This is a song about personal redemption, emotional housekeeping, picking yourself up from a fall and starting over again. The singer's life has hit a rough patch- just what is not explained- maybe a good relationship gone bad and ending in heartbreak. Maybe some alcohol abuse as self medication. Maybe losing a job or getting beaten up and knowing he deserved it for something he did. Probably the first, with some other collateral damage attached.
Sitting next to a mom with kids is going to be an act of service and surrender. Most people wouldn't want to sit next to them, but the single mom could definitely use the kindness of a friendly well intentioned stranger to make it through a long bus ride with her kids. And he's feeding his humanity by choosing to do that. He's not planning to hit on her- he's planning to sing songs and help them pass the time on a long ride.
He describes a whole series of basic, functional, attainable short term goals that will help him process his hurt, pull himself together, fake it 'til he makes it, and begin another chapter of his life. It's a wistful but fundamentally healthy and positive song. And it's a humanist approach- he's not praying, or asking for help from angels, or invoking fate or destiny, or channeling new agey energy, or talking about any supernatural influence- he's cultivating the good in people, beginning with himself, looking to familiar comfortable things like southern hospitality, and building himself a new foundation one brick at a time.
The reference to feeding pigeons some clay seems deliberately obscure. I thought immediately of target practice with clay pigeons- discs meant to be shot at once, broken into bits, and discarded. Maybe how he feels right now. Maybe more hopeful than that because he's really talking about living birds that can fly away from trouble. Changing night into day sounds more hopeful- like emotional healing from a dark night of the soul. Also connects to the idea of staying up through nights and days on a long bus ride. All in all a beautiful song.
I just came across this song and it touched me deeply. Your description is amazing...but I thing the pigeons are his brain cells and the buck shot is the booze. Regardless I love it so much I'm thinking of taking guitar lessons just to learn this song. All the best.
I just came across this song and it touched me deeply. Your description is amazing...but I thing the pigeons are his brain cells and the buck shot is the booze. Regardless I love it so much I'm thinking of taking guitar lessons just to learn this song. All the best.
"Feed the pigeons some clay" could be a metaphor for feeling useful and needed. He feeds the birds, but he doesn't have seed, just clay that he's rolled into a pellet. He wins the affection of the birds, despite offering them nothing, because he has nothing. He's 'faking it till he makes it'.
"Feed the pigeons some clay" could be a metaphor for feeling useful and needed. He feeds the birds, but he doesn't have seed, just clay that he's rolled into a pellet. He wins the affection of the birds, despite offering them nothing, because he has nothing. He's 'faking it till he makes it'.
@surferbeto I think Blaze himself is the clay pigeon. He's been shot down and broken so he needs to feed himself some clay to rebuild. Then he 'gets back in the game and start(s) singing again' only to be shot down again the process repeats.
@surferbeto I think Blaze himself is the clay pigeon. He's been shot down and broken so he needs to feed himself some clay to rebuild. Then he 'gets back in the game and start(s) singing again' only to be shot down again the process repeats.
@oliver_cfc that is a really clever idea. Blaze is the clay pigeon, and he feeds himself some clay (what else would a clay pigeon eat after all?). Thanks for bringing that to my attention. I think that must be it.
@oliver_cfc that is a really clever idea. Blaze is the clay pigeon, and he feeds himself some clay (what else would a clay pigeon eat after all?). Thanks for bringing that to my attention. I think that must be it.
@surferbeto I believe the pigeon reference is a bit self deprecating. It's saying he has healed himself, and become a free flying bird, but now he's going to ruin that by feeding it clay. Now he's going to repeat the process again.
@surferbeto I believe the pigeon reference is a bit self deprecating. It's saying he has healed himself, and become a free flying bird, but now he's going to ruin that by feeding it clay. Now he's going to repeat the process again.
@surferbeto I have learned some new things that cause me to reevaluate and revise the last paragraph of my original interpretation. If you Google search on "birds eating clay" you will find a small number of scientific research papers and other popular press accounts of birds eating clay. A certain place in Peru is locally famous as a place where parrots come to eat clay. We think the clay helps birds detoxify secondary plant compounds in certain foods they eat. And we think birds may use clay as a nutritional supplement to get certain essential minerals...
@surferbeto I have learned some new things that cause me to reevaluate and revise the last paragraph of my original interpretation. If you Google search on "birds eating clay" you will find a small number of scientific research papers and other popular press accounts of birds eating clay. A certain place in Peru is locally famous as a place where parrots come to eat clay. We think the clay helps birds detoxify secondary plant compounds in certain foods they eat. And we think birds may use clay as a nutritional supplement to get certain essential minerals that are otherwise scarce in their diets.
