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Crash On The Barrelhead Lyrics
You're gonna crash on the barrelhead son
You'll regret the things that you done
One of these days you're gonna rue
All the messed up things you do
You're gonna die the way you live
And the way you drink you're like a ri-
ver bound for falls and not much fun
You're gonna crash on the barrelhead son
Chorus:
You're gonna wake up in your shoes
No one you love a'watching you
You'll hate you're face when the morning shines
On the mirror frame and you're guilty mind.
You're gonna crash on the barrelhead son
And do the walls know what you done?
And do they listen in on you?
Do the walls know what you do?
Chorus
You'll regret the things that you done
One of these days you're gonna rue
All the messed up things you do
And the way you drink you're like a ri-
ver bound for falls and not much fun
You're gonna crash on the barrelhead son
You're gonna wake up in your shoes
No one you love a'watching you
You'll hate you're face when the morning shines
On the mirror frame and you're guilty mind.
And do the walls know what you done?
And do they listen in on you?
Do the walls know what you do?
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I don't pretend to be very good at gleaning song meanings, but this one is pretty straight-forward. What I find interesting is the play on words: "You're gonna crash on the barrelhead" being so close to the phrase "Cash on the barrelhead."
If the song is a warning about the wayward life of a young man, with his excesses in drinking and whoring around, then the reference to cash on the barrelhead becomes more intereesting.
The long-standing story about this song is that it was written about Ryan Adams, who was at that time the lead singer of Whiskeytown, with whom the Old 97's supposedly had an ongoing "feud" with.
The story goes that Ryan Adams used to be quite the hard-living, drug-doing rock star type. It was surmised that he wouldn't live past 25. Some online music review I read said now he's poised to be more like Bob Dylan....livnig and churning out cd's until he's 70. But yeah, everything I've heard says the song is about him. And I'm not so sure that I'd call it a "feud" since I don't think the boys from the old 97's have any particular problem with ryan adams. Although there was something going on there at one point.
I've read that it's about Ryan Adams when they witnessed his wild antics at Austin City Limits Fest when he was with Whiskeytown.
So, it's less of a feud and more of a "We've been around longer than you, watch yourself or you are going to end up dead."