Okay, Justin, I know you intended this as an apology, but really? As apologies go, this one's pretty horrible -- and it's making you sound like a complete jerk.
Shall we break it down?
You gotta go and get angry at all of my honesty
One line in, and we're already off to a really bad start. Because this? This isn't how it works. Nobody says, "I can't believe he was so honest with me! I'm still angry about it..." It just doesn't happen. No, stuff like this, this "I can't believe you're mad at me for being honest" is the sort of thing someone says when they're trying to avoid discussing the real reason why the other person is pissed off. And that's usually because you've been being a jerk.
You know I try but I don't do too well with apologies
Then you need to learn. But frankly, at your age, if you "don't do too well with apologies", it's because you're a jerk. Either you think you're never supposed to admit you're wrong, or you're just so utterly unconcerned about the effects of your actions on other people that you've never realized when you ought to be making apologies. Either way: jerk.
I hope I don't run out of time, could someone call the referee?
...And now you're trying to set the terms of the conversation. How lovely.
Jerk.
'Cause I just need one more shot at forgiveness
See, this isn't how apologies work. The point of an apology isn't to obtain forgiveness for yourself, or to get out of the consequences of your actions. It's to let the other person know that you recognize that you've done something wrong and/or hurtful. You don't get to tell the person you're apologizing to how they're supposed to react. Trying to do that is a dick move.
Jerk.
But, hey, maybe the next stanza will be better...
I know you know that I made those mistakes maybe once or twice
And by once or twice I mean maybe a couple a hundred times
Wow. Just... wow. Okay, see, "maybe a couple of hundred times" isn't what I'd call a "mistake". I mean, at that point, it's a pattern; it's a habit. Specifically, it's a habit of being a jerk. Hell, what you're describing here is almost a character trait.
So let me, oh let me redeem, oh redeem, oh myself tonight
'Cause I just need one more shot, second chances
...And again, you've slipped out of apologizing, and started talking about what you need instead. That doesn't much sound like you're really sorry. And "let me redeem myself tonight"? How exactly are you planning to do that, Binky? You're just going to downplay this long-standing habit of -- what was your euphemism? -- "making mistakes", and hope that an evening of being charming is going to win her back? Yeah, good luck with that. Jerk.
Is it too late now to say sorry?
'Cause I'm missing more than just your body
...And here we come to it. You're not saying you're sorry because you're actually sorry. You haven't come to some realization that your actions were hurtful and wrong; it's just that you've suddenly realized that your bad behavior is actually going to cost you something, and you don't want to face the consequences because you're a jerk. It's all about you, isn't it?
Is it too late now to say sorry?
Yeah, I know that I let you down
Is it too late to say I'm sorry now?
If the girl you're addressing has any sense, then the answer should be a resounding "YES!" It should be too late, you smug, condescending little prick.
I'll take every single piece of the blame if you want me to
Dude. This is supposed to be an apology, not a fucking negotiation. Jerk.
But you know that there is no innocent one in this game for two
Oh, dear ye immortal gods. "Hey, you did things wrong, too!" is no way say you're sorry, you passive-aggressive twat.
I'll go, I'll go and then you go, you go out and spill the truth
Finally! Finally, you admit that she's completely right about you, and absolutely right to leave your selfish ass.
Can we both say the words and forget this?
...And then you blow it. Again, if the girl you're addressing has any sense at all, she'll say "No" -- and she should. So far, the only thing you've offered is to "redeem yourself tonight", which sounds more like trying to play a Get Out Of Jail Free card than like any sort of personal reform, character growth, or honest self-reflection. (Jerk.) Yes, you're "missing more than just [her] body", but so what? Even if that isn't just a line -- and I'm admittedly dubious -- why should she think that's going to stop you from making even more of those "mistakes" that you apparently make so often? (Jerk.)
I mean, there's nothing here that says, "I realize why my actions were wrong, and this is what I have done and will do to fix my behavior." All I see here is, "Please give me what I want, including the chance to hurt you again." Jerk.
I'm not just trying to get you back on me, oh no
'Cause I'm missing more than just your body, oh
Yeah, you say that, but honestly? That sounds like exactly what you're trying to do. Jerk.