If pigeons do this too, and if Blaze knew of this, then maybe that last verse has a whole new meaning. Feeding pigeons some clay would be an act of kindness that helps the pigeons live better. It's not a direct subsidy, like feeding them birdseed might be. But it's giving them something they can use, something they need to be their best. Viewed in this light, the last verse makes a lot of sense. Blaze is continuing to do gentle good deeds of public service that feed his soul while helping others. Not only does he help people, he even helps pigeons he meets. The protagonist of this song is a gentle soul who is kind to animals. And he recognizes the healing power of kindness for both the giver and the receiver.
@surferbeto Thank you for the wonderful interpretation and the meaningful comments in reply! An alternative to the clay theory might also be this - that the author / protagonist seeks the same detoxifying healing of the clay in absorbing and reflecting the pain he sees and absorbs. That in sitting with the mother and the rest of these acts of service, the em-path seeks a remedy or balance to take the pain and allow the good in people to flow through much like the pigeon uses the clay to absorb the toxins while it gets the nutrition out of the food.
@surferbeto Thank you for the wonderful interpretation and the meaningful comments in reply! An alternative to the clay theory might also be this - that the author / protagonist seeks the same detoxifying healing of the clay in absorbing and reflecting the pain he sees and absorbs. That in sitting with the mother and the rest of these acts of service, the em-path seeks a remedy or balance to take the pain and allow the good in people to flow through much like the pigeon uses the clay to absorb the toxins while it gets the nutrition out of the food.
@surferbeto I take the “feed the pigeons some clay” to be about Blaze saying he’ll pretend everything is okay to the people around him and most won’t notice or think twice about him, even if he’s faking it. The same way pigeons will go after clay thinking it’s real seed. He can fool the people around him just as easily, you know?
@surferbeto I take the “feed the pigeons some clay” to be about Blaze saying he’ll pretend everything is okay to the people around him and most won’t notice or think twice about him, even if he’s faking it. The same way pigeons will go after clay thinking it’s real seed. He can fool the people around him just as easily, you know?
@surferbeto I take the “feed the pigeons some clay” to be about Blaze saying he’ll pretend everything is okay to the people around him and most won’t notice or think twice about him, even if he’s faking it. The same way pigeons will go after clay thinking it’s real seed. He can fool the people around him just as easily, you know?
@surferbeto I take the “feed the pigeons some clay” to be about Blaze saying he’ll pretend everything is okay to the people around him and most won’t notice or think twice about him, even if he’s faking it. The same way pigeons will go after clay thinking it’s real seed. He can fool the people around him just as easily, you know?
This is a song about personal redemption, emotional housekeeping, picking yourself up from a fall and starting over again. The singer's life has hit a rough patch- just what is not explained- maybe a good relationship gone bad and ending in heartbreak. Maybe some alcohol abuse as self medication. Maybe losing a job or getting beaten up and knowing he deserved it for something he did. Probably the first, with some other collateral damage attached.
Sitting next to a mom with kids is going to be an act of service and surrender. Most people wouldn't want to sit next to them, but the single mom could definitely use the kindness of a friendly well intentioned stranger to make it through a long bus ride with her kids. And he's feeding his humanity by choosing to do that. He's not planning to hit on her- he's planning to sing songs and help them pass the time on a long ride.
He describes a whole series of basic, functional, attainable short term goals that will help him process his hurt, pull himself together, fake it 'til he makes it, and begin another chapter of his life. It's a wistful but fundamentally healthy and positive song. And it's a humanist approach- he's not praying, or asking for help from angels, or invoking fate or destiny, or channeling new agey energy, or talking about any supernatural influence- he's cultivating the good in people, beginning with himself, looking to familiar comfortable things like southern hospitality, and building himself a new foundation one brick at a time.
The reference to feeding pigeons some clay seems deliberately obscure. I thought immediately of target practice with clay pigeons- discs meant to be shot at once, broken into bits, and discarded. Maybe how he feels right now. Maybe more hopeful than that because he's really talking about living birds that can fly away from trouble. Changing night into day sounds more hopeful- like emotional healing from a dark night of the soul. Also connects to the idea of staying up through nights and days on a long bus ride. All in all a beautiful song.
Your thoughts on the song are almost as beautiful as the song itself.
Your thoughts on the song are almost as beautiful as the song itself.
I just came across this song and it touched me deeply. Your description is amazing...but I thing the pigeons are his brain cells and the buck shot is the booze. Regardless I love it so much I'm thinking of taking guitar lessons just to learn this song. All the best.
I just came across this song and it touched me deeply. Your description is amazing...but I thing the pigeons are his brain cells and the buck shot is the booze. Regardless I love it so much I'm thinking of taking guitar lessons just to learn this song. All the best.
"Feed the pigeons some clay" could be a metaphor for feeling useful and needed. He feeds the birds, but he doesn't have seed, just clay that he's rolled into a pellet. He wins the affection of the birds, despite offering them nothing, because he has nothing. He's 'faking it till he makes it'.
"Feed the pigeons some clay" could be a metaphor for feeling useful and needed. He feeds the birds, but he doesn't have seed, just clay that he's rolled into a pellet. He wins the affection of the birds, despite offering them nothing, because he has nothing. He's 'faking it till he makes it'.
