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The Endless Plain of Fortune Lyrics
Old Taylor said
Old Taylor meant to cry -- oh my
Field Marshall meant
Field Marshall went away again
Watch out below; the tides
Lean heavily like wine
We are all innocent in spite of you and me
Then Martha went
Yes Martha went away again
Down in Transvaal
Where Crocodiles and men fight on
They would have played all night
Even with loaded dice
It's gold that eats the heart away and leaves
The bones -- to dry
Segovia watched
Gendarmerie and all that's all
The radio man
Amanda did you choose your tune
She walked away in time
She walked a crooked line
So gracefully she turned her head
And smiled -- away
Old Taylor meant to cry -- oh my
Field Marshall meant
Field Marshall went away again
Watch out below; the tides
Lean heavily like wine
We are all innocent in spite of you and me
Yes Martha went away again
Down in Transvaal
Where Crocodiles and men fight on
They would have played all night
Even with loaded dice
It's gold that eats the heart away and leaves
The bones -- to dry
Gendarmerie and all that's all
The radio man
Amanda did you choose your tune
She walked away in time
She walked a crooked line
So gracefully she turned her head
And smiled -- away
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This is a great song. John Cale should really get more comments...
It's definitely about settlers in South Africa around 1910. People tried to find their fortune in the gold and diamond mines. However, one day the gold was gone, and the people went away. Transvaal was a province in South Africa.
I could go on and on about the brilliance of Cale's phrasing, but let me tell you my favorite moments: the last line of each verse! They take the surrealistic verses and yank them suddenly into clear, memorable moments. I was homesick in Europe in 1975, went into a listening booth in a Paris record store and put this on. I burst into tears as the first verse ended... Ah, youth...
"Gold that eats the heart and leaves the bones to dry" - Wow.