This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
A long time ago came a man on a track
Walking thirty miles with a sack on his back
And he put down his load where he thought it was the best
Made a home in the wilderness
Built a cabin and a winter store
And he plowed up the ground by the cold lake shore
The other travelers came walking down the track
And they never went further, no, they never went back
Then came the churches, then came the schools
Then came the lawyers, then came the rules
Then came the trains and the trucks with their load
And the dirty old track was the Telegraph Road
Then came the mines, then came the ore
Then there was the hard times, then there was a war
Telegraph sang a song about the world outside
Telegraph Road got so deep and so wide
Like a rolling river
And my radio says tonight it's gonna freeze
People driving home from the factories
Six lanes of traffic, three lanes moving slow
I used to like to go to work but they shut it down
I've got a right to go to work but there's no work here to be found
Yes, and they say we're gonna have to pay what's owed
We're gonna have to reap from some seed that's been sowed
And the birds up on the wires and the telegraph poles
They can always fly away from this rain and this cold
You can hear them singing out their telegraph code
All the way down the Telegraph Road
I'd sooner forget, but I remember those nights
Yeah, life was just a bet on a race between the lights
You had your head on my shoulder, you had your hand in my hair
Now you act a little colder like you don't seem to care
But just believe in me, baby, and I'll take you away
From out of this darkness and into the day
From these rivers of headlights, these rivers of rain
From the anger that lives on the streets with these names
'Cause I've run every red light on memory lane
I've seen desperation explode into flames
And I don't wanna see it again
From all of these signs saying, "Sorry, but we're closed"
All the way
Down the Telegraph Road
Walking thirty miles with a sack on his back
And he put down his load where he thought it was the best
Made a home in the wilderness
Built a cabin and a winter store
And he plowed up the ground by the cold lake shore
The other travelers came walking down the track
And they never went further, no, they never went back
Then came the churches, then came the schools
Then came the lawyers, then came the rules
Then came the trains and the trucks with their load
And the dirty old track was the Telegraph Road
Then came the mines, then came the ore
Then there was the hard times, then there was a war
Telegraph sang a song about the world outside
Telegraph Road got so deep and so wide
Like a rolling river
And my radio says tonight it's gonna freeze
People driving home from the factories
Six lanes of traffic, three lanes moving slow
I used to like to go to work but they shut it down
I've got a right to go to work but there's no work here to be found
Yes, and they say we're gonna have to pay what's owed
We're gonna have to reap from some seed that's been sowed
And the birds up on the wires and the telegraph poles
They can always fly away from this rain and this cold
You can hear them singing out their telegraph code
All the way down the Telegraph Road
I'd sooner forget, but I remember those nights
Yeah, life was just a bet on a race between the lights
You had your head on my shoulder, you had your hand in my hair
Now you act a little colder like you don't seem to care
But just believe in me, baby, and I'll take you away
From out of this darkness and into the day
From these rivers of headlights, these rivers of rain
From the anger that lives on the streets with these names
'Cause I've run every red light on memory lane
I've seen desperation explode into flames
And I don't wanna see it again
From all of these signs saying, "Sorry, but we're closed"
All the way
Down the Telegraph Road
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Considering current news on the Detroit Bankruptcy, just how brilliant and visionary does one have to be to write this song 30+ years ago????
@tman <br /> You are forgetting one thing: back in the 1980's, the economy was also down the drain, and this song is from 1982. <br /> In the UK you had Thatcher, who closed the mines and killed of thousands and thousands of jobs, killing the economy in a lot of small and medium towns, and redistributing the wealth to a few rich men who only got richer, and making the poor poorer. Just like Reagan did in the US, that's why they were such great buddies.
@tman So how's your musical carreer coming along?
@tman <br /> <br /> i always thought the song was about the decline of the uk also. this whole verse i seen as Thatcher talking and not the person of knoplers affection.<br /> <br /> But just believe in me baby and I'll take you away<br /> From out of this darkness and into the day<br /> From these rivers of headlights, these rivers of rain<br /> From the anger that lives on the streets with these names<br /> 'Cause I've run every red light on memory lane<br /> I've seen desperation explode into flames<br /> And I don't wanna see it again<br /> <br /> here thatcher is being interpreted as... trust me i can guide us through all this pain the song is so British protest, and i can see how some take the song as any rust belt city in USA<br /> <br /> just my take anyway
@tman take it back to the '67 Detroit Riots. Before that Auto strikes for better pay, and on and on.
On the Love Over Gold album the version is over 14 minutes long. Truely great song mind.
I particularly like this section:
Then came the churches, then came the schools Then came the lawyers, then came the rules Then came the trains and the trucks with their loads And the dirty old track was the telegraph road
It's absolutely amazing how they wrapped a civil development with such lyrics and melody.
This is an epic song... there's an 11 minute version on their "Money For Nothing" album... it's a beautiful song... plus it's recorded live with the piano parts. This is excellent Dire Straits musicianship with echoing guitars, haunting vocals, and, of course, the rest of the band at the top of their game.
