Yeah, so - every once in a while I'll realise that I don't really know some song I've heard a million times, so I google the lyrics out of curiosity. Sometimes there's nothing interesting there, but sometimes, it's gold.
Knowing the lyrics also makes it easier to sing along in the car.
Anyway, today, for me, that song was "Young American" by Bowie - lyrics pasted below. I could have sworn it was "afro-sheeners", not "afro-sheilas".
What are your "looked-up lyrics" ?
They pulled in just behind the bridge
He lays her down, he frowns
"Gee my life's a funny thing, am I still too young?"
He kissed her then and there
She took his ring, took his babies
It took him minutes, took her nowhere
Heaven knows, she'd have taken anything, but All night
She wants the young American
Young American, young American, she wants the young American
All right
She wants the young American Scanning life through the picture window
She finds the slinky vagabond
He coughs as he passes her Ford Mustang, but
Heaven forbid, she'll take anything
But the freak, and his type, all for nothing
Misses a step and cuts his hand, but
Showing nothing, he swoops like a song
She cries "Where have all Papa's heroes gone?" All night
She wants a young American
Young American, young American, she wants the young American
All right
She wants the young American All the way from Washington
Her bread-winner begs off the bathroom floor
"We live for just these twenty years
Do we have to die for the fifty more?" All night
He wants the young American
Young American, young American, he wants the young American
All right
He wants the young American Do you remember, your President Nixon?
Do you remember, the bills you have to pay
For even yesterday? Have you have been an un-American?
Just you and your idol singing falsetto 'bout
Leather, leather everywhere, and
Not a myth left from the ghetto
Well, well, well, would you carry a razor
In case, just in case of depression?
Sit on your hands on a bus of survivors
Blushing at all the afro-Sheilas
Ain't that close to love?
Well, ain't that poster love?
Well, it ain't that Barbie doll
Her heart's been broken just like you have All night
All night was a young American
Young American, young American, you want the young American
All right
All right you want the young American You ain't a pimp and you ain't a hustler
A pimp's got a Cadi and a lady got a Chrysler
Black's got respect, and white's got his Soul Train
Mama's got cramps, and look at your hands ache
(I heard the news today, oh boy)
I got a suite and you got defeat
Ain't there a man you can say no more?
And, ain't there a woman I can sock on the jaw?
And, ain't there a child I can hold without judging?
Ain't there a pen that will write before they die?
Ain't you proud that you've still got faces?
Ain't there one damn song that can make me
Break down and cry? All night
I want the young American
Young American, young American, I want the young American
All right
I want the young American, young American whoa whoa Young American, young American
I want what you want
I want what you want
You want more
I want you
You want I
I want you
I want what you want
But you want what you want
You want I
I want you
And all I want is a young American
Young American'Scuse me while I kiss the sky. It'll take you a couple of vodka and tonics to set you on your feet again. I can't hide, I can't hide.
Growing up, my neighbor, Ian, had a video camera. Now a days, every one of us has this ability on the phones in our pockets, but back then it was a pretty rare thing. We used to make short comedy videos etc. -Pretty standard 12 year old boy type of humor. One other thing we did with the video was to record ourselves lip syncing songs. Each of us pals had a song that was sort of our specialty. My song was Young Americans. Back then, we didn't have the internet to help us look up the lyrics, so I had to guess at what the lyrics were. I butchered the lyrics, for sure. -There's no way I was singing "afro-sheilas". Great song!
It's a pretty recent song, but I've listened to it A LOT. Anyway, I realised that I really only knew partly what he was saying. Yorke's voice is pretty quiet & mellow is this song so it can be hard to make out. Regardless, I was not disappointed. Ingenue - Atoms for Peace: Who let em in You got me into this mess so You get me out You know like the back of your hand Your bell jar Your collection Ingenue
You get me into this mess Fools rushing in, yeah And they know it
The seeds of the dandelion you blow away In good time, I hope, I pray If I'm not there now physically I'm always before you Come what may
And you know it Fools rushing in Yeah, well you know it Who let them in? Yeah, well you know it Gone with a touch of your hand Gone with a touch of your hand Move through the moment Though it betrays Transformations Jackals and flames If I knew now What I knew then Just give me more time I hope and pray I mistake all you say The seeds of the dandelion you blow awayYou know like the back of your hand
We’re all born to broken people on their most honest day of living and since that first breath... We’ll need grace that we’ve never given I've been haunted by standard red devils and white ghosts and it's not only when these eyes are closed these lies are ropes that I tie down in my stomach, but they hold this ship together tossed like leaves in this weather and my dreams are sails that I point towards my true north, stretched thin over my rib bones, and pray that it gets better but it won’t won’t, at least I don’t believe it will... so I've built a wooden heart inside this iron ship, to sail these blood red seas and find your coasts. don’t let these waves wash away your hopes this war-ship is sinking, and I still believe in anchors pulling fist fulls of rotten wood from my heart, I still believe in saviors but I know that we are all made out of shipwrecks, every single board washed and bound like crooked teeth on these rocky shores so come on and let’s wash each other with tears of joy and tears of grief and fold our lives like crashing waves and run up on this beach come on and sew us together, tattered rags stained forever we only have what we remember I am the barely living son of a woman and man who barely made it but we’re making it taped together on borrowed crutches and new starts we all have the same holes in our hearts... everything falls apart at the exact same time that it all comes together perfectly for the next step but my fear is this prison... that I keep locked below the main deck I keep a key under my pillow, it’s quiet and it’s hidden and my hopes are weapons that I’m still learning how to use right but they’re heavy and I’m awkward...always running out of fight so I’ve carved a wooden heart, put it in this sinking ship hoping it would help me float for just a few more weeks because I am made out of shipwrecks, every twisted beam lost and found like you and me scattered out on the sea so come on let’s wash each other with tears of joy and tears of grief and fold our lives like crashing waves and run up on this beach come on and sew us together, just some tattered rags stained forever we only have what we remember My throat it still tastes like house fire and salt water I wear this tide like loose skin, rock me to sea if we hold on tight we’ll hold each other together and not just be some fools rushing to die in our sleep all these machines will rust I promise, but we'll still be electric shocking each other back to life Your hand in mine, my fingers in your veins connected our bones grown together inside our hands entwined, your fingers in my veins braided our spines grown stronger in time because are church is made out of shipwrecks from every hull these rocks have claimed but we pick ourselves up, and try and grow better through the change so come on yall and let’s wash each other with tears of joy and tears of grief and fold our lives like crashing waves and run up on this beach come on and sew us together, were just tattered rags stained forever we only have what we rememberWOODEN HEART (sea of mist called skaidan)