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Mother and Child Reunion Lyrics
No I would not give you false hope
On this strange and mournful day
But the mother and child reunion
Is only a motion away,
oh, little darling of mine.
I can't for the life of me
Remember a sadder day
I know they say let it be
But it just don't work out that way
And the course of a lifetime runs
Over and over again
No I would not give you false hope
On this strange and mournful day
But the mother and child reunion
Is only a motion away,
oh, little darling of mine.
I just can't believe it's so,
and though it seems strange to say
I never been laid so low
In such a mysterious way
And the course of a lifetime runs
Over and over again
But I would not give you false hope
On this strange and mournful day
When the mother and child reunion
Is only a motion away,
Oh, oh the mother and child reunion
Is only a motion away
Oh the mother and child reunion
Is only a moment away
On this strange and mournful day
But the mother and child reunion
Is only a motion away,
I can't for the life of me
Remember a sadder day
I know they say let it be
But it just don't work out that way
And the course of a lifetime runs
Over and over again
On this strange and mournful day
But the mother and child reunion
Is only a motion away,
I just can't believe it's so,
and though it seems strange to say
I never been laid so low
In such a mysterious way
And the course of a lifetime runs
Over and over again
On this strange and mournful day
When the mother and child reunion
Is only a motion away,
Oh, oh the mother and child reunion
Is only a motion away
Oh the mother and child reunion
Is only a moment away
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"I was eating in a Chinese restaurant downtown. There was a dish called Mother and Child Reunion. It's chicken and eggs. And I said, I gotta use that one." -Paul Simon
Source: www.brainyquote.com
I've read what Simon has said about it in interviews regarding the chinese menu thing, but i always heard it as being about the break up of the Beatles. There are a number of references to Beatles lyrics ("little darling" from "Here Comes the Sun" and Paul singing "I know they say 'let it be." Along with that, the mother and child reunion is Yoko and John, John having made no secret of his maternal attachment to Yoko my comparing her to his mother in "Julia" and his nickname for her, Mother Superior."
No, I would not give you false hope (of the beatles reuniting on this strange and mournful day (of the Beatles' breakup) But the mother and child reunion is only a motion away (john and yoko marriage and subsequent life together) oh little darling of mine (here comes the sun) I can;t for the life of me remeber a sadder day (the break up) I know they said let it be (they being the Beatles) but it just don't work out that way and the course of a life time runs over and over again.
I just can't believe it's so, and though it seems strange to say I've never been lad so low in such a mysterious way ( about the shock and sense of loss at the Beatles break up)
Regarding the musicians on this track, Paul Simon was so embarrassed at the feeble attempt at "white reggae" that he had previously written in the form of "Why Don't You Write Me" that he decided to go to Jamaica and record this track using genuine reggae musicians. Only the piano and backing vocalists were added afterwards in the USA.
There was a comic book Archie which had a bad nasty rich kid named Reggie. He was definitely NOT a 'reggae' singer. I just thought you oughta know.
There was a comic book Archie which had a bad nasty rich kid named Reggie. He was definitely NOT a 'reggae' singer. I just thought you oughta know.
This song is about suicidal depression. How can everyone miss that? That's what 'only a motion away' means. The guy's totally depressed. He misses his deceased mother. He's looking over the course of his lifetime and feeling mysteriously deeply down. One pull of the trigger, one swallow of the pills, one flick of a knife, one step off the building and "Hello, Mom, did you miss me?"
I always thought it was about a mother losing her child, and then contemplating suicide to be reunited. (only a motion away)
I always thought it was about a mother losing her child, and then contemplating suicide to be reunited. (only a motion away)
I guess it was the use of the words "Strange and mournful" and "Never been laid so low", the idea being that children are supposed to outlive their parents, not the other way around.
I guess it was the use of the words "Strange and mournful" and "Never been laid so low", the idea being that children are supposed to outlive their parents, not the other way around.
Apparently, the rumor that he got the title from a Chinese menu is true. The song itself was inspired by the death of the family dog and trying to ex plain death to his children.
The music to the song is quite catchy, and to my mind, it induces the listener to want more. The variation in rhythm is magical, but the lyrics do not seem to have a unity of meaning. The phrase "mother and child reunion" has all sorts of connotations, and one wonders what Paul Simon means by it, notwithstanding the fact that "mother and child reunion" is a soup item in a menu !I t is a convoluted song with respect to meaning, which is to say it leaves the listener nonplussed, even though its one of my favourites, as I loved my mother !
On the Jimmy Fallon Show he said the song was inspired by Jimmy Cliff's song "Vietnam" which dealt with a young soldier sending his friends a letter saying he was looking forward to coming home. The day they received that letter, his mother received a telegram saying her son had died in the war. Musically the songs are very similar, but I think there are aspects of the story included in the lyrics as well.
On the Jimmy Fallon Show he said the song was inspired by Jimmy Cliff's song "Vietnam" which dealt with a young soldier sending his friends a letter saying he was looking forward to coming home. The day they received that letter, his mother received a telegram saying her son had died in the war. Musically the songs are very similar, but I think there are aspects of the story included in the lyrics as well.
Yeah, I've heard the chicken and egg rumor myself.
In re: to Paul Simon's Mother and Child Reunion... I’m positive this isn’t Paul Simon’s interpretation…but I’ve always (since the ‘70’s) interpreted the song in a personal way. I was adopted over 60 years ago in a closed record state…and, after a long and convoluted search, I did find my birth mother in 2007. She requested no contact. This year she passed away without me ever talking with her, or seeing her. It was indeed a sad and mournful day.
"The course of a lifetime runs over and over again"
Paul seems to be speaking of the ever-changing life force that is constantly creating and destroying. Perhaps he is referring to reincarnation. So what does it matter that this life ends when we will eventually be reunited in one form or another?
i heard paul simon first heard the phrase "mother and child reunion" in a diner.it was the name given to chicken and egg soup