The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
I want to tell you 'bout Texas radio and the big beat
Comes out of the Virginia swamps
Cool and slow with plenty of precision
With a back beat narrow and hard to master
Some call it heavenly in its brilliance
Others, mean and rueful of the Western dream
I love the friends I have gathered together on this thin raft
We have constructed pyramids in honor of our escaping
This is the land where the Pharaoh died
The Negroes in the forest brightly feathered
They are saying, "forget the night
Live with us in forests of azure
Out here on the perimeter there are no stars
Out here we is stoned, immaculate"
Listen to this, and I'll tell you 'bout the heartache
I'll tell you 'bout the heartache and the loss of God
I'll tell you 'bout the hopeless night
The meager food for souls forgot
I'll tell you 'bout the maiden with wrought iron soul
I'll tell you this
No eternal reward will forgive us now for wasting the dawn
I'll tell you 'bout Texas radio and the Big Beat
Soft, driven, slow and mad, like some new language
Now, listen to this, and I'll tell you 'bout the Texas
I'll tell you 'bout the Texas radio
I'll tell you 'bout the hopeless night
Wandering the Western dream
Tell you 'bout the maiden with wrought iron soul
Comes out of the Virginia swamps
Cool and slow with plenty of precision
With a back beat narrow and hard to master
Some call it heavenly in its brilliance
Others, mean and rueful of the Western dream
I love the friends I have gathered together on this thin raft
We have constructed pyramids in honor of our escaping
This is the land where the Pharaoh died
The Negroes in the forest brightly feathered
They are saying, "forget the night
Live with us in forests of azure
Out here on the perimeter there are no stars
Out here we is stoned, immaculate"
Listen to this, and I'll tell you 'bout the heartache
I'll tell you 'bout the heartache and the loss of God
I'll tell you 'bout the hopeless night
The meager food for souls forgot
I'll tell you 'bout the maiden with wrought iron soul
I'll tell you this
No eternal reward will forgive us now for wasting the dawn
I'll tell you 'bout Texas radio and the Big Beat
Soft, driven, slow and mad, like some new language
Now, listen to this, and I'll tell you 'bout the Texas
I'll tell you 'bout the Texas radio
I'll tell you 'bout the hopeless night
Wandering the Western dream
Tell you 'bout the maiden with wrought iron soul
Lyrics submitted by kevin, edited by jejones3141, sirrom
The WASP (Texas Radio and the Big Beat) Lyrics as written by Robby Krieger John Densmore
Lyrics © Doors Music Company
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(The lyrics above are incorrect, but onto the song...)
"Now listen to this, I'll tell you 'bout the heartache. I'll tell you 'bout the heartache and the loss of God. I'll tell you 'bout the hopeless night The meager food for souls forgot I'll tell you 'bout the maiden with wrought iron soul."
In my humble opinion, these are some of the best and most meaningful lines written in the English language, not to even mention ones written by Jim Morrison. I'm hard pressed to think of a more apt expression of loneliness in a life that at times seems to go on forever. I have been there, and Jim captures the feeling perfectly.
Extremely underrated as a poem, and you just can't stop the music of the song. Killer backbeat, Robby crunching out an unbeatable riff, and Manzarek at his finest. No one, really, steals the show. This was the Doors functioning as a band and also expertly as individual members. Hands down, one of their best.
I wanna tell you about Texas Radio and the Big Beat (Texas sybolizes a powerful entity while Radio is the media. The Big Beat is a big plan) Comes out of the Virginia swamps (The colonial resistance emerged from the Virginia Swamps to gain independence- the western dream) Cool and slow with plenty of precision (The powerful entity has a cool head slowly working the plan with repeatable accuracy in its execution) With a back beat narrow and hard to master (There is little room for error and requires expertise to complete the plan) Some call it heavenly in it's brilliance (Applauded by some. Brilliance of the heavens usually applies to stars- high achievers are also stars) Others, mean and ruthful of the Western dream (Others see the plan as mean and and sorrowfully regretful of the Western Dream. A mistake that needs to be rectified.) I love the friends I have gathered together on this thin raft (Thin raft- symbolism for fragile, carrying few away) We have constructed pyramids in honor of our escaping (Pyramids. a solid place to protect the remains forever. The only human structure to, so far, prove everlasting- a permanant shelter) This is the land where the Pharaoh died (Pharoah DIED, not lived... a place without the control from a central authority) The Negroes in the forest brightly feathered (The forest is not the desert of egypt. It is apart from the central authority. Brightly feathered speaks of people that are happy and can live their lives freely) They are saying, "Forget the night." (The night has two meanings here: 1. The starry sky -from line five- with its star leaders 2. The end of the day in which the plan is completed.) Live with us in forests of azure. (Azure-sky blue- indicates a land that is free of the night or the fullfillment of the plan that is to come.) Out here on the perimeter there are no stars (Away from the central authority there are no controlling leaders.) Out here we is stoned - immaculate." (A biblical reference. Stoning puts an end to sin. Here we are free and clean (immaculate) of the plan.) Listen to this, and I'll tell you 'bout the heartache (Jim repeats-Listen to this- There is pain coming.) I'll tell you 'bout the heartache and the loss of God (The cares will be heavy, and capital G god will be lost in favor of the temporal control.) I'll tell you 'bout the hopeless night (within the night-when the plan is complete- there will be hoplessness.) The meager food for souls forgot (The stars-central leaders-will have posession of all leaving only a spare ort for the rest of the population.) I'll tell you 'bout the maiden with raw iron soul (A maiden is not yet married-the plan is not yet complete. Raw iron soul-gold is pure while iron is black and the material from which prison cells are made.) I'll tell you this No eternal reward will forgive us now for wasting the dawn (Clearly a line that warns against the practice of tacit consent. It is the dawn or the beginning of the plan. Act now, or live with the heartache reward that will come with the night.) I'll tell you 'bout Texas Radio and the Big Beat Soft drivin', slow and mad, like some new language (The Big Plan will slowly drive in and things will happen that appear as madness. It will not be understood why certain conditions unfold and the explaination might as well have been given in another language.) Now, listen to this, and I'll tell you 'bout the Texas I'll tell you 'bout the Texas Radio (Morrison repeats this phrase for emphasis. He was an artist that repeated very little. It must be important to him.) I'll tell you 'bout the hopeless night (It is becoming self-explanatory. When the plan is complete there will be hoplessness.) Wandering the Western dream (Wandering has no destination-an act of the hopless living in what was the western dream) Tell you 'bout the maiden with raw iron soul (A repeat of the cold nature of the soul that ill have control)
If Morrison had not accused his audience of being slaves in florida, or had not planned to fake his death I believe that my interpretation would be completely different.
@MyBestGuess - "If Morrison had not accused his audience of being slaves in florida or had not planned to fake his death I believe that my interpretation would be completely different" - wow i thought i was the only one who feels this way. interesting enough, the court proceedings and that WHOLE event,,lead to his death..No Way was Jim Going To Sent To Be Sent To Prison. "you want Death..i'll give you death" Jim Morrison P.S. Jim was headed for a prison sentence, he took the opportunity to go to France so his death would vindicate his actions in florida as Poetry or art. Morrison planed on Death - Period, Death or suicide is a way for artists, stars, ect. to become immortalized. which is exactly what happened. Jim was a sick fucker non the less. the evidence is clear of that fact.<br />
@MyBestGuess big difference between Raw abd Wrought iron. Wrought has been repeatedly heated and reworked to achieve its final form. Raw is simply cast iron.
beeautiful lyrics! i love the way jim morrison's mind works and how he pieces words together, that normally never come in contact. i love this song.
This is a killer example of the beauty in Jim's poetic lyrics.
They can't say he wasn't a poet if they've heard this.
Inspiring. Captivating. There are no words.
"I'll tell you this No eternal reward will forgive us now for wasting the dawn"
"Tell you 'bout the maiden with raw iron soul" is supposed to be "Tell you 'bout the maiden with the wrought iron soul." And it's not "lose of God;" it's "loss of God."
"Out here in the perimeter, there are no stars. Out here we is stoned, immaculate."
I love this line here. this more than likely implies that living without the accomadations of society; cities, life is more enjoyable. It is more lucid. Seldom do people consider how little self-reliance they exzibit. Referring to natives, (Negroes in the forest)this one line can be interpeted in many ways.
I think the general theme of the song has much to do with the clash between the establishment culture vs counterculture. Thus, he has gathered (counterculture) friends on a thin raft, and constructed pyramids in honor of their escaping ( from the "establishment."). Thus the references to the Western Dream (widely criticized in the 1960s). "No eternal reward will forgive us now for wasting the dawn" is a perfect example of counterculture thinking--life is there to be experienced, experience it, there are no rules. "The negroes in the forest" is an image of freedom; I wonder if that section of the song was shaped at all by the Civil Rights Movement; in any event, "live with us in forests of azure" is another call to reject treadmill plastic society. For me, WASP has something to so with white establishment America.
There is much about the song that I don't understand, but it might be Jim's most fascinating lyric. I guarantee you ( since many thought and think the song is just cool-sounding jive) that Jim is making all sorts of commentary and observations here. Those of you who read an anti-authoritarian message are on the same general page as me--corrupt authority vs true freedom was another huge theme of the 60s. The song as celebration of rock n roll--the medium of the counterculture--also makes perfect sense to me, and those of you who mentioned Jim's slave comments in Miami have also made nice, telling points. Miami as the flashpoint of the clash of cultures, the conflict over rock n roll (remember, they publicly burned rock records in Miami after Jim's arrest), hippie/peace movement freedom vs crushing establishment authority? What do you think? Few musicians today are even attempting this kind of sweeping social and cultural critique--would that be fair to say?
Morrison was fuggin out there...who knows
I think this is the most unique Doors somg ever. There is just no song, ever like it. I like the backebeat. I think it is about the civilization of America because and conforming. Just read the Lyrics
"The Negroes in the forest brightly feathered. And they are saying, 'Forget the night. Live with us in forests of azure. Out here on the perimeter there are no stars. Out here we are stoned immaculate.'"
those are some of the best lyrics ever, right there. Morrison, what a genius.