This song really makes me think directly about warfare. The line 'You see the same girl/But you won't see that face again' it sort of evocative of when soldiers go to war and return either a changed person themselves, or their loved ones have changed. Or, alternatively the solider has died.
'Did you punch all those clocks' reminds me a lot of W. H. Auden's poem 'Stop all the Clocks.' It recognises a reaction to death.
The chorus is extremely poignant - 'I'm running for my old playmates/I'm running through the town/I'm running with a gun/That's gonna shoot my playmates down.' This just brings to mind so many war related images. The playmates could refer to other soldiers and that the narrator is running in memory of those friends. Or, he's running to protect his playmates in a battle situation. It might seem like a civil war or not a formal war because the narrator's gun might even kill his friends/colleague/those he grew up with.
This song really makes me think directly about warfare. The line 'You see the same girl/But you won't see that face again' it sort of evocative of when soldiers go to war and return either a changed person themselves, or their loved ones have changed. Or, alternatively the solider has died.
'Did you punch all those clocks' reminds me a lot of W. H. Auden's poem 'Stop all the Clocks.' It recognises a reaction to death.
The chorus is extremely poignant - 'I'm running for my old playmates/I'm running through the town/I'm running with a gun/That's gonna shoot my playmates down.' This just brings to mind so many war related images. The playmates could refer to other soldiers and that the narrator is running in memory of those friends. Or, he's running to protect his playmates in a battle situation. It might seem like a civil war or not a formal war because the narrator's gun might even kill his friends/colleague/those he grew up with.
Ah, it's such a beautiful song.