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Dont Take Me Alive Lyrics
Agents of the law
Luckless pedestrian
I know you're out there
With rage in your eyes and your megaphones
Saying all is forgiven
Mad dog surrender
How can I answer
A man of my mind can do anything
I'm a bookkeeper's son
I don't want to shoot no one
Well I crossed my own man back in Oregon
Don't take me alive
Got a case of dynamite
I could hold out here all night
Yes I crossed my old man back in Oregon
Don't take me alive
Can you hear the evil crowd
The lies and the laughter
I hear my inside
The mechanized hum of another world
Where no sun is shining
No red light flashing
Here in this darkness
I know what I've done
I know all at once who I am
I'm a bookkeeper's son
I don't want to shoot no one
Well I crossed my old man back in Oregon
Don't take me alive
Got a case of dynamite
I could hold out here all night
Yes I crossed my old man back in Oregon
Don't take me alive
Luckless pedestrian
I know you're out there
With rage in your eyes and your megaphones
Saying all is forgiven
Mad dog surrender
How can I answer
A man of my mind can do anything
I don't want to shoot no one
Well I crossed my own man back in Oregon
Don't take me alive
Got a case of dynamite
I could hold out here all night
Yes I crossed my old man back in Oregon
Don't take me alive
The lies and the laughter
I hear my inside
The mechanized hum of another world
Where no sun is shining
No red light flashing
Here in this darkness
I know what I've done
I know all at once who I am
I don't want to shoot no one
Well I crossed my old man back in Oregon
Don't take me alive
Got a case of dynamite
I could hold out here all night
Yes I crossed my old man back in Oregon
Don't take me alive
Add your song meanings, interpretations, facts, memories & more to the community.
I LOVE Steely Dan songs! They're always so good and so complex at the same time. I know people talk about the generalities of their songs. I've read lots of "...this is about a guy who..." or general analysis about moods or settings. But I've found that, honestly, Steely Dan rarely writes a song about generalities - they're VERY specific. In fact, eerily so (see my analysis of Glamour Profession).
That doesn't change the fact that the music is great! In fact, knowing how they compose lyrics makes me delve that much deeper...
"Don't Take Me Alive" off of "The Royal Scam" is about David Sylvan Fine, the youngest of the Sterling Hall bombers (at the University of Wisconsin- Madison) who was captured ins San Rafael, California in January of 1976. Despite the title of the song he WAS taken alive, spent three years in prison and eventually became a paralegal in Oregon.
FIRST STANZA:
This is a David Fine (also known as William Fewes) inner monologue as the 'agents of the law' (FBI or, as they are known, "federal agents") surround his room in San Rafael to arrest him for the Sterling Hall bombing in 1970.
He was one of four men that bombed the building on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus because it housed the Army Mathematics Research Center. (Three others were injured.) The 'luckless pedestrian' is the only casualty of the Sterling Hall bombing, researcher Robert Fassnacht.
REFRAIN:
In the press, David Fine's father was listed as a bookkeeper or salesman in the Portland, Oregon area. Not a "bookie" or anything else nefarious - just an honest middle-class working professional of the time.
All of the Sterling Hall bombers statements after the fact, specifically said that they did not plan for anyone to be injured by the bomb - which was retaliation for the infamous Kent State massacre. The fatality and other casualties were simply the result of bad timing. And Fine was unarmed at the time of apprehension. ("I don't want to shoot no one.")
The "crossing" line is likely refers to the aftermath of Mr. Fine's hard work (and money) to get him into the Engineering program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, only to have him become a radical who was (incorrectly) associated with the Weather Underground.
And, of course, the "Don't take me alive" line which adds the element of danger. After the bombing when all four went on the run and even during his arrest, there is no record of Fine making that statement. Call it "artistic license" on Steely Dan's part - but the bombing DID make headline news at the time and was a big event.
The "Got a case of dynamite, I could hold out here all night" lines refer to the actual bombing of the building itself. There was no mention of dynamite or anything else being present when Fine was apprehended - so once again, this is 'artistic license'.
