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Idea and Deed Lyrics
What's the winter's cold negative press
What's the spring with its air of rebirth
To those felled under wildest duress
Trading freedom for a false sense of worth
Let the love of our own sacred rites
To the love of our people succeed
Let friendship and future unite
And flourish in idea and deed
Let the costume distinguish the strong
Place riches in lowest esteem
It's for excess that people do wrong
And to liberty honesties lean
Let the love of our own sacred rites
To the love of our people succeed
Let friendship and future unite
And flourish in idea and deed
Letting one minute go on
Without seeing yourself with an eye
That is watchful and kindly and strong
Is as letting the soul drop and die
Let the love of our own sacred rites
To the love of our people succeed
Let friendship and future unite
And flourish in idea and deed
What's the spring with its air of rebirth
To those felled under wildest duress
Trading freedom for a false sense of worth
To the love of our people succeed
Let friendship and future unite
And flourish in idea and deed
Place riches in lowest esteem
It's for excess that people do wrong
And to liberty honesties lean
To the love of our people succeed
Let friendship and future unite
And flourish in idea and deed
Without seeing yourself with an eye
That is watchful and kindly and strong
Is as letting the soul drop and die
To the love of our people succeed
Let friendship and future unite
And flourish in idea and deed
Add your song meanings, interpretations, facts, memories & more to the community.
In an interview Will once said how boring the lives of normal Americans are, going to day jobs and doing things of little interest. Knowing that, the line "trading freedom for a false sense of worth" makes more sense.
This is a great song that sums up Oldham's attitude toward music, expression, and art. Idea coupled with action allow friendship and future to flourish.
I don't wanna trump the poetry here, but this is the central idea of the song - that wealth is unimportant (see Lessons from What's Poor), honesty begets liberty, and it's important for your soul's sake to "watch yourself" with great attention and care. The last idea here discussed in greater detail in something like the Lion Lair.
Well, first of all, this is an adaptation of a Scottish folk song, Both Sides the Tweed, written about the merging of Scotland and England into a single country.
In that vein, I've always thought the chorus of this song was about marriage and how people create new families out of old (Let the love of our own sacred rites/To the love of our people succeed).
The verses seem to be about being true to yourself and not giving in to materialism. I don't know how that meshes with the chorus, but it's a great song regardless.