I also think that it might be to do with an unexpected child but I heard in an interveiw that Patrick Wolf was writing it about Marianne Faithful. I went online and looked up her biography and all I came up with that seemed to have anything song worthy was drugs and maybe her having hepititus c. (I of course think that most things in her life were probably 'songworthy' but what I ment was song worthy by another person) Maybe she is an unexpected mother, and it is told from the up knocker's point of veiw. I think it might be about him using this 'magpie' excuse for not wanting to be married. Maybe he was cheeting on a girlfriend when he got her pregnant. The part about the one for sorrow etc. I think is about how hard you wouild have to work (lack of a better word) to achieve these things, the odd numbers are one option - that he would leave the girl he got pregnant and the child - the even are the other option. I doubt that makes much sence though.
I also think that it might be to do with an unexpected child but I heard in an interveiw that Patrick Wolf was writing it about Marianne Faithful. I went online and looked up her biography and all I came up with that seemed to have anything song worthy was drugs and maybe her having hepititus c. (I of course think that most things in her life were probably 'songworthy' but what I ment was song worthy by another person) Maybe she is an unexpected mother, and it is told from the up knocker's point of veiw. I think it might be about him using this 'magpie' excuse for not wanting to be married. Maybe he was cheeting on a girlfriend when he got her pregnant. The part about the one for sorrow etc. I think is about how hard you wouild have to work (lack of a better word) to achieve these things, the odd numbers are one option - that he would leave the girl he got pregnant and the child - the even are the other option. I doubt that makes much sence though.