Roscoe

i think it's sort of a lament... for a simpler time, a time of working with your hands and actually making something practical and beautiful-- the mountaineers building their own houses. he seems to be saying with all the new industries (hundreds and hundreds of chemicals) we've lost ourselves... i dunno how to describe exactly what it says to me but it makes me want to get away from the cities and back to the basics of human life.

I thought it was about how parents raise you, and going off disregarding everything to make your own identity.

No, seriously.

mhhh so parts of the lyrics have something to do with Prokofiev, Tims favourite classical componist (born in 1891) and with one of his symphonies... ---> Peter and the wolf. grandpa and grandson are living in that house in the woods...and the wolf is somewhere out there (ever wondered why midlake got the wolf mask everywhere??) The animals are all helping together to reach heir aim, catch the wolf...while fulfiling that task they forget about the enemy status they usually have among them (i.e the cat and the bird) ...and "When they got back they're all mixed up (so they r also singing about proper social behaviour...helping together to reach an aim) With no one to stay with".... guess my english sucks..anyway..a great song! mattk

what in the hell is this song about? I love it to pieces but I can't for the life of me figure it out and it drives me crazy. Is it all metaphor or is it just a story?

The artist portrays the life of a Stone-cutters and mountaineers at the beginning of the song with the hope of showing a progression from how life was back then to how life is today. The artist thinks all civilizations try to improve life for example using stone to build a dwelling place (Stone-cutters made them from stones ..) and using timber to make chingles (On the roof leaks they got started And now when the rain comes we can be thankful ...) , however the artist points out that not all advancements or improvements or progressions in society are necessary and good. We can be thankful for no longer having to withstand roof leaks when it rains, but is it really necessary to have computers automate almost every apspect of life or two and three cars in the average home driveway which consequently increases our dependency on foreign oil (The village used to be all one really needs Now it's filled with hundreds and hundreds of chemicals...) ? Ultimately the artist is saying even though we have come so far as a civilization in technology and medicine etc and we have and purchase so much stuff, people in the past lived just as productive if not more productive lives with much much less. Do not be consumed with the thought that everything needs to change to be better be content with what you have for as the artist said (We have all we need...) we had all we need back then and the same holds true today.

The chorus is DEFINITELY 'thought we were due for a change or two'

and the bridge is

'they roamed around and foraged' not 'they looked out the forrest'

and it just kicks off the concept album i think. which is about a character from 1890's i guess.

It's a twist on the Libretto from Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf". Watch the video for 'The Old & The Young' and you'll see the theme.

Not to throw a monkey wrench in the theorizing, but check this out. Have you ever heard of "Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles" in the L.A. area? Well, I have been to the one in Pasadena, and let me tell you it has some delicious southern-style home cooking. To the point though. The full name is actually "Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles". Not many people know this. What are they working on in the song, "Roscoe"? Well, houses. Fixing a roof leak, which they do in the song, is like what? Let me answer for you. It is like satiating an appetite, which one does by "working" (aka eating) at the waffle house. What type of material do the mountaineers use at the beginning of the song? Stone. They are stonecutters. What happens to an overcooked waffle? It becomes like stone, and if you want any chance of eating it you would need to cut it. The "timber gathered" in the song refers most likely to the wood paneled walls inside the waffle house. Aunt Rosaline is like Aunt Jemima, and what is Aunt Jemima? Syrup. What do you put on waffles? Syrup. The parallels are uncanny. The "mixed up" part is obviously a reference to mixing up orders. What happens at a restaurant when you are given the wrong dish? It is said by the waiter or waitress, "I must have mixed up your order," or by the patron "They mixed up my order." For instance, maybe you asked for syrup, and they didn't bring any. You are then presently waiting for syrup aka Aunt Jemima aka Aunt Rosaline, as in the song. It all circles back. "When the morning comes we will step outside" refers to waking up early to go to "Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles". Since you went so early you "will not find another man inside". The "newness" either refers to the cleanliness of the restaurant since it's early in the morning, it just opened, and has not had time to get sullied, or the people "stepping outside" are heading to a new waffle house location. "Growing in the garden soaking for so long" refers to all the built up thoughts the people who "stepped outside" had about going to Roscoe's waffle house. It could also refer to the fresh collard greens that had just been steaming in water, freshly "chosen" from the garden. "Something more productive like Roscoe" I think refers to the owner of the restaurants, who is obviously productive, featuring a diverse and expansive menu at four unique locations. 1891 I am not sure about since "Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles" opened in 1975, but the difference between 1891 and 1975 equals 84 years. If you say the lyrics "1891/They looked around the forest/They made their house from cedars" really fast it starts to jumble together and sound like "eighty-four years." This is probably what the writer from the Nebraskan was talking about when he said the song unites past and present. "Eighty-four years" brings us to the establishment of Roscoe's waffle house, which is what the whole song is based off.

The first verse should read "the mountaineers gathered timber piled high..." instead of "gathered tender piled high..." And later: "Traveling many miles..." instead of "Driving many miles..."

In the chorus, it should read, "Thought we were due for a change or two..." not "Thought we were devoid a change or two..."

Second verse should read, "The village used to be all one really needs. Now it's filled with hundreds and hundreds of chemicals" (this seems to lament the increasing pollution within modern day "village" life)

Later in that verse, it should read, "We will not find another man in sight..." not "another man inside." They have stepped out and are looking at the uninhabited world. A bit later in that stanza, it should read, "struggling in our gardens for so long..." not "soaking in our gardens for so long."

And at the end, just before the final refrain, it should read, "They're a little like you, and they're a little like me. We have all we need." It's not "When they're falling me."

Hope that helps clear up some of the meaning questions. Great song.

This song is saying how mixed up the modern hectic world can be, remembering how good the simple things are and how we should not let things get too complex, just keep them simple and get away from the unnecessary bustle and race of these days. As Lura04 said, it's a lament for times gone when things were simple.

Matt