Other Towns and Cities

I think it's a shame that this song doesn't fit perfectly on the album because lyrically it's one of the strongest. In particular I like:

These words are weak and to your dislike You'll never believe them so I guess it's alright

Lyrics transcribed from the booklet included with the "My Maudlin Career" CD. Parts in brackets were erronesouly left out of the booklet lyrics despite obviously being a part of the song. Parts enclosed in parentheses are in the booklet lyrics despite not actually being in the recorded version. Sans the bracketed and parenthetical parts, everything else from the booklet checks out to my ears.

Drinking whisky reminds me of you You're the first in ages to have gotten through I know you mean well, I know that you do But sooner or later you're going to break me in two Were my pupils dilated? Could you tell that I liked you? We were so unlikely You flirt with an ex, put me to the test [Oh and] still I want to tell you that I love you the best We turned the radiators on and there was no way back Did you know You had The Plough star trail on your back? Your voice is quiet but I need it loud In the night you went up And [in] the morning you went down It's like you to forbid me to say goodnight I had your brown eyes and limbs On me through the night These words are weak and to your dislike [But] you'll never believe them so I guess it's alright

Do you like the view I show you? I say look at the light Do you still miss the way that I hold you? In other towns and cities Who's holding you tonight?

The dresses came out of the bag then the tears came Drinking has never been the same again I shared your trouble, I shared your weight I lost it with you today We don't share a birthday (but) we do share a sign [And] we shared something or was it (all) in my mind There was talk of love and how I need it back I'd be better for you than that last love of mine

Do you like the view I show you? I say look at the light Do you still miss the way that I hold you? In other towns and cities Who's holding you tonight? You're in another town or city You mean nothing to me tonight.

this song I can oddly relate to right now, I think she is talking about someone whom she has a relationship and has depression. when she says "In the night you went up And [in] the morning you went down" she's saying that he changes his mood a lot, and she can't seem to understand. also when she says, "These words are weak and to your dislike[But] you'll never believe them so I guess it's alright", I can totally understand her, because my current bf is going thru depression and he never believes what I tell him and I think she is getting fed up. then to finally sum up the song, when she says "The dresses came out of the bag then the tears came. Drinking has never been the same again I shared your trouble, I shared your weight,I lost it with you today. We don't share a birthday (but) we do share a sign [And] we shared something or was it (all) in my mind. There was talk of love and how I need it back". I think she is started realizing that no matter what she does she doesnt feel like anything she is doing is right, she felt like she was about to settle down with this guy but in the end depression wins, she can't even drink with him anymore or do anything so her final option is to leave this guy even though she still deeply cares for him :(

I don't know how specific we can get - the song seems mostly to just be a quiet, sad reflection on a relationship that didn't last supremely long but had a lot of weight to it. Drinking isn't the same since you can't do it with the other person anymore, the plough star trail is her mentioning something about her lover that he/she may have not known before and also hinting at their intimacy, etc. "The dresses came out" seems to me to say that it's over, she's packed her stuff up from wherever they were sharing space and then the tears come because of that. Or perhaps it means she hasn't had a reason to wear a dress to show off for anyone until now, and that's what brings the tears.

Regardless, I think it fits in with the album very well - after Forests and Sands, this comes on and continues the slow melancholy quiet pace right before they slam you with Honey in the Sun for the last hurrah.