Warren wanted a Beach Boys thing for this one, and Carl Wilson and Billy Hinsche came in, with Carl arranging the vocal parts. The other harmony vocalists (credited as the "Gentlemen Boys") were Jackson Browne, J.D. Souther, Zevon's longtime backers Waddy Wachtel and Jorge Calderon, and Linda Rondstadt/Stone Poneys guitarist Kenny Edwards.
(Like murder)
Stoned I awoke in your temple
To blackness above you
And death beside me
(Where)
Kitchen knives conspire
Razor blades make bloodless love
(Like murder)
The ghost of a pale girl is solemnly following me
Will she follow me into the sea?
I feel the flowers screaming to consume you
(Like murder)
Earth and sky your cradle, earth and sky entomb you
And death beside me
I burrow through the dust in your skull
But I cannot seem to find your soul
Bloodless and numb, we orbit the sun
Hungry, will this pale thing follow me into the sea
On the cold side of her face, the reptiles awake
Locusts swarm from open mouths that sing thy kingdom come
While blackness hums
Nothing is true and I'm tired of your sad today
You're screaming because there's nothing left for you to say
Bloodless and numb, we orbit the sun
Hungry, will this pale thing follow me into the sea
Stoned I awoke in your temple
To blackness above you
And death beside me
(Where)
Kitchen knives conspire
Razor blades make bloodless love
(Like murder)
Stoned I awoke in your temple
To blackness above you
And death beside me
(Where)
Kitchen knives conspire
Razor blades make bloodless love
(Like murder)
The ghost of a pale girl is solemnly following me
Will she follow me into the sea?
I feel the flowers screaming to consume you
(Like murder)
Earth and sky your cradle, earth and sky entomb you
And death beside me
I burrow through the dust in your skull
But I cannot seem to find your soul
Bloodless and numb, we orbit the sun
Hungry, will this pale thing follow me into the sea
On the cold side of her face, the reptiles awake
Locusts swarm from open mouths that sing thy kingdom come
While blackness hums
Nothing is true and I'm tired of your sad today
You're screaming because there's nothing left for you to say
Bloodless and numb, we orbit the sun
Hungry, will this pale thing follow me into the sea
Stoned I awoke in your temple
To blackness above you
And death beside me
(Where)
Kitchen knives conspire
Razor blades make bloodless love
(Like murder)
Lyrics submitted by expletivedeleted
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Spirit Within
Bertoldi Brothers
Bertoldi Brothers
when rules change
Life in Your Way
Life in Your Way
High life
Battle Royale
Word Alive, The
Word Alive, The
This song is def a twin to "Unfair" (a song she has been quoted as saying is about falling in love with someone who is already in a relationship) so it is presumably about the same person. Given the references to buying an apartment and not being able to see her love interest "after tonight," it's most likely that she's moving away and she'll "wait a day to break the bad news" (i.e. notifying him that she's leaving once she's already gone).
And, of course, the fact that she sees in him a fellow "idealist" and "dreamer" (terms commonly given to people with the INFP personality on the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)) portends that she'll always be left wondering if they would've been perfect together.
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
I love this song. No idea what its about, but the sound is just so amazing that it doesnt really matter to me.