Anything But The Truth

I think this song is about Jack's children. I think it is a narrative of when they ask questions that are hard to answer and are sometimes easier to lie about, but Jack wants to be an honest Dad that loves his children enough to tell them only the truth. The part where he sings "What is this place, who am I, why did we come here?" it is a question one of his children asks him and he responds with: "I don't know, I don't know, but I don't know we're meant to know." Jack knows he needs to be honest with them for their own benefit and for the sake of honesty. He wants to raise them up and make them strong, like when he sings "tree tops they touch the ground, in the morning walk with no sound, hear no birds, hear no planes, through the mud, feel the clay, build it up, make it sing, make it strong, give it wings." This, I feel, describes him raising his children, making them stronger along the way and giving them "wings" so they can later fly on their own. Moreover, I love this song and I think it is beautiful.

I agree^ With this song I immediately thought of Jack's life not as a musician, but as a father. The three questions: "What is this place? Who am I? Why did we come here?" are no doubt the harsh questions of reality that every kid asks their parent eventually (or some questions along those lines), and sometimes the parent doesn't know how to respond. They want to be honest but don't want to tell their kid the full truth yet. And when Jack says "I can't tell you anything but the truth" he's saying as a father he doesn't want to lie to his kids and he finds it hard to lie anyways because he cares for them too much. The nature part with the trees, no planes, no sounds, clay, etc. could be referring to the memories he spends outside with his kids and how he wants them to experience the peace in life and he wants them to grow up well and "build it up, make it sing, make it strong, give it wings".

When he says "What happens to an eagle's nest in a storm? How does the mama keep her baby warm?" this could also be referring to the questions Jack has a tough time answering to his kids, since ultimately in a storm the eagle's nest falls and the babies die. Something you don't want to admit to your kids when they're young.

If they tell me that the bees Don't make honey anymore Then what am I supposed to tell you And if they tell me that the ocean Is tired of her shores Then tell me What am I supposed to tell you

You probably shouldn't skip this part when interpreting the rest of the song. Those lines are obviously in reference to global warming et al. It could very well be him speaking to his children, but it isn't just about growing up, it's about all of the things happening in the world NOW that we can't fully understand or explain.

Also I'm not so sure it's such a pretty picture with the outdoor thing. Hear no birds doesn't sound like a good thing. Nor really does tree tops touching the ground, especially in the context of where this song starts off.

This all fits with many of the themes throughout his music. I am always amazed at this with Jack's music. People always seem to skip certain lines that can't be explained with anything other than a political/social reference. On Facebook he posted something about the environment and people started saying "STICK TO MUSIC JACK!! LAY OFF THE POLITICS!" And I asked them if they've ever actually listened to his music.