This song is just so un-Nick Cave, it's wonderful. My favourite part is his description of his fellow cons "who lead rather colourful lives" with their bad habits. "Collecting things" & "getting ideas" are marvellous euphemisms for criminal activity. The feller in the song is looking on the bright side, but his real feelings are in the chorus. Nick Cave using the word "cobbers" - who'd have thought it? Priceless! And there is a very rude expletive at the end, obviously a bit of spontaneous fun.
This song is just so un-Nick Cave, it's wonderful. My favourite part is his description of his fellow cons "who lead rather colourful lives" with their bad habits. "Collecting things" & "getting ideas" are marvellous euphemisms for criminal activity. The feller in the song is looking on the bright side, but his real feelings are in the chorus. Nick Cave using the word "cobbers" - who'd have thought it? Priceless! And there is a very rude expletive at the end, obviously a bit of spontaneous fun.