This is a great song. I think there is no mystery as to its meaning. It's clearly a hugely negative commentary on commercialism and materialism which we are taught to worship at the expense of substance, value, and humanity. My favorite lines?
1) my heaven will be a big heaven and I will walk through the front door
2) I will pray to a big god as I kneel in the big church
3) I show them round my house, to my bed...I had it made like a mountain range with a snow-white pillow for my big fat head
Peter Gabriel is brilliant and unafraid. Gotta love that!
I always thought he was saying "Higher" and not "Hi There" meaning he's taking it higher. And when he sings this song it sounds like he says "My heaven will be a big hell" but I guess I got those two things wrong. ha ha But anyway, I think he was pretty obvious with his intentions of the song, specially with the 80s being thought of as the materialistic decade (the me decade)... you know, "shop til' you drop" and all that. Though I think the last 20 years has been very materialistic compared to the 80s and has gotten...
I always thought he was saying "Higher" and not "Hi There" meaning he's taking it higher. And when he sings this song it sounds like he says "My heaven will be a big hell" but I guess I got those two things wrong. ha ha But anyway, I think he was pretty obvious with his intentions of the song, specially with the 80s being thought of as the materialistic decade (the me decade)... you know, "shop til' you drop" and all that. Though I think the last 20 years has been very materialistic compared to the 80s and has gotten worse... well until the economy started to implode the last 5+ years. I like Peter's newer music but I miss his 80s youthfulness and spunk, stuff like Shock the Monkey and Red Rain. Awesome music.
This is a great song. I think there is no mystery as to its meaning. It's clearly a hugely negative commentary on commercialism and materialism which we are taught to worship at the expense of substance, value, and humanity. My favorite lines?
1) my heaven will be a big heaven and I will walk through the front door 2) I will pray to a big god as I kneel in the big church 3) I show them round my house, to my bed...I had it made like a mountain range with a snow-white pillow for my big fat head
Peter Gabriel is brilliant and unafraid. Gotta love that!
I always thought he was saying "Higher" and not "Hi There" meaning he's taking it higher. And when he sings this song it sounds like he says "My heaven will be a big hell" but I guess I got those two things wrong. ha ha But anyway, I think he was pretty obvious with his intentions of the song, specially with the 80s being thought of as the materialistic decade (the me decade)... you know, "shop til' you drop" and all that. Though I think the last 20 years has been very materialistic compared to the 80s and has gotten...
I always thought he was saying "Higher" and not "Hi There" meaning he's taking it higher. And when he sings this song it sounds like he says "My heaven will be a big hell" but I guess I got those two things wrong. ha ha But anyway, I think he was pretty obvious with his intentions of the song, specially with the 80s being thought of as the materialistic decade (the me decade)... you know, "shop til' you drop" and all that. Though I think the last 20 years has been very materialistic compared to the 80s and has gotten worse... well until the economy started to implode the last 5+ years. I like Peter's newer music but I miss his 80s youthfulness and spunk, stuff like Shock the Monkey and Red Rain. Awesome music.