Born Alone

here's the story behind the lyrics: http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2011/09/watch-wilcos-new-born-alone-video-and-read-the-story-behind-its-lyrics/244656/

WELCOME TO EXISTENTIALISM... POPULATION: 1

I think the third & fourth verses are:

Tonight I'd rather count the warm fuse internally Subtract the silence of myself I would rather choose a middle-minded mystery Subtract the riddle for my health I wonder why strange rhymes overpower me Toss the chimneys in the sea I believe I've seen the finger Divine extremity

Please come closer to the feather smooth lens fly Sadness is my luxury Will you ever join the cold come before I die More aware of it than me

I think that the second line is: ferried Faust across the void

and the first line of the last verse sounds like: the valves are glowing stone

this sounds like something... biblical? "mine eyes deceiving glory..." i don't know, it's so reminiscent of something, i can't figure out what.

but also some of this is very nonsensical, yes? "please come closer to the feather smooth lens fly" WHAT. i'm lost. but i love it.

Lyrics taken from album liner notes

I have heard the war and worry of the gospel Ferried fast across the void I have married broken spoke charging smoke wheels Spit and swallowed opioid I am the driver at the wheel of the horror Marching circles at the gate Mine eyes have seen The fury so flattered by fate

Tonight I'd rather count the warm fuse internally Subtract the silence of myself I would rather choose the middle mind of mystery Reverse a riddle for my health I'll unwind strange rinds overpowering Toss the chimneys in the sea I believe I've seen The finger divine extremity

Please come closer to the feather smooth lens fly Sadness is my luxury Will you weather, join the cold, come before I die More aware of it than me The valves are blowing stone The kids are unabashed Loneliness postponed Mine eyes deceiving glory I was born to die alone Alone

Lyrics taken from album liner notes

Heh. I guess this song doesn't mean anything in particular, but when I tried to piece the lyrics together the first few times I listened to it, what I came up with is the narrator is some kind of god who can selectively experience major events in the Universe.

For example: "I have heard the war and worry of the gospel. Ferried fast across the void," the narrator is dwelling on the most unique events in the universe. Jumping from major event to major event letting it all wash over him to get a feel for both the tyrannical nature of mankind and the chaotic grander of nature.

But then turns introspective: "Tonight I'd rather count the warm fuse internally..." So here the narrator choses to dwell in loneliness, inhabiting the body of a singular person contemplating his position in the universe.

After he gets his fill of being introspective, he wants to connect with something outside of him. He is looking for someone to relate to: "Will you weather, join the cold, come before I die. More aware of it than me."

But then realizes, being a God, he is destined to be disconnected from humanity: "I was born to die alone."

I think Jeff Tweedy said that this song was put together using words and phrases from 19th century American poetry (including Emily Dickinson). that certainly comes across: "Mine eyes have seen the fury.." is reminiscent of "mine eyes have seen the glory..." from the Battle Hymn of the Republic by Julia Ward Howe.

also, the line "I was born to die alone" is meant in a defiant, triumphant way. It's great that Jeff is in a place where he can see that we're more alive when we recognise our mortality rather than deny it.

Considering the interview he gave regarding the song, reading what he originally wrote and what he sought to convey, I think the song is a rework of "Invictus" as far as the song meaning.

Invictus

Out of the night that covers me, Black as the Pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeonings of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears Looms but the Horror of the shade, And yet the menace of the years Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll. I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul.

Basic truth...everyone is alone, and it's fruitless to fight or think otherwise, and most importantly, it's ok ;) hehehehe