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Total ratings: 1277
Length: 5:43
Plays (last 30 days): 2
It was Friday at five, and no one was giving an inch
They squeezed and they edged and they glared
Half them clearly impaired by rage or exhaustion
The rest were just touchy as hell
Somewhere near Paterson everything slowed to a crawl
The all-news station was thanking someone for the call
It's a van from St. Agnes's choir
There's a nun out there changing a tire
By the time they got by her, tempers were out of control
So they all hit the gas in a dash for position
Bobbing and weaving and flashing their highbeams
Flipping the bird and screaming obscenities
A well-insured hoard hell-bent on Saturday
And so they continued west-bound and into the sun
Law and decorum constraining nary a one
By then it was devil-may-care
Not one even vaguely aware
That they had come all the way to the Delaware Water Gap
But how had it happened? They had all missed their exits
How had it happened? Was it some kind of vortex?
And in they all went, bumper to bumper
Faster and faster, no sign of a trooper
In they all went, like sheep to the slaughter
Bankers and carpenters, doctors and lawyers
And in they all went, families in minivans
Ashcroft republicans, weekend militiamen
They followed the river, and rounded the bend
Between Minsi and Tammany and into their destiny
Lying in ambush right their before them
The angry old sun right on the horizon
Sister Maria tightened the bolts of the spare
She said a quick prayer and put the old van into gear
Thank God that the traffic was light
If she hurried she might not be late
For that evening's performance at the state penitentiary
She entered the common room and their was her choir
Altos and baritones, basses and tenors
Car thieves and crack dealers, mobsters and murderers
Husbands and sons, fathers and brothers
And so it began in glorious harmony
Softly and Tenderly
calling for you and me
With the interstate whining way off in the distance
And the sun going down through the bars of the prison
They poured out their souls, they poured out their memories
They poured out their hopes for what's left of eternity
To sister Maria
her soul like a prism
For the light of forgiveness on all of their faces
should be "A murderous hoard..."
just in case - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCPQPwVWbSU
I love a bit of off-the-wall story-telling. Combined with interesting music, and a decent voice, this is a solid 8 from me.
I was about to skip this song after about 30 sec, but read your comment and decided to stick with it - and then I got to enjoy the song, so thanks :)
M. Stipe, is that you?
I was thinking the same thing!
And I wonder how he feels about the traffic in Buenos Aires!
Long Live RP!!
The angry old sun right on the horizon
there not their
strained lyrics
needs a good edit
Have not had that experience, and I lived there 0-30 years.
Love the references to that commute here.
I don't see an "obtuse metaphor" as someone said previously. Actually, there are a couple of obvious metaphors here in this piece all wrapped up in a beautiful story. The most obvious metaphor to me is the reference to time... a juxtaposition of the prisoners who have all the time in the world and those weekend warriors in the rat race who are rushing into the "vortex." This all from someone who hears melody first, then notices the lyrics.
This is a beautiful song if only for the beautiful poetry therein, and as someone who moved from the city to a small town, it definitely strikes a chord... pun intended.
Amen.
This gets a 10 simply because he's woven a mundane story into a parable with melody.
In they all went, like sheep to the slaughter
Bankers and carpenters, doctors and lawyers
And in they all went, families in minivans
Ashcroft Republicans, weekend militiamen
Amen.
And for the record, NOTHING at all like REM. Do you people have shit in your ears or what?
Thank you and goodnight.
But something is definitely lost in this studio version. I wish Bill would swap this out with one of his live performances of this tune, where the passion in his voice (and the band) really comes through. I have one I'd upload, but quality is too low.
Yes, a bit.
". . . plods along with grim, dull determination. . . "
Quite apt I would add
NJ never felt so poetic...
Very Micheal Stipe-esque, not just the sound, but the style. Kind of more baritone though. But I like-y.
". . . plods along with grim, dull determination. . . "
You forgot groovy!
You forgot groovy!
I left a lot of good memories in NJ. <3
great lyrics, but the delivery. . . well. . . I'm not enjoying it. . .
In my most refined, educated voice, I say, "This is bad-ass!"
Geez, Bill, one more depressing song in a row and I'm going to curl up in the fetal position on my floor for the rest of the day.
Truly, it leaves one quite powerless...
Geez, Bill, one more depressing song in a row and I'm going to curl up in the fetal position on my floor for the rest of the day.
1) Vocals that actually have real dynamics (bucking the trend these days).
2) The way this almost feels like a song about the voyage of a sailing vessel on the high seas.
Gotta agree. simply brilliant songwriting.
i love this whole damn album. and this song ... damn. just freakin awesome.
i'm not really getting the rem references posted here
Gotta agree. simply brilliant songwriting.
Sorry to be thick...
I think it is more of an allegory. Nothing so literal as a wreck. More a suggestion that we should all be more patient, loving, and forgiving before we drive our world over into the abyss.
except, this is a bit good. like a decent REM tune before it is overplayed.-
... and now i'm probably in some database of potential insurgents and nonconformists...
If you live in Cambridge, you probably were anyway.
... and now i'm probably in some database of potential insurgents and nonconformists...
it certainly is a cool song, I like it a lot
"And the sun going down through the bars of the prison
They poured out their souls, they poured out their memories
They poured out their hopes for what's left of eternity
To sister Maria - her soul like a prism
For the light of forgiveness on all of their faces"
Sorry to be thick...