Today's song is...
Dead
This post is going to earn me some very indignant replies. I just know it. I know a lot of people for whom this song holds deep personal meaning, and even sums up the whole core of their being. I am not one of those people. Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful song, but with all the times I heard Flood live over the last two years, this is the only song that I am completely and totally sick of hearing. Perhaps with a long enough break from it I could grow to love it again. But even before that it was never a particular favorite of mine. I enjoy the piano melody but the lyrics just never really grabbed me. I think I find the morbidity of the song a little overpowering. The idea of coming to the end of your life and finding that you haven't done any of the things you wanted to do is just not something I am comfortable thinking too much about (probably related to some long term issues I have with death and mortality in general).
Holy crap, this post just got depressing.
By far the best performance of it I have in my collection is the one Linnell performed solo at the Bowery Ballroom in 1998, when Flans got ill and had to leave the stage. It's just Linnell and his accordion and the entire audience trying to fill in for Flans and helping out Linnell when he completely forgets all the lyrics in the bridge. I may not love the song, but I love how enthusiastic and supportive the crowd is.
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I am one of those people who thinks this song sums up the whole core of her being, but I'm also one of those people who's a little sick of hearing it at shows. I do enjoy listening to the audience sing along, though -- something about an entire room of people singing about how it's over, they're dead and they haven't done anything that they want... I don't know, it's nice. I really love the piano part.
ReplyDeleteIt's not as though there aren't good things to be said about this song, but the main thing that wears on me is how much repetition there is lyrically, especially considering how wordy and plodding the lyrics are. In general, lyrics that are cute or funny or quirky in the first verse and chorus are much less so by the third verbatim repetition.
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