So this has been.my favorite song of OTEP's since it came out in 2004, and I always thought it was a song about a child's narrative of suffering in an abusive Christian home. But now that I am revisiting the lyrics, I am seeing something totally new.
This song could be gospel of John but from the perspective of Jesus.
Jesus was NOT having a good time up to and during the crucifixion. Everyone in the known world at the time looked to him with fear, admiration or disgust and he was constantly being asked questions. He spoke in "verses, prophesies and curses". He had made an enemy of the state, and believed the world was increasingly wicked and fallen from grace, or that he was in the "mouth of madness".
The spine of atlas is the structure that allows the titan to hold the world up. Jesus challenged the state and in doing so became a celebrated resistance figure. It also made him public enemy #1.
All of this happened simply because he was doing his thing, not because of any agenda he had or strategy.
And then he gets scourged (storm of thorns)
There are some plot holes here but I think it's an interesting interpretation.
I'm a-talkin' 'bout the midnight rambler
Everybody got to go
Well I'm a-talkin' 'bout the midnight gambler
The one you never seen before
I'm sighin' down the wind so sadly
A-listen and you'll hear me moan
Well I'm a talkin' 'bout the midnight gambler
And everybody got to go
(Yeah c'mon)
Talkin' 'bout the midnight gambler
The one you never seen before
I'm talkin' 'bout the midnight rambler
Did you see me jump the garden wall
I don't give you a hoot of warning
A-dressed up in my black cat cloak
I don't see the light of the morning
I'll split the time the cock'rel crows
I'm tellin' 'bout the midnight rambler
Well, honey, it's no rock 'n' roll show
Well, I'm a-talkin' 'bout the midnight gambler
And everybody got to go
Oh, don't do that
Well, you heard about the Boston
Honey, it's not one of those
Talkin' 'bout the midnight, shit!
Did you see me jump bedroom door
I'm called the hit and run raper, in anger
Or just a knife sharpened, tippy toe
Or just a shoot 'em dead, brainbell jongleur
Everybody got to go
If you ever meet the midnight rambler
And he's prowlin' down your marble hall
And he's pouncin' like a proud black panther
You should say, I told you so
If you listen for the midnight rambler
Play it easy, easy, as you go
I'll go smash down all your plate glass windows
Put my fist through your stairway doors
Well I'm a-talkin' bout the midnight rambler
The one you never seen before
Well I'm a-talkin' bout the midnight rambler
And did you see me jump your garden wall
And if you ever catch the Midnight Rambler
Steal your mistress from under your nose
Go easy with your cold fanged anger
I'll stick my knife right down your throat baby, and it hurts
Everybody got to go
Well I'm a-talkin' 'bout the midnight gambler
The one you never seen before
I'm sighin' down the wind so sadly
A-listen and you'll hear me moan
Well I'm a talkin' 'bout the midnight gambler
And everybody got to go
(Yeah c'mon)
Talkin' 'bout the midnight gambler
The one you never seen before
I'm talkin' 'bout the midnight rambler
Did you see me jump the garden wall
I don't give you a hoot of warning
A-dressed up in my black cat cloak
I don't see the light of the morning
I'll split the time the cock'rel crows
I'm tellin' 'bout the midnight rambler
Well, honey, it's no rock 'n' roll show
Well, I'm a-talkin' 'bout the midnight gambler
And everybody got to go
Oh, don't do that
Well, you heard about the Boston
Honey, it's not one of those
Talkin' 'bout the midnight, shit!
Did you see me jump bedroom door
I'm called the hit and run raper, in anger
Or just a knife sharpened, tippy toe
Or just a shoot 'em dead, brainbell jongleur
Everybody got to go
If you ever meet the midnight rambler
And he's prowlin' down your marble hall
And he's pouncin' like a proud black panther
You should say, I told you so
If you listen for the midnight rambler
Play it easy, easy, as you go
I'll go smash down all your plate glass windows
Put my fist through your stairway doors
Well I'm a-talkin' bout the midnight rambler
The one you never seen before
Well I'm a-talkin' bout the midnight rambler
And did you see me jump your garden wall
And if you ever catch the Midnight Rambler
Steal your mistress from under your nose
Go easy with your cold fanged anger
I'll stick my knife right down your throat baby, and it hurts
Lyrics submitted by MrLongrove
Midnight Rambler Lyrics as written by Mick Jagger Keith Richards
Lyrics © Abkco Music Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Ave Grave
Thee More Shallows
Thee More Shallows
The Spy
Doors, The
Doors, The
Like a lot of the other comments are saying, I think this mainly about voyeurism. If the song was about his girlfriend, then why would he use the word spy. If you are a spy it means you shouldn't be caught, that is kind of the whole point, and if you are a voyeur, the whole point of the pleasure you get from it, is the fact that the other people don't know you are watching them. See a bit of a connection there?
Step
Ministry
Ministry
Both as a standalone and as part of the DSOTS album, you can take this lyric as read. As a matter of public record, Jourgensen's drug intake was legendary even in the 1980s. By the late 90s, in his own words, he was grappling with massive addiction issues and had lost almost everything: friends, spouse, money and had nearly died more than once. "Dark Side of the Spoon" is a both funny & sad title for an album made by a musical genius who was losing the plot; and this song is a message to his fans & friends saying he knows it. It's painful to listen to so I'm glad the "Keith Richards of industrial metals" wised up and cleaned up. Well done sir.
Techno Ted
Audioslave
Audioslave
Techno Ted may be a person who caused Chris incredible emotional pain & trepidation as well as moments of peace & happiness but now is removed and awaiting his fate. Darling may be a different person who is also free of him and can live her life free of Ted's tyranny. "In between all the laughing, and daydreams ... lies: a desert of truth" Lies are like a desert or the omission of Truth: Where there were Lies then Truth was absent. The song, "Techno Ted", may be a cathartic celebration of the downfall of this person.
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
@scarebear
That's what I think, too. Or a sort of general blend of Ramirez/Tex Watson home intrusion/murder.