Thought it was a shame this song didn't have at least a stab of an interpretation, so thought I'd finally join and write my first comment. Like any great set of lyrics, I think the Felice Bros. would invite you to interpret it any number of ways as it relates to you but here's how I see it:
1) The song is about smoking cigarettes at its most obvious and, perhaps as an extension, about any type of product that's so addicting it can literally take over your life, replace your relationships, keep you from eating or sleeping, all while slowly killing you (seems like they reference tobacco, TV, time, etc)
2) There's also a sense of the impact of the American marketing machine woven into these lyrics, that Mad Men concept that people/consumers need to be told what they want and what to do. I think that could be reflected in the short snapshots of classic scenes where people would be smoking in a cool or "desirable" way (workers in the shade after a long day of work, lovers in a park, etc)
3) And, finally, I thought this interpretation I read on the totally awesome DayTrotter site and their session with the Felice Bros. was worth sharing:
"It's really deafening/I'm really on my way to hell," Ian sings on "Marlboro Man" and then tells the dog to get down, almost a hip-hop reference, but it sounds like a gravedigger or an alcoholic author's lament, like something Bukowski or Vonnegut would have said, but never really meant. He hints at Miss America going off with the Marlboro Man and it has the essence of the way that the band would like to see things play out, in an ideal world - the girl seeing the value in being with a guy that is All-American in ways and suicidal and depressed for everyone else in other ways.
Thought it was a shame this song didn't have at least a stab of an interpretation, so thought I'd finally join and write my first comment. Like any great set of lyrics, I think the Felice Bros. would invite you to interpret it any number of ways as it relates to you but here's how I see it:
1) The song is about smoking cigarettes at its most obvious and, perhaps as an extension, about any type of product that's so addicting it can literally take over your life, replace your relationships, keep you from eating or sleeping, all while slowly killing you (seems like they reference tobacco, TV, time, etc)
2) There's also a sense of the impact of the American marketing machine woven into these lyrics, that Mad Men concept that people/consumers need to be told what they want and what to do. I think that could be reflected in the short snapshots of classic scenes where people would be smoking in a cool or "desirable" way (workers in the shade after a long day of work, lovers in a park, etc)
3) And, finally, I thought this interpretation I read on the totally awesome DayTrotter site and their session with the Felice Bros. was worth sharing:
"It's really deafening/I'm really on my way to hell," Ian sings on "Marlboro Man" and then tells the dog to get down, almost a hip-hop reference, but it sounds like a gravedigger or an alcoholic author's lament, like something Bukowski or Vonnegut would have said, but never really meant. He hints at Miss America going off with the Marlboro Man and it has the essence of the way that the band would like to see things play out, in an ideal world - the girl seeing the value in being with a guy that is All-American in ways and suicidal and depressed for everyone else in other ways.
Check out the site, here: http://www.daytrotter.com/#!/concert/the-felice-brothers/20030295-3737659&playerLoadAndPlayConcert=20030295-3737659