There's a funny moment in this song that never goes recorded in the official lyrics, but Verlaine always muttered it, even in the Eno demos, shortly before launching into the solo. I always thought it was something clever about "Irish snakes" (there are none in that country). But somebody who has better ears than I do posted this on another site, which I like a lot better: "How does a snake get out of its skin? Here's a depiction..."
Always thought that Verlaine deserved to be counted among the two or three greatest rock lyricists of all time. His talent with words becomes all the clearer when you contrast it with Lloyd's lyrics; while Lloyd is just as interesting on guitar, his lyrics stink.
There's a funny moment in this song that never goes recorded in the official lyrics, but Verlaine always muttered it, even in the Eno demos, shortly before launching into the solo. I always thought it was something clever about "Irish snakes" (there are none in that country). But somebody who has better ears than I do posted this on another site, which I like a lot better: "How does a snake get out of its skin? Here's a depiction..."
Always thought that Verlaine deserved to be counted among the two or three greatest rock lyricists of all time. His talent with words becomes all the clearer when you contrast it with Lloyd's lyrics; while Lloyd is just as interesting on guitar, his lyrics stink.