Black Tambourine

It's possible that Beck's influence for the name of this song comes from a poem (with the same title) by Hart Crane, a black American who was born at the turn of the 20th century and committed suicide when he was 32. I don't see an explicit connection between the meaning of Crane's poem and Beck's song, but I do think a writer such as Crane would likely serve as an inspiration to an artist like Beck. I'll let you research Crane for yourself to determine if you agree with me on that or not.

In the scope of Beck's world however, I think the term "Black Tambourine" is used more as a metaphor to describe a broken soul. The narrator in the song not only has a broken soul, he's also very conscious of how other people can see that he has a broken soul (which makes his already-terrible condition even worse). That's why he says his black heart is "in effigy", meaning it is on public display for all to see. He also says "sharks smell the blood that I'm bleeding", which tells us that he views others as threatening to him (as is often the case with an injured animal of any kind).

You'll also notice that he mentions two black hearts, not just one. The other heart belongs to his female partner who is also suffering from the same condition. The narrator is describing how he and his partner are drawn together based on their common mental/spiritual illness ("my baby run to me"). This provides them both with some relief at night after a long day of suffering ("to keep it warm at night.. my tambourine is still shaking").

Of course like any Beck song, you can abstract the lyrics further and consider other interpretations like David Lynch did when he used this song in Inland Empire. It appears that Lynch used the song to enforce the idea that the main character in his movie doesn't know who she is. So in that sense, the two black hearts in the song could also be seen as two sides/personalities/dimensions of the same suffering person. But again, I think the main idea is "black tambourine" = "broken soul".

I love this song, so laid back. I wish I could decipher more deeply into the meaning..the only thing I can suggest is perhaps discontent with one's life? I must add that I have fallen in love with this music video. I find it visually stunning.

yesss the video is awesome. discontent, perhaps.

It has a sort of quiet urgency that I really dig on. Better than E-Pro in my opinion. Brillant.

I belive that this is a song about a poor, posibly homeless, kid who plays music for money. He dosnt do that well and has a kid but still stays true to himself, god i'm corny.

Yeah I agree with you Incinerate about the poor person trying to survive in this world. The 'tambourine' is the heart, why does this person heart is black? Probably cause he thinks is dirty and mess up. That's why he says: 'to keep it warm at night, my tambourine is still shaking'. This person is always amazed how depiste everything he is still alive.

Five comments? This song is like... my favorite of Beck's. It's deep but still kind of upbeat. Maybe about starving artists...? Whatever it's about, though, it kicks ass.

the song (and most of guero) has a black (literally) rundown city connotation. he talks a lot about bones and a tambourine kinda immitaits the sounds of rattling bones. shivering. im sure its got to be deeper then this but, for now, i gotta agreee with Unnicknamed. I'm thinking that he saw something that inspired him to right this. (like walking through the boondocks or something) idk

i agree with people about the homeless person trying to survive part. & to me it seems like, this is kinda Beck's twist on the song Green Tambourine by the Lemon Pipers i dunno though

dark and groovy. love its use on Inland Empire.