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Neurotica Lyrics

Good morning, it's 3am in this great roaring
city full of garbage eaters ravaging parking
spots beneath my plaza window I see cheetah in their
tight skins and tired heels all-night hippo in
the diner crossing the street swarthy heards of young
impala flambastic gibbon even a struggling monza
and over there that brilliant head ornament on that
Japanese macaque but look closely at the hammerhead hand
in hand with the mandrill, it's a sight you're
unlikely to see anywhere else on the planet...

the stench and noise, yes, yes, the howler's
resonating repertoire is not too bad when mixed with
the more musical twern of the tropical warbler but the
impatient taxi blare the squawking elderly ibis and
the glass-eye snapper hawking papers I can certainly
live without also be cautious of the poisonous
boomslang laughter social droppings of the fruit bat
and purple queen fish and who's that babbler conversing
with a magazine stand? evidently he's getting a good
reply...

arrive in neurotica
through neon heat disease
I swear at the swarming heards
I sweat the foul terrain
I rove the moving scenery
I have no fin
no wing no stinger
no claw no camouflage
I have no more to say...

Say...isn't that an elephant fish on the corner over
there look at that blush baby mud puppy noolbenger
rhinoderma marmoset spring peeper shingleback skink
siren skate starling sun-gazer spoonbill and suckers,
they seem to be everywhere, well it's a live revue
random animal parts now playing nightly right here in neurotica...
so long...
11 Meanings

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Cover art for Neurotica lyrics by King Crimson

typical day in the concrete jungle. the song is featured in the Beat album.

Cover art for Neurotica lyrics by King Crimson

Another song comparing the city to the jungle (also see Thela Hun Ginjeet). I heart the stream-of-consciousness lyrics, especially the hammerhead hand in hand with the mandrill!

Cover art for Neurotica lyrics by King Crimson

...but look closely at the hammerhead hand in hand with the mandrill This song is crazy- and Belew's vocals fit right in.

Cover art for Neurotica lyrics by King Crimson

this song honestly sounds like an acid trip, but it works on more levels than that. i agree with the metaphor about the "concrete jungle." this song is nothing less than poetry, accompanied by some kick-ass freeform jazz.

you can hear how this type of music influenced such bands as Plot To Blow Up the Eiffel Tower and The Mars Volta.

Cover art for Neurotica lyrics by King Crimson

Sounds to me to be somewhat influenced by the Beat generation writers. There's also the apparent reference to Howl by Ginsberg, for good measure.

My Interpretation
Cover art for Neurotica lyrics by King Crimson

Oh my god these lyrics are so great! I think its someone talking about the madness in a city and referring it to a jungle. I love all the adjectives in this song!

Cover art for Neurotica lyrics by King Crimson

Adrian Belew is a genius with lyrics. Having Robert Fripp, Bill Bruford and Tony Levin to help him out was even more genius.

Cover art for Neurotica lyrics by King Crimson

Adrian Belew is a genius with lyrics. Having Robert Fripp, Bill Bruford and Tony Levin to help him out was even more genius.

Cover art for Neurotica lyrics by King Crimson

Adrian Belew is a genius with lyrics. Having Robert Fripp, Bill Bruford and Tony Levin to help him out was even more genius.

Cover art for Neurotica lyrics by King Crimson

Where did this transcript come from? I'm not at all sure about those "zoological" words near the end (I know AB has a neologism or two to his name, but...) By the way - they're credited by their full names, except the vocalist who should be Robert Adrian Belew. (First name long since dropped, perhaps due to One Steve Limit...whoops wrong website!)

 
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