Great analysis JourdainB. and like your interpretaton of European Cannon flayerhater. I interpret 'drive like a demon from Station to Station' to mean Bowie taking stock of his life up to that point. Physically touring non-stop (Ziggy Stardust, Diamond Dogs, Philly Dogs tours), changing personas (Anthony Newley-esque singer, folk rock singer, Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane, Soul Singer and now the Thin White Duke), and finally in terms of beliefs (buddhist, Christian, fascist, bohemian). I think at this point in life, Bowie was just feeling spent and burnt out. You see this more on his next album Low-where the lyrics are minimalist and he takes time to relax and indulge in ambient instrumental music with the help of Brian Eno.
The lyrics, 'bending sound, dredging the ocean, lost in my circle' I interpret to mean making music (bending sound), which then morphs into his view on making the music (dredging the ocean of existing music to innovate new music- such as his fusion of soul & rock on this album) as well as 'dredging the ocean to find meaning in life, and finally lost in his circle of constantly making music as well as bein in a general rut in life. Pretty depressing stuff.
The lyric I'm not sure about is 'making sure white stains'. What comes to mind first is semen stains. This could be his way of expressing cynicism about love- it just comes down to making white stains. Don't think it refers to cocaine as I cocaine doesn't stain- maybe metaphorically.
Anyway, fascinating a fascinating song overall- complex both musically and lyrically. And though it is hard to interpret because so much of it appears to be so personal to Mr. Bowie- it definitely appears to be quite an impressive and poetic statement of where he was at this point in his life.
Great analysis JourdainB. and like your interpretaton of European Cannon flayerhater. I interpret 'drive like a demon from Station to Station' to mean Bowie taking stock of his life up to that point. Physically touring non-stop (Ziggy Stardust, Diamond Dogs, Philly Dogs tours), changing personas (Anthony Newley-esque singer, folk rock singer, Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane, Soul Singer and now the Thin White Duke), and finally in terms of beliefs (buddhist, Christian, fascist, bohemian). I think at this point in life, Bowie was just feeling spent and burnt out. You see this more on his next album Low-where the lyrics are minimalist and he takes time to relax and indulge in ambient instrumental music with the help of Brian Eno.
The lyrics, 'bending sound, dredging the ocean, lost in my circle' I interpret to mean making music (bending sound), which then morphs into his view on making the music (dredging the ocean of existing music to innovate new music- such as his fusion of soul & rock on this album) as well as 'dredging the ocean to find meaning in life, and finally lost in his circle of constantly making music as well as bein in a general rut in life. Pretty depressing stuff.
The lyric I'm not sure about is 'making sure white stains'. What comes to mind first is semen stains. This could be his way of expressing cynicism about love- it just comes down to making white stains. Don't think it refers to cocaine as I cocaine doesn't stain- maybe metaphorically.
Anyway, fascinating a fascinating song overall- complex both musically and lyrically. And though it is hard to interpret because so much of it appears to be so personal to Mr. Bowie- it definitely appears to be quite an impressive and poetic statement of where he was at this point in his life.