This is THE masterpiece off of "Magic," in my opinion--both musically and lyrically. It gave me that rare combination of goosebumps and tears the first time I heard it on October 2.
The people (note the "we") telling this story are undoubtedly some of gypsy biker's closest friends. He joined the military and found himself in Iraq and died there.
It's definitely a political song, but I think the social commentary is much more pronounced ("To the dead, well it don't matter much 'bout who's wrong or right"). It is about the human toll. The little tragedies taking place across this country.
Although this song is certainly going to remain a part of the main set of the shows that flow from "Magic," it would be interesting to hear it follow "Born to Run." That song is almost certainly about a "gypsy biker" of sorts who wanted to get away from what he knew.
Interestingly, "Magic" (the album) almost seems like the converse of "Born to Run." Both have this unmistakable sense of urgency, but the '75 masterpiece was all about leaving whereas the '07 newcomer is about returning from whence we came.
Only to find that from whence we came no longer remains.
This is THE masterpiece off of "Magic," in my opinion--both musically and lyrically. It gave me that rare combination of goosebumps and tears the first time I heard it on October 2.
The people (note the "we") telling this story are undoubtedly some of gypsy biker's closest friends. He joined the military and found himself in Iraq and died there.
It's definitely a political song, but I think the social commentary is much more pronounced ("To the dead, well it don't matter much 'bout who's wrong or right"). It is about the human toll. The little tragedies taking place across this country.
Although this song is certainly going to remain a part of the main set of the shows that flow from "Magic," it would be interesting to hear it follow "Born to Run." That song is almost certainly about a "gypsy biker" of sorts who wanted to get away from what he knew.
Interestingly, "Magic" (the album) almost seems like the converse of "Born to Run." Both have this unmistakable sense of urgency, but the '75 masterpiece was all about leaving whereas the '07 newcomer is about returning from whence we came.
Only to find that from whence we came no longer remains.