SECOND STANZA:
The first couple of sentences refer to Fine's hearing in San Francisco AFTER his arrest. According to newspaper accounts, he was smiling, cordial and comfortable in the courtroom and had no real remorse. So, as he sat on the stand, captured after more than five years on the run, he would perceive the crowd as "evil". The crowd, on the other hand, would be happy to capture one of the criminals in what was at that time, the largest bombing on U.S. soil. (The 1995 Oklahoma City bombing would eclipse it.)
The remaining lines of this stanza reference his job while on the run and living in San Rafael - 'warehouseman' (according to one paper) or as a traffic manager for a small electronics company in Santa Monica ("the mechanized hum of another world"). There inside the dark ("no sun is shining") warehouse, as William Lewes (or Lewis), the police weren't after him ("no red lights flashing"). But, left alone in his hours of work there, he knows who he really is and what he's responsible for. (Look up his testimony in San Francisco and you'll know what I mean.)
@Hoops McCann I agree with this assessment 100% and it also fits in or makes sense when all songs on this side are put together. Take acid, have a revelations about life in the "caves", blow up a guy and then slip away and try to remove the dark spot on the past
@Hoops McCann I agree with this assessment 100% and it also fits in or makes sense when all songs on this side are put together. Take acid, have a revelations about life in the "caves", blow up a guy and then slip away and try to remove the dark spot on the past
@Hoops McCann - Hi Hoops .. I've read a few of your historic replies here .. I'm not considering your references to this song as untrue, but I can somehow imagine that perhaps you could be a friend of SD or Fagen or Becker in disguise. Then again, I think not. There are many people out there who love the internet and who relish the thought of trying to link up historical facts and of course stretching the facts they find to adhere to an explanation of a song.
@Hoops McCann - Hi Hoops .. I've read a few of your historic replies here .. I'm not considering your references to this song as untrue, but I can somehow imagine that perhaps you could be a friend of SD or Fagen or Becker in disguise. Then again, I think not. There are many people out there who love the internet and who relish the thought of trying to link up historical facts and of course stretching the facts they find to adhere to an explanation of a song.
One thing puzzles me here regarding your take of this song; Why is...
One thing puzzles me here regarding your take of this song; Why is the phrase "I crossed my old man in Oregon don't take me alive" sung a number of times? I was 18 years old in 1970 and I remember the shootings at Kent State ... It was common practice in those days to refer to your Father as "My Old Man" ... Please tell me why you don't mention this phrase in your view here. Is it not obvious that his Father has something to do with his barricade?
@Hoops McCann - Hi Hoops .. I've read a few of your historic replies here .. I'm not considering your references to this song as untrue, but I can somehow imagine that perhaps you could be a friend of SD or Fagen or Becker in disguise. Then again, I think not. There are many people out there who love the internet and who relish the thought of trying to link up historical facts and of course stretching the facts they find to adhere to an explanation of a song.
@Hoops McCann - Hi Hoops .. I've read a few of your historic replies here .. I'm not considering your references to this song as untrue, but I can somehow imagine that perhaps you could be a friend of SD or Fagen or Becker in disguise. Then again, I think not. There are many people out there who love the internet and who relish the thought of trying to link up historical facts and of course stretching the facts they find to adhere to an explanation of a song.
One thing puzzles me here regarding your take of this song; Why is...
One thing puzzles me here regarding your take of this song; Why is the phrase "I crossed my old man in Oregon don't take me alive" sung a number of times? I was 18 years old in 1970 and I remember the shootings at Kent State ... It was common practice in those days to refer to your Father as "My Old Man" ... Please tell me why you don't mention this phrase in your view here. Is it not obvious that his Father has something to do with his barricade? If the Father isn't lyrically included in this way, well then it's a bit of a different story isn't it. The Father/Son relationship is somehow very strong here though. He crossed his Old Man back in Oregon. Is it possible that he killed his father?
