It's been said, but I'll say it again...what a beautiful and powerful song. I like the first comment about being a robot. This really is a moving song. Possibly MMJ's best. I love what Jim had to say about it, too.
One of the things I love the most about these guys is the spirituality that comes through in their lyrics. No one would ever mistake these guys for a christian band (I'm not aware of any christian bands using the phrase 'god damn' in their songs, but I could be wrong), but I think Jim definitely feels a strong sense of a connection to something more universal. A lot of his lyrics ('Thank You, Too!' & 'Look at You' from Evil Urges, and 'Wordless Chorus' & 'Gideon' from Z come to mind) deal with spiritual themes. I'm not a christian, but I can see where people get references to Jesus and his religion in some of the music. Obviously, this song has a pretty direct one. But I think Jim's spiritual themes are bigger than one guy or belief system. As someone mentioned earlier, one of the great aspects of this song is how it provides a 'mirror' for people to interpret it in their own way. I try to understand songs on their own, in their own context before exploring their personal meanings to me, so this is what I take from it:
"So, I do believe
That anywhere it goes
It's always with me."
Man, this line just floors me. He doesn't say, "Anywhere I go, it's always with me." He says, "Anywhere IT goes, it's always with me." That's just such an incredible idea to me. That whatever it is, it's dynamic and changing, but it's omnipresent. He's found something that transcends the physical world and that's always with him, even as it changes. Maybe he feels it stronger some days than others (as it comes and goes), but it's always with him.
"But it's a voice. And it's a choice.
To call you out. Or stay at home."
I love this. Whatever this thing is, it either speaks to you or it doesn't. What I really like about this line is that it's a voice AND a choice. Like this thing decides to speak to you or not.
"It's not the beast. It's not the sheets.
So soft and warm. All over me.
But it's the touch you need so much
To move around on this green earth."
I think this is where the song really starts to make sense. This seems like a reference to physical love. With the line about the sheets, I read 'the beast' as being desire or lust (or really any physical vice), and how it's not the physical joy of something that drives us. It's the touch - the connection to another person - that's so vital to bringing fulfillment and meaning to our lives. When you really understand what that means, you don't need money or drugs or anything else to make your life meaningful.
I think the second part of the song is about that connection in its different forms. Some people find it in religion. Some find it in the beauty of nature. (I'm guessing the "red Patoka Sea" reference is a reference to Patoka Lake in southern Indiana, which makes sense with MMJ being from Kentucky. Someone mentioned maybe Jim had a profound moment at the lake, which would make sense.) Some people find it through contemplating the wonders of the universe. Some find it through an intimate connection with someone else. (All of us probably find it in all of these and more, to varying degrees.) But as long as our hearts are beating, we're all capable of finding that connection in something, and this connection is the Steam Engine. It's an ethereal, but powerful, driving force.
As the comments show, we all have our own personal steam engines. But I think they're really all the same...a connection. I think this connection is true, genuine love. You love something - be it people or places or things or feelings or experiences or whatever it is - because something about it makes you feel deeply connected to it. It transcends just a physical feeling. You feel it in your soul. You feel it throughout your being. It makes you catch your breath and it can bring a smile or a laugh or a cry out of you that you can't control. It's the most beautiful and simple thing you can experience. Once you've felt it, you want to feel it again and as much as possible. For me personally, I feel it when I think about my tiny nothingness of an existence in a universe that I can't comprehend, and I feel it when I'm sitting around the fire with my friends. I feel it when I'm tickling my nephew and when I'm petting my dog. I feel it when I'm the only car I can see on a long stretch of road, and I feel it when I listen to great music, like this song.
It's been said, but I'll say it again...what a beautiful and powerful song. I like the first comment about being a robot. This really is a moving song. Possibly MMJ's best. I love what Jim had to say about it, too.
One of the things I love the most about these guys is the spirituality that comes through in their lyrics. No one would ever mistake these guys for a christian band (I'm not aware of any christian bands using the phrase 'god damn' in their songs, but I could be wrong), but I think Jim definitely feels a strong sense of a connection to something more universal. A lot of his lyrics ('Thank You, Too!' & 'Look at You' from Evil Urges, and 'Wordless Chorus' & 'Gideon' from Z come to mind) deal with spiritual themes. I'm not a christian, but I can see where people get references to Jesus and his religion in some of the music. Obviously, this song has a pretty direct one. But I think Jim's spiritual themes are bigger than one guy or belief system. As someone mentioned earlier, one of the great aspects of this song is how it provides a 'mirror' for people to interpret it in their own way. I try to understand songs on their own, in their own context before exploring their personal meanings to me, so this is what I take from it:
"So, I do believe That anywhere it goes It's always with me."
Man, this line just floors me. He doesn't say, "Anywhere I go, it's always with me." He says, "Anywhere IT goes, it's always with me." That's just such an incredible idea to me. That whatever it is, it's dynamic and changing, but it's omnipresent. He's found something that transcends the physical world and that's always with him, even as it changes. Maybe he feels it stronger some days than others (as it comes and goes), but it's always with him.
"But it's a voice. And it's a choice. To call you out. Or stay at home."
I love this. Whatever this thing is, it either speaks to you or it doesn't. What I really like about this line is that it's a voice AND a choice. Like this thing decides to speak to you or not.
"It's not the beast. It's not the sheets. So soft and warm. All over me. But it's the touch you need so much To move around on this green earth."
I think this is where the song really starts to make sense. This seems like a reference to physical love. With the line about the sheets, I read 'the beast' as being desire or lust (or really any physical vice), and how it's not the physical joy of something that drives us. It's the touch - the connection to another person - that's so vital to bringing fulfillment and meaning to our lives. When you really understand what that means, you don't need money or drugs or anything else to make your life meaningful.
I think the second part of the song is about that connection in its different forms. Some people find it in religion. Some find it in the beauty of nature. (I'm guessing the "red Patoka Sea" reference is a reference to Patoka Lake in southern Indiana, which makes sense with MMJ being from Kentucky. Someone mentioned maybe Jim had a profound moment at the lake, which would make sense.) Some people find it through contemplating the wonders of the universe. Some find it through an intimate connection with someone else. (All of us probably find it in all of these and more, to varying degrees.) But as long as our hearts are beating, we're all capable of finding that connection in something, and this connection is the Steam Engine. It's an ethereal, but powerful, driving force.
As the comments show, we all have our own personal steam engines. But I think they're really all the same...a connection. I think this connection is true, genuine love. You love something - be it people or places or things or feelings or experiences or whatever it is - because something about it makes you feel deeply connected to it. It transcends just a physical feeling. You feel it in your soul. You feel it throughout your being. It makes you catch your breath and it can bring a smile or a laugh or a cry out of you that you can't control. It's the most beautiful and simple thing you can experience. Once you've felt it, you want to feel it again and as much as possible. For me personally, I feel it when I think about my tiny nothingness of an existence in a universe that I can't comprehend, and I feel it when I'm sitting around the fire with my friends. I feel it when I'm tickling my nephew and when I'm petting my dog. I feel it when I'm the only car I can see on a long stretch of road, and I feel it when I listen to great music, like this song.