Could be wrong, but my perspective is that the Citizen Kane reference is only in the Rosebud concept. Rosebud is the symbol for something emotional and very very positive-- in the movie, it's the sled from his childhood memory when his family home wasn't a mess. In our adult lives, such a thing is usually romance. As it is here.
"now i don't mind if i hurt you
and leave the guilt behind
so here i go burning bridges
did i play my hand too soon?"
He's essentially asking her out here or making his feelings known. If she rejects him, he will have 'burned the bridge' of that friendship...ya can't take those words back. Which is why he asks if he 'played his hand too soon', because it might have been better for him to wait and keep letting things develop. That's sort of the conundrum a lot of dudes face before they ask a girl out. So, this is about him in that moment where he's not sure that what he's doing is right. The 'don't mind if I hurt you' is a little troublesome to this explanation, unless it's her hurt that such a good friend would give that up for romance with her or something. But the rest of the some seems to support my little theory here:
"so for the first time in my life
feel like a country boy caught in headlights
found my rosebud"
How does a country boy caught in headlights feel? Stunned, nervous excitement-- some combination of those things, I'd gather. It's not like country boys experience this everyday. Nor do we experience passionate emotions (yes, this is getting kinda cheesy) everyday. It's new territory, nobody's trained for it. You're just there.
"arrived in new york city
felt like a scapegoat before a commitee
found my rosebud "
I think the New York City part here is just referencing a big important atmosphere, not the movie Citizen Kane. A committee wouldn't be such a big deal in Podunk Arkansas...but in new York City, it's much more effective symbol for what he's trying to express here: it's a big deal. A scapegoat before an important committee feels what? Nervous. Sweaty. Their face is hot. Even if they're doing the right thing, this is their moment of truth, where the facts must be faced and life will be forced to move on. That's exactly what the guy in the song is going through as he expresses his intentions of romance to the girl.
Could be wrong, but my perspective is that the Citizen Kane reference is only in the Rosebud concept. Rosebud is the symbol for something emotional and very very positive-- in the movie, it's the sled from his childhood memory when his family home wasn't a mess. In our adult lives, such a thing is usually romance. As it is here.
"now i don't mind if i hurt you and leave the guilt behind so here i go burning bridges did i play my hand too soon?" He's essentially asking her out here or making his feelings known. If she rejects him, he will have 'burned the bridge' of that friendship...ya can't take those words back. Which is why he asks if he 'played his hand too soon', because it might have been better for him to wait and keep letting things develop. That's sort of the conundrum a lot of dudes face before they ask a girl out. So, this is about him in that moment where he's not sure that what he's doing is right. The 'don't mind if I hurt you' is a little troublesome to this explanation, unless it's her hurt that such a good friend would give that up for romance with her or something. But the rest of the some seems to support my little theory here:
"so for the first time in my life feel like a country boy caught in headlights found my rosebud" How does a country boy caught in headlights feel? Stunned, nervous excitement-- some combination of those things, I'd gather. It's not like country boys experience this everyday. Nor do we experience passionate emotions (yes, this is getting kinda cheesy) everyday. It's new territory, nobody's trained for it. You're just there.
"arrived in new york city felt like a scapegoat before a commitee found my rosebud " I think the New York City part here is just referencing a big important atmosphere, not the movie Citizen Kane. A committee wouldn't be such a big deal in Podunk Arkansas...but in new York City, it's much more effective symbol for what he's trying to express here: it's a big deal. A scapegoat before an important committee feels what? Nervous. Sweaty. Their face is hot. Even if they're doing the right thing, this is their moment of truth, where the facts must be faced and life will be forced to move on. That's exactly what the guy in the song is going through as he expresses his intentions of romance to the girl.