Fortunately, it isn't overly important what the lyrics are ... it's the incredible structure of their music. The bridges and even double bridges in many songs. It's their open cry for perfection in the studio that matters. Larry Carleton or other ultra talented guitarists could have plucked every word of every song they wrote and perhaps taken the whole band to a new level towards Heaven ... We'll never know ...
@Hoops McCann - Firstly, Fine and three others built a bomb consisting of dynamite, gasoline and fertilizer, It was put in a van that they parked outside a campus building, It detonated after 3 am. There was no "Holed Up" confrontation with anyone. The next day, after hearing on the news that one man had been killed inside and three wounded as well, he fled but was eventually peacefully captured by the FBI in 1976. So there goes your story. Straight out the window.
@Hoops McCann - Firstly, Fine and three others built a bomb consisting of dynamite, gasoline and fertilizer, It was put in a van that they parked outside a campus building, It detonated after 3 am. There was no "Holed Up" confrontation with anyone. The next day, after hearing on the news that one man had been killed inside and three wounded as well, he fled but was eventually peacefully captured by the FBI in 1976. So there goes your story. Straight out the window.
@Hoops McCann @JohnCCarter Song lyrics are strange things...simple enough to have meaning and record an event, but usually not 100% accurate all of the time. (E.g., I have no doubt that 'The Star Spangled Banner' records a real event - even though no one can verify that the flag was truly flying proud at dawn's early light!)
@Hoops McCann @JohnCCarter Song lyrics are strange things...simple enough to have meaning and record an event, but usually not 100% accurate all of the time. (E.g., I have no doubt that 'The Star Spangled Banner' records a real event - even though no one can verify that the flag was truly flying proud at dawn's early light!)
To answer your question about why I didn't mention the phrase "I crossed my old man in Oregon", it was mainly because I did not find any conclusive articles in my research on David Fine's father to give the verse more analysis....
To answer your question about why I didn't mention the phrase "I crossed my old man in Oregon", it was mainly because I did not find any conclusive articles in my research on David Fine's father to give the verse more analysis. I could have said something to the effect, "...with all of the upbringing and education David received, he was crossing his old man by protesting the war when he was in college at Wisconsin." But, as I've said, I didn't have fairly ironclad proof that THAT was the meaning of the verse, so I didn't include it - just as I couldn't prove anything beyond David Fine was "a bookkeeper's son" as listed in the newspaper clippings at the time.
You did a good job of speculating, though.
I still stand by my original assertion that most Steely Dan songs are about something specific rather than capturing a feeling or mood (despite press releases, etc.) After all, Steely Dan is the name of a vibrator in William Burrough's, 'The Naked Lunch'. If you're interested in the structure the music and fantastic solos, great! But considering that Becker and Fagan named the band after an 'avante garde' literary novel, and (unlike other bands) has few, traditional songs about 'falling-in-love' or 'happily-ever-after', I would find it strange to simply dismiss the words as "just simple lyrics from simple times". This band wasn't just halfway weird, it was all-the-way strange!
(Rolling Stone magazine even said as much in their reviews of their albums!)
You don't have to take my word for it - you can do your own research on HOW Steely Dan (basically Walter Becker) developed lyrics to the music. A good primer is an article here: (https://sandiegotroubadour.com/2017/10/aloha-walter-and-donald-piercing-the-veil-through-the-zen-of-steely-dan/) or here: (https://rateyourmusic.com/list/streetmouse/steely-dan-all-the-facts-and-hidden-meanings-from-a-band-who-changed-how-i-listened-to-music-by-jenell-kesler/). Or reading the article on how Donald Fagen composed the lyrics to one of the songs on the album, Sunken Condos: (https://www.huffingtonpost.com/joan-k-smith/on-the-eve-of-the-mood-sw_b_3613414.html?guccounter=1) Does that process sound like someone who considers lyrics minor?
I understand what you mean by people who "fall in love with the internet and (paraphrasing) come up with conspiracy theories to support their hypotheses". However, while I can't say that I have lined up every word of the song with a concrete fact, I am more than happy to compare my research and analysis with anyone else who cares to share theirs.
