This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
In the failing light of the afternoon
Lucy in the shade of the dogwood blooms
Yesterday the solace of a poison fish
Tomorrow I'll be kissing on her blood red lips
No one is the savior they would like to be
The love song of the buzzard in the dogwood tree
With a train of horses laughing through the traffic line
And the cradle's unimaginative sense of time
Springtime and the promise of an open fist
A tattoo of a flower on a broken wrist
Lucy tells me jokingly to wipe her brow
With a pocket map to heaven and the sun goes down
Lucy in the shade of the dogwood blooms
Yesterday the solace of a poison fish
Tomorrow I'll be kissing on her blood red lips
No one is the savior they would like to be
The love song of the buzzard in the dogwood tree
With a train of horses laughing through the traffic line
And the cradle's unimaginative sense of time
Springtime and the promise of an open fist
A tattoo of a flower on a broken wrist
Lucy tells me jokingly to wipe her brow
With a pocket map to heaven and the sun goes down
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Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
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Son Şansın - Şarkı Sözleri
Hayalperest
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This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
Holiday
Bee Gees
Bee Gees
@[Diderik:33655] "Your a holiday!" Was a popular term used in the 50s/60s to compliment someone on their all around. For example, not only are they beautiful, but they are fun and kind too ... just an all around "holiday".
I think your first comment is closer to being accurate. The singer/song writers state "Millions of eyes can see, yet why am i so blind!? When the someone else is me, its unkind its unkind". I believe hes referring to the girl toying with him and using him. He wants something deeper with her, thats why he allows himself to be as a puppet (even though for her fun and games) as long as it makes her happy. But he knows deep down that she doesnt really want to be serious with him and thats what makes him.
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988.
"'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it."
"There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
I don’t think this song has any specific meaning or purpose, other than to express a sense of religious skepticism, and very poetically, I might add. It draws on several Christian stories, maxims, and beliefs, but adds sinister twists to them. There is a stark juxtaposition of idealistic religious dogma against secular realism. For instance:
“Lucy in the shade of the dogwood blooms Yesterday the solace of a poison fish”
The dogwood fable, as explained above by Beam92, specifically alludes to Christ. Sitting under the dogwood blooms could be listening/understanding his teaching, it could be mourning his crucifixion. I prefer the former because during the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus fed the masses with one fish–but the fish in this song is poisoned, a twist to traditional dogma, a hint of skepticism. The fish, perhaps an image for the sermon itself, feigns solace. People listen to Jesus and are comforted, but there is something not quite right about what they are hearing, something beneath the surface is not quite healthy–while they are taking in the idealism, they are dying. The body is in pain while the “spirit” soars towards something hopeful and chimerical.
“No one is the saviour they would like to be The lovesong of the buzzard in the dogwood tree”
Despite all Christ’s good intentions, the world is still full of shit. Terrible stuff still happens. Things die, other things eat the dead things (like the buzzard). The buzzard could also be Christ, which I think is a pretty shocking image. He preaches about life after death, an eternity of happiness, all wishes fulfilled. Almost like a buzzard feeding on carrion, his message gains strength on his “afterlife” assertions. People want hope, they want something greater, better than reality; they are more likely to abide by his teachings if they are promised a cushy seat in heaven. Jesus gains strength and followers by feeding on their fears and notions of death. The horses and the “cradle’s unimaginative sense of time” also juxtapose worldly and heavenly life. Horse laughing: “Yes this world sucks; sucker them in by offering better.” The cradle plays the obvious, “unimaginative” eternity card to sway a mass of mortal followers.
“Springtime and the promise of an open fist A tattoo of a flower on a broken wrist”
Jesus rises on Easter, opens his fist to show where the stakes hung him to the cross, but in this instance he is very worldly and contemporary, having a tattoo instead of a hole, and despite having risen from death as the son of God, he still has a broken wrist, a very mortal thing to sport when associated with God. The "flower tattoo" also substantially links Christ to the dogwood image. Anyway, all of this puts his "godhood" into serious doubt: what diving being has a tattoo and broken wrist?
