I think this song is about a doper who snitches on his drug dealer. I think "lost in the barrio" means he is confused, hurt, and worried that he won't get away with it in his hood because is being fake, someone will be able to see it on his face, or might find the wire he is wearing.. Carlo is his dealer. So he paints his face; tries to look as normal as possible. Tries to make himself look like everything is fine, because he couldn't just tell the cops who the dealer was, he has to get evidence for them/hot licks and rhetoric don't count much ....The wire is what is borrowed. What is pawned is his freedom and reputation. Done like a matador/He thinks that he pulled it off and he can go back to his life in the hood and no one will be the wiser. He can just resume life as usual, messing with the same women, living his same life. But if word is out, he will start over somewhere else where nobody knows him.
The chorus:
Throw back the little ones. The police don't really want the buyers. They arrest them, negotiate deals with them, and/or threaten to take their freedom away, so they will snitch. "Use tact, poise, and reason and gently squeeze them." Throw them back in their own water to bait the big fish..So they can "Pan fry the big ones." Big ones are dealers. Little ones act as though everything is cool like always, big fish bite, business as usual. Oops! Done.
I think this song is about a doper who snitches on his drug dealer. I think "lost in the barrio" means he is confused, hurt, and worried that he won't get away with it in his hood because is being fake, someone will be able to see it on his face, or might find the wire he is wearing.. Carlo is his dealer. So he paints his face; tries to look as normal as possible. Tries to make himself look like everything is fine, because he couldn't just tell the cops who the dealer was, he has to get evidence for them/hot licks and rhetoric don't count much ....The wire is what is borrowed. What is pawned is his freedom and reputation. Done like a matador/He thinks that he pulled it off and he can go back to his life in the hood and no one will be the wiser. He can just resume life as usual, messing with the same women, living his same life. But if word is out, he will start over somewhere else where nobody knows him.
The chorus: Throw back the little ones. The police don't really want the buyers. They arrest them, negotiate deals with them, and/or threaten to take their freedom away, so they will snitch. "Use tact, poise, and reason and gently squeeze them." Throw them back in their own water to bait the big fish..So they can "Pan fry the big ones." Big ones are dealers. Little ones act as though everything is cool like always, big fish bite, business as usual. Oops! Done.