(Since we're both old guys, "life experiences" and "being alive during Kent State" doesn't count! There's an old guy in the highest office in the land right now that was alive during Kent State too - and I doubt that he could even tell you who Steely Dan were, let alone any of their hits!)
Other than that, I don't know what else to say - other than perfection is complete perfection....and that Steely Dan strived for it musically AND lyrically. :)
@Hoops McCann - Hi Hoops .. Thanks for your reply to me ... Once again, the lyrics DO specify that this song points to a standoff with the law somewhere. One of the reasons for it has something to do with his father who was a salesman (past or present when written) ... Fine had no standoff with the law ... he was taken peacefully in early 1976 by the FBI. I've read and viewed interviews with SD and they have have always pointed their future towards musical structure. They have always hinted that they loved to cynically portray...
@Hoops McCann - Hi Hoops .. Thanks for your reply to me ... Once again, the lyrics DO specify that this song points to a standoff with the law somewhere. One of the reasons for it has something to do with his father who was a salesman (past or present when written) ... Fine had no standoff with the law ... he was taken peacefully in early 1976 by the FBI. I've read and viewed interviews with SD and they have have always pointed their future towards musical structure. They have always hinted that they loved to cynically portray characters who lived on the outskirts of society, but the studio was always "HOME" ... musically. You mentioned that they were extremely weird ... they have admitted many times that they were not touring material .. they didn't have the personalities for it. They were a very gifted musical duo. After their first 2 albums, they "cast" sax, drum and guitar solos in a way that Hollywood does actors until they heard what they wanted. They were relentless. Becker has claimed that he wouldn't have cared is hadn't even played a note on many of their compositions. They have both said the music came first - it was their goal. They have admitted that their lyrics were written so their followers would want to listen again and again but also that even though their characters were specific, they often were left with "holes" that THEY had to fill to match the music. IE - Custerdome. By the way, the links you left me were all dead ... Whatever.
You also mentioned that SD didn't write about love and relationships. NOT true. Not at all.
Goodnight. And just remember that slews of lyrics in history have been written to flow with the song structure, whether simple or a out of bounds, just as a jazz guitarist or saxophonist would sing a song without words.
@Hoops McCann while I agree they write about specifics in a lot of songs, those specifics can still be referencing another subject or another character….like some connection one of them has with the main subject of the song. Seems like we can always find a few small references that make us say “Hmmmm….MAYBE that part is really about this other person/thing”
@Hoops McCann while I agree they write about specifics in a lot of songs, those specifics can still be referencing another subject or another character….like some connection one of them has with the main subject of the song. Seems like we can always find a few small references that make us say “Hmmmm….MAYBE that part is really about this other person/thing”
@Hoops McCann his Wikipedia says he was born and grew up in Delaware before going to Wisconsin. His only Oregon connection was going to law school there after prison.You may want to start over
@Hoops McCann his Wikipedia says he was born and grew up in Delaware before going to Wisconsin. His only Oregon connection was going to law school there after prison.You may want to start over
You should be a professor. Great analysis.
You should be a professor. Great analysis.
@Hoops McCann Hi there. I am on board with your interpretation of this song. Wanted to add a possibility for the phrase “I don’t want to shoot no one”. The bombing was in retaliation for the Kent State Massacre. I think “I don’t want to shoot no one” is a reference to the anti Vietnam War since that was the subject of the Kent State protest. You can come to the conclusion that David Fine was anti Vietnam War and didn’t want to get drafted & have to “shoot someone”. Just throwing it out there that either one fits the narrative....
@Hoops McCann Hi there. I am on board with your interpretation of this song. Wanted to add a possibility for the phrase “I don’t want to shoot no one”. The bombing was in retaliation for the Kent State Massacre. I think “I don’t want to shoot no one” is a reference to the anti Vietnam War since that was the subject of the Kent State protest. You can come to the conclusion that David Fine was anti Vietnam War and didn’t want to get drafted & have to “shoot someone”. Just throwing it out there that either one fits the narrative.
