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Viva! Sea-Tac Lyrics

People flocked like cattle to Seattle
After Kurt Cobain
And before him the rain

Hendrix played guitar just like an animal
That's trapped inside a cage
And one day he escaped

Do you want to pay for this in cash?
Viva Seattle Tacoma, viva viva Sea-Tac
Viva Seattle Tacoma, viva viva Sea-Tac
Viva viva viva viva viva Sea-Tac
They've got the best computers
And coffee and smack

Coming and going it has to be Boeing
The best form of defense
Is blow them up
In a regular cup

Have an espresso, you will?
Oh I guess so
I feel my heart is gonna start to jump
'Cause it's wired to a pump

And the Space Needle points to the sky
The Space Needle's such a nice guy
But he never knows...
Viva Seattle Tacoma, viva viva Sea-Tac
Viva Seattle Tacoma, viva viva Sea-Tac

All the Norwegians, man
You should see them
Out in Ballard looking soulful at the pines
And also the Swedes

All of the groovers came from Vancouver
And some of them came up from Oregon
In case you don't know

But the Space Needle points to the sky
The Space Needle's such a nice guy
But you never know...
Viva Seattle Tacoma, viva viva Sea-Tac
Viva Seattle Tacoma, viva viva Sea-Tac
Viva viva viva viva viva Sea-Tac
They've got the best computers and coffee and smack

Viva Seattle Tacoma, viva viva Sea-Tac
Viva Seattle Tacoma, viva viva Sea-Tac
Viva Seattle Tacoma, viva viva Sea-Tac
Viva Seattle Tacoma, viva viva Sea-Tac

Long live everything in Washington State
Including everybody
May they live to a million years
May they reproduce until there's no room To go anywhere
Clustered under the Space Needle
Like walking eggs with arms and legs

Viva viva viva viva viva

Alright, we can probably stop

(Whoops)
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Cover art for Viva! Sea-Tac lyrics by Robyn Hitchcock

umm, the corporatism of starbucks. considering the references to coffee, and the fact starbucks originated in seattle. and also how people try and squeeze money out of everything, like dead rock stars. basically, american dick'eds

Cover art for Viva! Sea-Tac lyrics by Robyn Hitchcock

Having lived near Seattle myself, I must say this is a pretty funny song, though I'm not sure why Robyn doesn't care for the place. For those not familiar with the city, I'll explain the references, though this song is pretty straight forward and I doubt anyone is puzzling much over the meaning. But just in case:

Sea-Tac (short for Seattle-Tacoma) is the name of Seattle's big international airport. The chorus "Viva Sea-Tac" is celebrating the means of getting the hell out of Seattle.

Kurt Cobain basically put Seattle on the map. When Nirvana got huge in the early 90's, Seattle was seen as a thriving, hip city at the cutting edge of culture, and it became THE place to be (kinda like the image of San Fran in the 60s). Before Kurt Cobain, Seattle was only known as being a place that rains alot.

Jimi Hendrix was born and raised in Seattle, but he left the city in his late teens and never looked back (though there is a well-known statute of Hendrix in Seattle, and Seattlites like to claim Hendrix as one of their own).

Microsoft, Starbucks, and Boeing all have their headquarters in Seattle. Seattle is also famous for having a disproportionately high number of heroin addicts, as well as very cheap and high quality heroin.

Ballard is a neighborhood in Seattle that is home to a sizable Scandinavian immigrant population.

Vancouver is only an hour away from Seattle, and the Oregon border is maybe 2 and a half hours, so there are alot of daytrippers and weekenders coming to Seattle from these places.

I am a fan of Hitchcock but have never heard this song or him referencing it in interviews. Sounds, from the lyrics, more of an observation or a like of the place than a dis of Seattle and Sea-Tac.

 
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