@surferbeto I think Blaze himself is the clay pigeon. He's been shot down and broken so he needs to feed himself some clay to rebuild. Then he 'gets back in the game and start(s) singing again' only to be shot down again the process repeats.
@surferbeto I think Blaze himself is the clay pigeon. He's been shot down and broken so he needs to feed himself some clay to rebuild. Then he 'gets back in the game and start(s) singing again' only to be shot down again the process repeats.
@oliver_cfc that is a really clever idea. Blaze is the clay pigeon, and he feeds himself some clay (what else would a clay pigeon eat after all?). Thanks for bringing that to my attention. I think that must be it.
@oliver_cfc that is a really clever idea. Blaze is the clay pigeon, and he feeds himself some clay (what else would a clay pigeon eat after all?). Thanks for bringing that to my attention. I think that must be it.
@surferbeto I believe the pigeon reference is a bit self deprecating. It's saying he has healed himself, and become a free flying bird, but now he's going to ruin that by feeding it clay. Now he's going to repeat the process again.
@surferbeto I believe the pigeon reference is a bit self deprecating. It's saying he has healed himself, and become a free flying bird, but now he's going to ruin that by feeding it clay. Now he's going to repeat the process again.
@surferbeto I have learned some new things that cause me to reevaluate and revise the last paragraph of my original interpretation. If you Google search on "birds eating clay" you will find a small number of scientific research papers and other popular press accounts of birds eating clay. A certain place in Peru is locally famous as a place where parrots come to eat clay. We think the clay helps birds detoxify secondary plant compounds in certain foods they eat. And we think birds may use clay as a nutritional supplement to get certain essential minerals...
@surferbeto I have learned some new things that cause me to reevaluate and revise the last paragraph of my original interpretation. If you Google search on "birds eating clay" you will find a small number of scientific research papers and other popular press accounts of birds eating clay. A certain place in Peru is locally famous as a place where parrots come to eat clay. We think the clay helps birds detoxify secondary plant compounds in certain foods they eat. And we think birds may use clay as a nutritional supplement to get certain essential minerals that are otherwise scarce in their diets.
If pigeons do this too, and if Blaze knew of this, then maybe that last verse has a whole new meaning. Feeding pigeons some clay would be an act of kindness that helps the pigeons live better. It's not a direct subsidy, like feeding them birdseed might be. But it's giving them something they can use, something they need to be their best. Viewed in this light, the last verse makes a lot of sense. Blaze is continuing to do gentle good deeds of public service that feed his soul while helping others. Not only does he help people, he even helps pigeons he meets. The protagonist of this song is a gentle soul who is kind to animals. And he recognizes the healing power of kindness for both the giver and the receiver.
@surferbeto Thank you for the wonderful interpretation and the meaningful comments in reply! An alternative to the clay theory might also be this - that the author / protagonist seeks the same detoxifying healing of the clay in absorbing and reflecting the pain he sees and absorbs. That in sitting with the mother and the rest of these acts of service, the em-path seeks a remedy or balance to take the pain and allow the good in people to flow through much like the pigeon uses the clay to absorb the toxins while it gets the nutrition out of the food.
@surferbeto Thank you for the wonderful interpretation and the meaningful comments in reply! An alternative to the clay theory might also be this - that the author / protagonist seeks the same detoxifying healing of the clay in absorbing and reflecting the pain he sees and absorbs. That in sitting with the mother and the rest of these acts of service, the em-path seeks a remedy or balance to take the pain and allow the good in people to flow through much like the pigeon uses the clay to absorb the toxins while it gets the nutrition out of the food.
@surferbeto I take the “feed the pigeons some clay” to be about Blaze saying he’ll pretend everything is okay to the people around him and most won’t notice or think twice about him, even if he’s faking it. The same way pigeons will go after clay thinking it’s real seed. He can fool the people around him just as easily, you know?
@surferbeto I take the “feed the pigeons some clay” to be about Blaze saying he’ll pretend everything is okay to the people around him and most won’t notice or think twice about him, even if he’s faking it. The same way pigeons will go after clay thinking it’s real seed. He can fool the people around him just as easily, you know?
@surferbeto I take the “feed the pigeons some clay” to be about Blaze saying he’ll pretend everything is okay to the people around him and most won’t notice or think twice about him, even if he’s faking it. The same way pigeons will go after clay thinking it’s real seed. He can fool the people around him just as easily, you know?
@surferbeto I take the “feed the pigeons some clay” to be about Blaze saying he’ll pretend everything is okay to the people around him and most won’t notice or think twice about him, even if he’s faking it. The same way pigeons will go after clay thinking it’s real seed. He can fool the people around him just as easily, you know?
@surferbeto you've written some wonderful things on your post. A great tribute to a beautiful, tender song.
@surferbeto you've written some wonderful things on your post. A great tribute to a beautiful, tender song.