This has absolutely nothing to do with cyborgs. That moment in the song is the criminal knowing that he isn't a human. Its a metaphor. He knows he is capable of doing things (murdering innocents) that normal people can't. The mechanized hum is his soul speaking to him. He's about to make an important decision that could lead to his death or alienate him from real people. I think the 'bookkeepers son' bit is about how he went from a regular guy leading a fairly simple life to what he has become.
I think it's about someone who got into debt at a casino: "Can you hear the evil crowd The lies and the laughter I hear my inside The mechanized hum of another world Where no sun is shining "
I think it's about someone who got into debt at a casino: "Can you hear the evil crowd The lies and the laughter I hear my inside The mechanized hum of another world Where no sun is shining "
The mechanized hum is the slot machines, there is no light in a casino.
The mechanized hum is the slot machines, there is no light in a casino.
He goes to his father, a bookie for help. The father refuses, and he steals the money.
He goes to his father, a bookie for help. The father refuses, and he steals the money.
He is pursued by the law, and takes a hostage, a luckless pedestrian. He was a normal guy till he got caught up in gambling, and in the dark, with...
He is pursued by the law, and takes a hostage, a luckless pedestrian. He was a normal guy till he got caught up in gambling, and in the dark, with his hostage and the police surrounding him, he realizes just what his life has come to.
Motomainaic: Great interpretation.
Motomainaic: Great interpretation.
The 'mechanized hum' could also be the depressed, routine, emotionless method in which he goes about his business these days...along with 'no red light flashing' [lacking the normal conscience most people have when it comes to killing, etc] and 'no sun is shining' [no joy, much depression].
The 'mechanized hum' could also be the depressed, routine, emotionless method in which he goes about his business these days...along with 'no red light flashing' [lacking the normal conscience most people have when it comes to killing, etc] and 'no sun is shining' [no joy, much depression].
'Luckless Pedestrian' might refer to himself in that he has finally been captured after being on the run or committing other crimes...by the police talking to him through megaphones on the street promising him "everything will be allright"...
'Luckless Pedestrian' might refer to himself in that he has finally been captured after being on the run or committing other crimes...by the police talking to him through megaphones on the street promising him "everything will be allright"...
'Can you hear the evil crowd...the lies and...
'Can you hear the evil crowd...the lies and the laughter'--probably refers to the usual crowd that gathers at stuff like this replete with all sorts of inflated rumors that aren't true about the suspect...others may be laughing and hoping to see some sort of killing by the police'
Some thoughts to go along with the great guitar work on this song.
Gotta love 'the Dan'.
A disturbed young man kills his father and goes on the run. The authorities close in; desperate, he takes a hostage and barricades himself. During the stand-off the realization of his actions and his life cause him to give up all hope. He decides to commit “suicide-by-police.” [“Don’t take me alive.”]
I always thought he stold from his father as he "was a bookkeeper's son". I always invision him taking the loot and blowing it in Vegas cause if you were raised in Oregon like me . . well sometimes you just goota bust out . .WTF is this about Cyborgs . . does anybody over 30 subscribe to this post. to quote "I weep for the future!"
I always thought he stold from his father as he "was a bookkeeper's son". I always invision him taking the loot and blowing it in Vegas cause if you were raised in Oregon like me . . well sometimes you just goota bust out . .WTF is this about Cyborgs . . does anybody over 30 subscribe to this post. to quote "I weep for the future!"
I would have to say it is a barricade situation. The true nature of his crimes are left deliberately ambiguous. The song-writer did not want people to get stuck on a situation, but to feel an emotion. The prime emotion here: desperation. His father is neither a robot or a 'bookie'. BTW: bookies are bookMAKERS (gambling odd-setters and bet takers), not bookEEPERS(low-level accountants). He says that he is a bookeeper's son as a way to say that he is NOT a tough guy. He comes from a safe and stable up-bringing. He's just an average guy in a horrible situation. Something went wrong back home, and he has come to the end of the line hounded and surrounded by angry pedestrians and lawmen.
