This song is a bit of a dirge and certainly not the most melodic thing Van has ever done but there is enough in it to suggest it is part biographical and part applicable to most of our lives. Note the contrast throughout to the so called 'celebrity' lifestyle and the back streets that he came from. Some might say "slap it into him for being such a grump" and if he behaved differently he may not be as lonely but I think that misses the penetrative substance and meaning of the song. One line says, "It takes more than a lifetime just to get to know yourself" suggests we have still a bit to go on the journey of life in finding out about ourselves. I don't think this is a depressing song as it expresses the sentiment that no matter how fulfilling your life may appear to be "you can also be lonely standing in your own backyard".
This song is a bit of a dirge and certainly not the most melodic thing Van has ever done but there is enough in it to suggest it is part biographical and part applicable to most of our lives. Note the contrast throughout to the so called 'celebrity' lifestyle and the back streets that he came from. Some might say "slap it into him for being such a grump" and if he behaved differently he may not be as lonely but I think that misses the penetrative substance and meaning of the song. One line says, "It takes more than a lifetime just to get to know yourself" suggests we have still a bit to go on the journey of life in finding out about ourselves. I don't think this is a depressing song as it expresses the sentiment that no matter how fulfilling your life may appear to be "you can also be lonely standing in your own backyard".