This song is about a time Mark Knofler saw a woman on television that reminded him of a former girlfriend. He is reminisciming about the look and auru his former girlfriend gave off, that is so similar to that of the Lady on the T.V. He is fully appreciating his former girlfriend, as she had all the intelligence and 'command' of this well-educated writer, yet she never 'read a book' and could 'hardly write her name'. His former girlfriend was a total package, with 'all the brains and all the beauty', and acknoledged she did not have to put in as much effort into the relationship as he did, as she only 'talked to me when she felt like it'. This further explifies the recurring line of 'I recall my fall from grace', as she was the one with the control and composure, like that of the lady writer he's watching on television.
@MusicGuruNo1 I always interpreted it to mean that his girlfriend had just the beauty of the lady writer, but not the intelligence. The way that he says that the lady writer "had all the brains and beauty" but "the picture does not fit" seems to mean that the "picture" or image is the same, but it doesn't suit or fit with the reality (of his girlfriend). He goes on to say that the lady writer had the same quality of appearance ("how you used to look"), but his old girlfriend "never read a book". The fact that...
@MusicGuruNo1 I always interpreted it to mean that his girlfriend had just the beauty of the lady writer, but not the intelligence. The way that he says that the lady writer "had all the brains and beauty" but "the picture does not fit" seems to mean that the "picture" or image is the same, but it doesn't suit or fit with the reality (of his girlfriend). He goes on to say that the lady writer had the same quality of appearance ("how you used to look"), but his old girlfriend "never read a book". The fact that the writer on the television "knew all about history", but his girlfriend "could[n't] hardly write [her] name" seems to confirm that. The verses seem to begin by showing the similarity (appearance) but end by remarking the stark difference, expressing his surprise at the fact that even though she looks exactly like his girlfriend, it couldn't possibly be the same person, because this person is educated and intelligent in a way that his old girlfriend was not.
It is true that "command" can be knowledge of a subject, but I'm not sure that it means that here -- it seems out of place interpreted that way, considering what he says elsewhere in the song. I wonder whether it means something similar to composure or control over her voice and expression. In other words, perhaps she has a similar composure or way of speaking, or control over her faculties of expression, despite being uneducated.
Ironically, it seems (to me) to be saying that he still likes/desires his old girlfriend, not because she has the same appearance and intelligence, but rather even despite her lacking the same intelligence. Being reminded of his "fall from grace" comes not from seeing the intelligence of this woman or his overall impression of her, but rather merely from seeing a single physical feature, "just the way that her hair fell down around her face". This seems to confirm that it's primarily the physical appearance that reminds him of his former girlfriend, and that the intelligence is a contrasting feature.
This song is about a time Mark Knofler saw a woman on television that reminded him of a former girlfriend. He is reminisciming about the look and auru his former girlfriend gave off, that is so similar to that of the Lady on the T.V. He is fully appreciating his former girlfriend, as she had all the intelligence and 'command' of this well-educated writer, yet she never 'read a book' and could 'hardly write her name'. His former girlfriend was a total package, with 'all the brains and all the beauty', and acknoledged she did not have to put in as much effort into the relationship as he did, as she only 'talked to me when she felt like it'. This further explifies the recurring line of 'I recall my fall from grace', as she was the one with the control and composure, like that of the lady writer he's watching on television.
@MusicGuruNo1 I always interpreted it to mean that his girlfriend had just the beauty of the lady writer, but not the intelligence. The way that he says that the lady writer "had all the brains and beauty" but "the picture does not fit" seems to mean that the "picture" or image is the same, but it doesn't suit or fit with the reality (of his girlfriend). He goes on to say that the lady writer had the same quality of appearance ("how you used to look"), but his old girlfriend "never read a book". The fact that...
@MusicGuruNo1 I always interpreted it to mean that his girlfriend had just the beauty of the lady writer, but not the intelligence. The way that he says that the lady writer "had all the brains and beauty" but "the picture does not fit" seems to mean that the "picture" or image is the same, but it doesn't suit or fit with the reality (of his girlfriend). He goes on to say that the lady writer had the same quality of appearance ("how you used to look"), but his old girlfriend "never read a book". The fact that the writer on the television "knew all about history", but his girlfriend "could[n't] hardly write [her] name" seems to confirm that. The verses seem to begin by showing the similarity (appearance) but end by remarking the stark difference, expressing his surprise at the fact that even though she looks exactly like his girlfriend, it couldn't possibly be the same person, because this person is educated and intelligent in a way that his old girlfriend was not.
It is true that "command" can be knowledge of a subject, but I'm not sure that it means that here -- it seems out of place interpreted that way, considering what he says elsewhere in the song. I wonder whether it means something similar to composure or control over her voice and expression. In other words, perhaps she has a similar composure or way of speaking, or control over her faculties of expression, despite being uneducated.
Ironically, it seems (to me) to be saying that he still likes/desires his old girlfriend, not because she has the same appearance and intelligence, but rather even despite her lacking the same intelligence. Being reminded of his "fall from grace" comes not from seeing the intelligence of this woman or his overall impression of her, but rather merely from seeing a single physical feature, "just the way that her hair fell down around her face". This seems to confirm that it's primarily the physical appearance that reminds him of his former girlfriend, and that the intelligence is a contrasting feature.