The Guitar (The Lion Sleeps Tonight)

I have a different theory, that Jim refers to their best friend from high school, Jim McIntyre, to whom they dedicated their first album (check the liner notes). The 3 of them hung out together after school, talked music and politics, and all wrote controversial stuff for their school newspaper.

After high school, John & John went into creating music, and Jim went to work at radio stations. Jim died in 1986, at the age of 25, just as John and John were gaining popularity. John & John travelled to Virginia to be with Jim in the hospital just days before he died.

Jim was a Leo, born in early August, thus, the "lion" reference would make sense.

Being in a spaceship could be a metaphor for a spirit travelling in the heavens. Hushing to hear faint sounds over the phone, or of a distant guitar, and the lion "taking control", could all refer to Jim's spirit trying to communicate to his friends, via electronic equipment, as a way of "waving goodbye" to them.

It would explain why they would want to "turn it up" to hear what it's saying.

(Note: I am a relative of the abovementioned Jim McIntyre, so if you want to blame me for personal bias, I won't blame you, but that's how I know all of this.)