The mechanized hum is a reference to mental-illness. How else to truly good people end up commiting horrible acts? People in desperate situations or who have "snapped" and hurt someone will often "disconnect". They often say they heard voices or "ringing" or humming in their ears. They will say things had a very mechanical feel. They will later say that they were running on "autopilot". He is obviously desperate to get away from the mob, the police, justice, anxiety. So, he withdraws from reality into the dark recesses of his soul, by doing so, he realizes who he truly is, what he has done, and the true gravity of his situation.
After listening to this song about a million times and not understanding why he would cross his old man who is a bookkeeper I heard the real lyric, He's not saying "I crossed my old man" but "I crossed my own man back in Oregon". This small change makes the meaning of the song perfectly clear. He didn't rob a bank with his father and then cheat him but his partner, his "own man". No wonder he doesn't want to get caught alive, he's a dead man either way.
@wesley1015 I don't know why but this song always makes me think of the Capote book. In Cold Blood.
@wesley1015 I don't know why but this song always makes me think of the Capote book. In Cold Blood.
@wesley1015 A bit late to the game, sorry. (Rick Beato interviewed Larry Carlton at the Baked Potato jazz club in Studio City, telling him he thought "Don't Take Me Alive" was the 2nd best rock solo ever (after the previous song, "Kid Charlemagne" :-)) If (as you note above) this is about David Fine's capture and trial, then "crossing my old man" makes sense. I didn't hear "own" there...
@wesley1015 A bit late to the game, sorry. (Rick Beato interviewed Larry Carlton at the Baked Potato jazz club in Studio City, telling him he thought "Don't Take Me Alive" was the 2nd best rock solo ever (after the previous song, "Kid Charlemagne" :-)) If (as you note above) this is about David Fine's capture and trial, then "crossing my old man" makes sense. I didn't hear "own" there...
@ekwity hey thanks for the feedback! I hadn't heard the Fine angle before. Wikipedia didn't mention his dad. Do you have any other info I could read?
@ekwity hey thanks for the feedback! I hadn't heard the Fine angle before. Wikipedia didn't mention his dad. Do you have any other info I could read?
@wesley1015 Hey -- I was just repeating from another comment on this video! You should be able to find it above (or below, however it works).
@wesley1015 Hey -- I was just repeating from another comment on this video! You should be able to find it above (or below, however it works).
@wesley1015 At the moment the post we're talking about is rightbelow* ours.
@wesley1015 At the moment the post we're talking about is rightbelow* ours.
Hoops McCannon July 10, 2016
Hoops McCannon July 10, 2016
Titled "My Interpretation".
Titled "My Interpretation".
It's long, adozen paragraphs, subtitles FIRST STANZA and REFRAIN and such.
It's long, adozen paragraphs, subtitles FIRST STANZA and REFRAIN and such.
@wesley1015 people have mentioned the theory that the songs about David Fine's trial above and below, but it should also be mentioned it says "I crossed my old man" on the lyric sheets included with the original vinyl
@wesley1015 people have mentioned the theory that the songs about David Fine's trial above and below, but it should also be mentioned it says "I crossed my old man" on the lyric sheets included with the original vinyl
Relatively obviously (for Dan), this is the story of a "Mad Dog" a criminal who is holed up inside a bank or something, surrounded by police. He grabbed a hostage off the street (luckless pedestrian).
Perhaps he is on a crime spree that started with him shooting his father in Oregon, and now he is planning to blow himself up rather than be taken into custody...
Agents of the law Luckless pedestrian I know you're out there With rage in your eyes and your megaphones Saying all is forgiven Mad Dog surrender How can I answer A man of my mind can do anything
Agents of the law Luckless pedestrian I know you're out there With rage in your eyes and your megaphones Saying all is forgiven Mad Dog surrender How can I answer A man of my mind can do anything
This is a man (the so called Mad Dog) who has done something wrong. I don't think the song reveals the nature of the crime, but instead tries to share the psychological experience of the perpatrator. He is holed up with the law trying to talk him out of his barricade. He knows that although they say all is forgiven, they want to bring him...
