel about it Something in the way you move Makes me feel like I can't live without you It takes me all the way I want you to stay"

Her need for him has outweighed that fear of vulnerability"

"Oh the reason I hold on Oh 'cause I need this hole gone"

[Edit: 01/01/1967]

i think this songs tells about the fall of modern scoiety.... or i you will, the end of the world

Quite possibly...I just honestly don't get what minarets have to do with anything? You know...those towers that are on mosques....Anyone?

Minarets are usually used by the muezzin, who call people to prayer by chanting from the top of the tower. "Santa Maria choose your children, Santa Maria virgin child": Some are convinced religion only "works" for you if you are pure and a virgin and you devote your life to it. Possibly some children feel "Santa Maria" never accepted them so they gave up hope on religion or themselves.
"all our wars over you we are fighting, and all our time faith justifying": Religion is supposed to bring peace but all we seem to do is fight over whose religion is better and the longer we believe our religion is right the more faith we have in it. "Brother caged Babylon will fall, Sister chained and bound, beaten and bleeding": I'm not sure what to think about this but maybe its simply that kids have more faith than adults do and they are willing to die for what they believe. "The tv's on, to me this explains it": These days instead of going to temple or church we saty and home and watch tv when we could be doing something productive. "Wearing a tie like daddy speaks it": We can follow our father and listen to what he has to say because to us he looks respectible, but when it comes to something we cant see... like God, our faith isnt strong enough to let us believe. Most people only believe what they can see and whats on tv.
"God has grown, Alone till a man looking glass in his hand, He is holding up to you": We never put our faith into God until we are hurt and need his help. "What you see is human": I think Dave was trying to say that people try to ignore suffering so much but instead they should be praying for these people.

Good analyisis, great song, one of my favs...

Wow....thanks for clearing that up Paige......that is what this website is for.......

Nice analysis but I think it's really about the first Gulf war, I thought it long before the current one - I thought it was pretty obvious actually even for Dave.

The continuing war between the East and West (Christianity and Islam - from the days of the Crusades) Babylon is falling - Babylon's in Iraq - about how we saw it all on TV and it seemed so removed from being real. Talking head on the TV explaining it all cleanly. Oh, and of course, that's how the Iraqis alerted the people that the bombs were coming in - sirens were in the Minarets, which is onviously ironic, because they are supposed to be used to call to prayer.

What you saw on TV, the fantastic light show that the first gulf war was - and no bodies - was actually people being blown up. It didn't look that way on CNN, but it was. What you see is human... (looking glass - there but for the grace of God go I...)

Maybe I'm oversimplifying it, but writing about war seems to be a common Dave theme - wehther it's colonialism from the past or the current situation in The Middle East.

God this site IS addicting!

the live version on luther college.. the beginning is HELLA trippy sounding.