These descriptions are framed by the scene of two people, man and woman, sitting on a hill beneath a tree in the late afternoon. The song's religious skepticism is superbly amplified by the last two lines:
“Lucy tells me jokingly to pe her brow With a pocket map to heaven and the sun goes down”
To wipe your brow with a map to heaven doesn’t put much faith or importance in the map. It’s like she’s saying, “Yes, Christ’s promises about eternity are nice, but right now my brow is sweaty and I’d like to clean it. I’ll deal with that other stuff later--if ever. Right now, the sun’s setting and I’d like to watch.”
Just a thought on another religious reference... I know one of the Catholic traditions is that on the way to Golgotha a woman wiped Jesus' brow. So I wonder if that's a wee part of Lucy's joke.
@mellow hahaha, love the song - cant help the feeling of being a little out of my depth after reading some of the interpretations on here; thanks for taking the time to write this!
I think the reference to the 'solace of a poison fish' is saying that there is comfort in faith in Christianity, but it is corrupt (or maybe corrupting). Sam Beam seems to be one of those who believes in the teachings of Christianity, but not the dogma. I heard James Taylor say on TV the other night that he writes 'gospel music for agnostics'. I thought that was sort of applicable to Sam Beam, too. He uses intense religious symbolism, but always infuses his songs with doubt/skepticism. A tender-hearted heretic. This song is really complex and simple at the same time. Like Beam92, I still am absorbing it. Whatever all Beam's symbolism means, it is truly beautiful.
Though I did not see this post until now, I will take that as the happy birthday you wished me in '07. I enjoyed reading your post.
I read an interview where Sam Beam said that sometimes he just writes and he doesn't even have an inkling as to what it's about. His response to the question of, "What's Lovesong of the Buzzard about?" was no.
Not every song has to have a deep powerful meaning, guys. Haven't you ever written anything that was aesthetically pleasing and nothing more?
Many artists also dislike giving out "official" explanations of lyrics/art because it makes everyone's brains shut off.<br /> <br /> P1: "Wow, this song really touched me. I think its about someone overcoming thoughts of suicide."<br /> P2: "No, it's about his dog that died. He said so in an interview on YouTube."<br /> <br /> Bleh. You're making it sound like thinking about the words is somehow bad or takes away from the song, but that's how many people really grow to love a song. I can easily overlook a song just letting the sounds flow over me, but suddenly really love it once I come up with my own interpretation of the lyrics. I'll never forget the song then. <br /> <br /> (Nothings wrong with just liking the sound either though. Many people get more out of music that way, like what Jim James is talking about in "The Way He Sings".)
Holy shit Sam Beam is a genius. Learning about this song gave me the chills and made my eyes water. This song is definitely optimistic...to me atleast. This is from wikipedia: There is a Christian fable that proclaims that the cross used to crucify Jesus was constructed of dogwood.[3] As the fable goes, during the time of Jesus, the dogwood was larger and stronger than it is today. After his crucifixion, Jesus changed the plant to its current form: he shortened it and twisted its branches as to assure an end to the use of the plant for the construction of crosses, and he transformed its inflorescence into the form of the crucifixion itself. The four white bracts are cross-shaped, which are said to represent the four corners of the cross, each bearing a rusty indentation as of a nail; the red stamens of the flower, represents Jesus' crown of thorns; and the clustered red fruit represent his blood. The first stanza seems to represent that there were bad times in the past, "yesterday the solace of a poison fish." and good times in the future: "tomorrow I'll be kissing on her blood red lips." There's so much more meaning in this song...I'll have to think about it and come back to it later.
this song is glorious...
C'mon people - where's the love? This song is AMAZING. This is the kind of song that you live a life too.
I don't know about this Sam Beam guy. I've always thought he was a hero of sorts, but after listening to his new album, I'm thinking he's probably more of a god.
he definitely is a god. an absolute genius.
i absolutely adore this song.
anyone else feel like his new 'sound' is a bit jeremy enigk? not that thats a bad thing, or that he's ripping him off, just has that feel to it.
From hearing his songs... I don't really believe That Sam really is agnostic, I refuse to believe that evev if he said it... like SONGYONE said he's a "tender hearted heretic" and I thinks he does believe in Christianity but a bit resentful with it... it might have something to do with something that happened in his life... what? I completely ignore it
wow emilykate, what a thorough analysis. I agree on all your points. Maybe he is suggesting that christianity/religion is a cloud, obscuring the already "failing light" (truth, which is hard to make out/find).
I dont know, it seems rather hopeful overall. Its just that last stanza that makes things unclear.