This is a man (the so called Mad Dog) who has done something wrong. I don't think the song reveals the nature of the crime, but instead tries to share the psychological experience of the perpatrator. He is holed up with the law trying to talk him out of his barricade. He knows that although they say all is forgiven, they want to bring him to justice. But, he believes that he can think his way out of the situation. I am Not sure if the luckless pedestrian represents a victim or someone lucklessly caught up in the situation.
CHORUS: I'm a bookkeeper's son I don't want to shoot no one Well I crossed my old man back in Oregon Don't take me alive Got a case of dynamite I could hold out here all night Yes I crossed my old man back in Oregon Don't take me alive
The question here is, who is the old man? His father or the law perhaps? I'm leaning toward it representing the law because that ties the whole story together as a violation of the law. He has made up his mind that he will not surrender and has enough resources to make his stand. He regretfully reflects on his ordinary life and pleads that he does not really want to hurt anyone. However, he has made up his mind that this will be his last stand and he won't be taken alive.
(chorus)
Can you hear the evil crowd The lies and the laughter I hear my inside The mechanized hum of another world Where no sun is shining No red light flashing Here in this darkness I know what I've done I know all at once who I am
A crowd has gathered and he knows they are enjoying his precarious situation. The mob is merciless and assuming about his guilt. The hopelessness of his situation is sinking in and he's losing his grip on sanity as his state of mind is changing to solitude. The mechanized hum of another world represents the mormal lives of others and society which he is no longer a part of. He is outside of society now, and his world is growing dark. However, in spite of his lonliness and his crime, he is finally in touch with his true self. It is the irony of the story that the evil deed is the thing that brings him to self realization. What a killer tune. (intended). I wonder if it was written about a real person / criminal from Oregon that ended up in this situation. Or maybe some other person that crossed the law in this fashion.
In summary, the lyrics are the thoughts of a fugitive and they reveal something sinister about self realization when the end is emminent.
Steely Dan created some really great and timeless music. I will listen to them for the rest of my life.
I always thought this song was steely dan's "wtf"....what is going through this poor dude's head as he winds up in a bank or someplace similar holding off a swat team with his case of dynamite? He's thinking on the one hand he's just a normal guy from Oregon, but something happened there to put him on the wrong path...he saw no road signs to serve him better (no red lights flashing). By the end of the song he is realizing he is the kind of in-human monster who would kill people with a bomb (I know what...
I always thought this song was steely dan's "wtf"....what is going through this poor dude's head as he winds up in a bank or someplace similar holding off a swat team with his case of dynamite? He's thinking on the one hand he's just a normal guy from Oregon, but something happened there to put him on the wrong path...he saw no road signs to serve him better (no red lights flashing). By the end of the song he is realizing he is the kind of in-human monster who would kill people with a bomb (I know what I've done, I know all at once who I am)and does see how he got there,but sees no other way out but "dont take me alive." I definitely agree that the guitar makes this song, it would not have the same impact without it.
I definately get the 'android' vide from this too. Especialyl in lines like "a man of my mind can't do anything," "I'm a book-keeper's son" (the first computers were used for glorified sorting procedures) and the "mechanized hum of another world."
As a side note, William Gibson (coiner of the term "cyberspace") said he listened to a lot of Steely Dan when he wrote, and I can see that in some of their songs.
I dont think this song is about a cyborg unless his daddy was a robot too. It's just (to me) about a guy who has lost it and is showing so by the decisions he has made.
The bass line on this song kicks ass! Its actually following the vocal line with a few classic Chuck Rainey flourishes. I think the cyborg reference is so far fetched it could actually be true but I think its too futuristic for a pair of cynical 70s jazz musicians. Sounds more like a criminal on the run (I know its elimentary but it seems so obvious). Just a great brilliant song that just doesn't seem to want to be categorized (is it jazz, rock, funk, blues etc?) You decide!
Cyborgs. [Shake head, tsk, look sad, shoot oneself]
It's about a bank heist gone wrong. Please people.