Simply brilliant.
@Prime_Knight <br /> <br /> The "Money For Nothing" live version is actually ~12:00 long, and a remix of a live version that appeared on the double live album entitled "Alchemy: Dire Straits Live", which was recorded during the "Love Over Gold" concert tour.<br />
It's one of my all time favorites. the whole story of civilization in 14 minutes. After u listen to this you really wish you were born in woods 500 years ago!
"And the birds up on the wires and the telegraph poles They can always fly away from this rain and this cold" a dire straits master piece
Sure enough tman, this isn't just about a town growing up and so on, it's definitely a warning about the draining of a city and acountry when jobs disappear thick'n'fast: "I used to like to go to work but they shut it down I got a right to go to work but there’s no work here to be found"
The final lines "I've seen desperation explode into flames/and I don't wanna see it again" bring the point home, don't they? I feel it evokes a line both to the unrest in London at the time and the rise of the nazis in Germany - they might never have come to power if the economy hadn't been broken first by the inflation in the twneties and then by massive iunemplyment less than ten years later. When the piano and bass return the opening on the very last word of the lyrics, it sounds like a toll of doom.
Fledgehog is right - all his theories are right, simple explanation - everything has its begining, its peak, and then everything fades. It is just nature of the things, of everything. Starting from ancient civilizations, through life of a human being, ending with love and relationships. Just as the city appears and grows "telegraph road", economic boom; so appeared the love - "i remember those times...", everything reaches its peaks - "six lines of traffic", "hand in my hair", then everything dimishes and vanishes - "no work to be found", "you seem a little colder", this song is about life and existence of everything, based on a "lifestory" of a city, and guy living in it. And the end - "they" just run away to start something new... guess how it'll end? I think that there's no hope...
And my favorite part is "You know I’d sooner forget but I remember those nights When life was just a bet on a race between the lights "
excuse me my english - I'm polish
Best rock song ever. Period.
The lyrics combined with the instrumental backing, wich really reflects the lyrics, needs no explanation. It's just a story that's being told. Just shut up and enjoy is my advice.
The emotion that Knopfler puts in his singing is also mindblowing.
But...the finale that takes one last look 'all the way down the telegraph road' is geniousty itself: Love the reprising of the main theme, wich occurs 3 times... Just: Wow
If I remember right, this song came out about 1982. In my area (the Midwestern US) we had up to 15% unemployment, high inflation and interest rates. The relative price of oil was soaring and gold was up to 800+ dollars an ounce. The economy was in a period of drastic change, in the past we had a solid industrial / manufacturing based economy but that was dieing rapidly to dead in 1982. The information / internet based economy had not even been conceived of yet by most people in 1982 so it didn't seem like the future was too bright for anything. I had a job literally digging holes and doing other dirty work for minimum wage and was so lucky to have that. Does anyone know if there is an actual town / telegraph road that inspired this song? Sounds like it could have been any town in the Midwestern US (rust belt) back then. Hearing this song haunts me... takes me back to those days. The sky was always grey and people were unemployed.
Could be Telegraph in Detroit Michigan, but it sounds kinda like hes refering to "telegraph" in a broader sense of communication and (spelling) social fluxuation.
@tman look here-<br /> en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Route_24_in_Michigan
In my opinion, this song could be used to describe one, or maybe all of three things.
The first is the obvious: the "Telegraph Road" as it is called. Starts off a little no-where in the woods, develops more and more into a little industrial town, becomes a large, populated area, then after a while gets entirely abandoned, shut down, and just as deserted as it was beforehand.
The second theory that sprang to my mind upon pondering the lyrics a bit more deeply was that it could be a description of a relationship, using the "Telegraph Road" as a metaphor. First, there's nothing. The two in the relationship no not of each other. Then along they come, unpack their stuff, and eventually build a relationship and a home for themselves. They are at the peak of the relationship at the same point that there is heavy traffic on the road. Then, things turn out wrong, problems spring, matters go astray, and the relationship gets abandoned. All the things that they used to do are no longer, indicating the "Sorry, We're Closed" signs. The very last verse seems to add to my theory of it being about a relationship.
My third and final theory is that the song explains the course of a human being's life. Once again, starting with nothing but a horny girl and her erect husband. We then find a small baby, who makes himself comfortable in his environment. He keeps growing, expanding his knowledge, and then reaches the peak of his life. Shortly afterwards, things start going downhill, eventually leading to him deserting his life, or more bluntly, dying. Thus concludes the song.
And in case you didn't notice, the name of this website is "Song Meanings", not "Post bullshit". I'm sick of the "0|\/|6z53rzZ 7|-|!5 $0||6 R0xx34s |\/|Y S0xX3rs" bullshit. Aren't we supposed to be discussing what the song means to us? Not childish, fool-written asscrap with no content.
@fledgehog i think it s more your 3rd theory, i always had this meaning in my mind, i really adore this song, i have the LP still....