I want to go back and agree with the evangelist comment. i think the whole song is actually about evangelism and going to hell. I think "circuit rider" refers to a traveling preacher that goes from town to town, and comes "every fifth Sunday" and goes coast to coast. I think he uses evangelism as a metaphor for people constantly trying to help him and tell him what is right "if you can't help it, leave it alone". None of that has any meaning to Elliott. I think the "that's why" at the end is referring to why he doesn't believe, religiously- that is all blather and nonsense. And I always thought that the part about feathers out your cap referred to the concept of something being a feather in your cap-accomplishing something. Every televangelist might feel a convert was a feather in his cap. And that when you get converted, you are an animal in the zoo.
I want to go back and agree with the evangelist comment. i think the whole song is actually about evangelism and going to hell. I think "circuit rider" refers to a traveling preacher that goes from town to town, and comes "every fifth Sunday" and goes coast to coast. I think he uses evangelism as a metaphor for people constantly trying to help him and tell him what is right "if you can't help it, leave it alone". None of that has any meaning to Elliott. I think the "that's why" at the end is referring to why he doesn't believe, religiously- that is all blather and nonsense. And I always thought that the part about feathers out your cap referred to the concept of something being a feather in your cap-accomplishing something. Every televangelist might feel a convert was a feather in his cap. And that when you get converted, you are an animal in the zoo.