I feel like there is a lot to say about this song, but it's hard to find the words.
First of all, it's lyrically beautiful and the delivery is simply amazing. In fact, I think the delivery really tells most of the story.
Let's start at the top:
I feel like the beginning is about a man, obviously traveling with a lover, who finds enlightenment and is completely sideswiped by it. ("Opened my eyes, I was blind as can be") Scarlet either wasn't what he thought she was, or she did something terrible to him, or both.
Although sad, there's still a hint of optimism here. ("To give a man luck, he must fall in the sea") Despite the loss of Scarlet (or whoever), there are always "more fish in the sea." If he's going to find a companion, he's had to lose the one he had.
("You forget all the roses don't come around on Sunday") I'm imagining him sitting relatively alone in a bar drinking on a Sunday. All the young girls had there fun the night before and now they're in church begging Jesus for forgiveness. He finds himself leaning on his crutch, alcohol. Now, the next few lines sort-of blend together. ("She's not gonna choose you for standing so tall/Go on take a swig of that poison and like it/And don't ask for silverware, don't ask for nothin'.") Being alone in a bar on a Sunday, the only women around are probably waitresses or the regular bar crawling tramps. Still, he's trying to hard, hitting on everything in sight. When he's rejected he takes another sip. When the waitress tries to avoid him, he resents her for it.
And then the story takes a much bigger turn. This is by far my favorite part of the entire song. There is also an entire "silent verse" before the last one. I imagine time passing. Also, I've interpreted this last verse in a few different ways...
First (and most literally)
("Go on down see that wrecking ball come swingin' on her") The hotel bar is being demolished after some time. All the regulars and others come to see it fall. They loot it for whatever they can find, find some humor and sadness in it, and then ultimately mourn. ("It all looks smaller down here on the ground")
Second (and more psychologically)
It's said that homes and places to stay sort of represent your mind and mindset. If he's spending so much time at this hotel bar, it represents his mindset. He IS the hotel. The owners have taken all of his money and made him hollow ("They broke all the windows, they took all doorknobs"). When it finally come crashing down, the "falling down" action is completed, and he's hit bottom. It's the end of an era, so to speak. There is nowhere to go but up.
Finally (and more abstractly)
For a second while listening I imagined this man being beaten up and robbed. In the sense that he is the hotel, he gets his lights punched out ("They broke all the windows") and his money stolen ("They took all the doorknobs") and he's basically left as a pile of human wreckage.
I really love this song. I feel like Tom's delivery is really where the substance is, though. He really takes the character on. At the start of each verse he's just telling a story, when suddenly it sounds like he's holding back sobs, as if he's still at the bottom, telling us how he got there. It's so powerful and masterfully done.
I feel like there is a lot to say about this song, but it's hard to find the words.
First of all, it's lyrically beautiful and the delivery is simply amazing. In fact, I think the delivery really tells most of the story.
Let's start at the top:
I feel like the beginning is about a man, obviously traveling with a lover, who finds enlightenment and is completely sideswiped by it. ("Opened my eyes, I was blind as can be") Scarlet either wasn't what he thought she was, or she did something terrible to him, or both.
Although sad, there's still a hint of optimism here. ("To give a man luck, he must fall in the sea") Despite the loss of Scarlet (or whoever), there are always "more fish in the sea." If he's going to find a companion, he's had to lose the one he had.
("You forget all the roses don't come around on Sunday") I'm imagining him sitting relatively alone in a bar drinking on a Sunday. All the young girls had there fun the night before and now they're in church begging Jesus for forgiveness. He finds himself leaning on his crutch, alcohol. Now, the next few lines sort-of blend together. ("She's not gonna choose you for standing so tall/Go on take a swig of that poison and like it/And don't ask for silverware, don't ask for nothin'.") Being alone in a bar on a Sunday, the only women around are probably waitresses or the regular bar crawling tramps. Still, he's trying to hard, hitting on everything in sight. When he's rejected he takes another sip. When the waitress tries to avoid him, he resents her for it.
And then the story takes a much bigger turn. This is by far my favorite part of the entire song. There is also an entire "silent verse" before the last one. I imagine time passing. Also, I've interpreted this last verse in a few different ways...
First (and most literally) ("Go on down see that wrecking ball come swingin' on her") The hotel bar is being demolished after some time. All the regulars and others come to see it fall. They loot it for whatever they can find, find some humor and sadness in it, and then ultimately mourn. ("It all looks smaller down here on the ground")
Second (and more psychologically) It's said that homes and places to stay sort of represent your mind and mindset. If he's spending so much time at this hotel bar, it represents his mindset. He IS the hotel. The owners have taken all of his money and made him hollow ("They broke all the windows, they took all doorknobs"). When it finally come crashing down, the "falling down" action is completed, and he's hit bottom. It's the end of an era, so to speak. There is nowhere to go but up.
Finally (and more abstractly) For a second while listening I imagined this man being beaten up and robbed. In the sense that he is the hotel, he gets his lights punched out ("They broke all the windows") and his money stolen ("They took all the doorknobs") and he's basically left as a pile of human wreckage.
I really love this song. I feel like Tom's delivery is really where the substance is, though. He really takes the character on. At the start of each verse he's just telling a story, when suddenly it sounds like he's holding back sobs, as if he's still at the bottom, telling us how he got there. It's so powerful and masterfully done.
Thanks Tom!