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Post by headlightbeams on Jun 3, 2006 19:50:38 GMT -5
PW used to repeat lines with a double meaning:
"Everybody's looking forward, I am looking forward" "Can you stand me on my feet? Can you stand me on my feet?"
Seems like somewhere along the line he figured his listeners would get his wordplay without him repeating it.
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Post by headlightbeams on Jun 15, 2006 13:49:32 GMT -5
In "Alex Chilton," does "cerebral rape" = mind f*ck?
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MacGyver
Beagle Scout
We were gonna meet...
Posts: 1,641
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Post by MacGyver on Jun 17, 2006 11:01:21 GMT -5
In "Alex Chilton," does "cerebral rape" = mind f*ck? Hmm... Wow, I never thought of it that way. I always took it as like blowing the people away with intellect, instead of raw force. Yours sounds better though.
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Post by headlightbeams on Jul 8, 2006 23:14:09 GMT -5
PW used to repeat lines with a double meaning: "Everybody's looking forward, I am looking forward" "Can you stand me on my feet? Can you stand me on my feet?" Seems like somewhere along the line he figured his listeners would get his wordplay without him repeating it. Tell your mom that you got a date, but you're lyin' Now you're lyin' On someone's chest
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Post by nowwesayitoutloud on Oct 7, 2006 3:08:55 GMT -5
PW used to repeat lines with a double meaning: "Everybody's looking forward, I am looking forward" "Can you stand me on my feet? Can you stand me on my feet?" Seems like somewhere along the line he figured his listeners would get his wordplay without him repeating it. From a Village Voice story on ex-MPLS band The Hold Steady and its PW-influenced leader Craig Finn: "The self-awareness he's always exhibited—and his habit of repeating his cleverest, most poetic lines ..."
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Post by mrblasty on Oct 7, 2006 6:28:20 GMT -5
From All About Me:
And the first hand that claps I'll try not to collapse
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Post by BronxTeacher on Mar 6, 2009 22:21:02 GMT -5
I've always loved:
Trouble keeping your head up When you're hungry And you're fed up
from "Valentine." It's paradoxical, and the combo of the second and third lines turns the cliche ("fed up") on its ear and gives it new life.
I also think the chorus of "Something in My Life is Missing" from 49:00 is particularly clever in how it builds meaning as Paul repeats and adds to the line. He's talking about something in his life that's missing, missing a friend, and being unable to connect with a friend, all at the same time.
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Rambo
Tenderfoot
Posts: 19
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Post by Rambo on Mar 6, 2009 23:07:28 GMT -5
How about Hold My Life off Tim:
If I want, I could dye... my hair
He's always playing with the listener in this one. This one is just that; he turns something serious into something mild after a short wait.
And hold my life until I'm ready to use it Hold my life because I just might lose it Because I just might lose it
The second if far more ambiguous. What does Paul mean here? Two meanings come from it: lose it, as in losing your life, or lose it, as in going crazy. Either way is no good. The idea of going crazy is reinforced with the line "Crack up in the sun, lose it in the shade", but the first pun still leaves the listener wondering what's really going on.
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Post by BronxTeacher on Mar 7, 2009 1:34:46 GMT -5
How about Hold My Life off Tim: And hold my life until I'm ready to use it Hold my life because I just might lose it Because I just might lose itThe second if far more ambiguous. What does Paul mean here? Two meanings come from it: lose it, as in losing your life, or lose it, as in going crazy. Either way is no good. The idea of going crazy is reinforced with the line "Crack up in the sun, lose it in the shade", but the first pun still leaves the listener wondering what's really going on. Yeah, I've always liked these lines, too. There's two or three other meanings, too, besides death and insanity, the ones you mentioned. A third meaning relates to not being able to find your life; it's literally lost. That's why he asks someone to hold it for him in the chorus--so he won't lose it or have it stolen from him. This picks up on the sports metaphor in the second verse--"pass it off," "a lucky shot," with the ball or puck compared to life. Thus, in the chorus he's asking someone to "hold it" for him instead of passing or shooting it. Lastly, "hold my life" could also mean to put it on pause or hold until he's "ready to use it"--which could imply anything from a feeling that is current life is a waste or that he needs to mature somewhat before he can truly begin living productively, responsibly, happily, etc. In terms of wordplay and puns, Paul is king.
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Post by butzodaddy on Sept 23, 2009 11:29:33 GMT -5
This one made me tear up:
Ring around the rosary Pocket full of prose you read Ashes ashes we all fall in love.
(Ghost on the canvas)
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Post by curmudgeon on Sept 23, 2009 13:55:12 GMT -5
I like the lines in Love on the Wing:
Lady in waiting, Man in a rush
And All That I Had has a couple of great ones:
King and Queen, full and twin Gave a life, got a living
...which reminds me of Androgynous:
Don't get him wrong, don't get him mad He might be a father but he sure ain't a dad
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Post by DaveinDK on Sept 27, 2009 3:17:41 GMT -5
Hurry up, I can't stand to sit still.
Making Me Go
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