Is it too late now to say sorry?
Yeah, I know that I let you down
Is it too late to say I'm sorry now?
For her sake, I certainly hope it is.
Showing posts with label lyrics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lyrics. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 24, 2016
Monday, January 17, 2011
Video: It Gets Better
This seems to be making the rounds, but I'm going to push it along anyway - 'cause, hey, it brightened my day. That said, the language absolutely NOT safe for work, and you should probably listen to it privately before deciding if you want to share it with small children, elderly relatives, and other people of sensitive and delicate constitution.
Be sure to play it all the way through - there's a message tucked in with the credits.
Be sure to play it all the way through - there's a message tucked in with the credits.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Music and Storytelling
I was listening yesterday to the song "Over The Hills (and Far Away)" as performed by the Finnish band Nightwish. The song is actually a cover; it was originally performed by Gary Moore - at least, I first heard it on his 1987 album Wild Frontier, and Wikipedia seems to confirm that it was his creation.
However, "Over The Hills" is almost a cover of "The Long Black Veil" (written by Lefty Frizzell in 1959, and covered by almost everybody since then: Johnny Cash, Dave Matthews, The Chieftains...). I say 'almost' because the music and lyrics are, in fact, completely different; and because I have no idea whether one inspired the other, or whether it's a case of independent invention (or somewhere in the middle). Either way, the stories told are similar enough that I cannot hear one without thinking of the other.
Let's start with the older song:
The Long Black Veil
Ten years ago on a cold dark night,
someone was killed 'neath the town hall lights.
There were few at the scene, but they all agreed,
that the slayer who ran looked a lot like me.
Chorus ~ She walks these hills, in a long black veil.
She visits my grave, when the night winds wail.
Nobody knows, nobody sees,
Nobody knows, but me
The Judge said son, what is your alibi,
if you were somewhere else, then you won't have to die.
I spoke not a word, though it meant my life,
for i'd been in the arms of my best friends wife.
Chorus*
Now the scaffold is high, and eternity's near.
She stood in the crowd, and shed not a tear.
But some times at night, when the cold wind moans
In a long black veil, she cries over my bones
Chorus ~ She walks these hills, in a long black veil.
When the cold winds blow, and the night winds wail.
Nobody knows, nobody sees.
Nobody knows, but me.
Over the Hills (and Far Away)
They came for him one winter's night.
Arrested, he was bound.
They said there'd been a robbery,
his pistol had been found.
They marched him to the station house,
he waited till the dawn.
And as they led him to the dock,
he knew that he'd been wronged.
"You stand accused of robbery,"
he heard the bailiff say.
He knew without an alibi,
tomorrow's light would mourn his freedom.
Over the hills and far away,
for ten long years he'll count the days.
Over the mountains and the seas,
a prisoner's life for him there'll be.
He knew that it would cost him dear,
but yet he dare not say,
Just where he'd been that fateful night,
a secret it must stay.
He had to fight back tears of rage.
His heart beat like a drum.
For with the wife of his best friend,
he spent his final night of freedom.
Over the hills and far away,
he swears he will return one day.
Far from the mountains and the seas,
back in her arms again he'll be.
Over the hills and far away.
Over the hills and,
over the hills and,
over the hills and far away.
Each night within his prison cell,
he looks out through the bars.
He reads the letters that she wrote.
One day he'll know the taste of freedom.
Over the hills and far away,
she prays he will return one day.
As sure as the rivers reach the seas,
back in his arms again she'll be.
Over the hills and far away,
he swears he will return one day.
As sure as the river reach the seas,
back in his arms is where she'll be.
Over the hills and far away,
she prays he will return one day.
As sure as the rivers reach the sea,
back in her arms is where he'll be.
Over the hills,over the hills and far away.
Over the hills,over the hills and far away
Okay, so... the premise, in both cases, is a man who is accused of a crime and can't speak in his defense because he was cuckolding his best friend at the time. In "The long Black Veil", the crime is murder and the man is hung for it, leaving his friend's wife to mourn in secret. In "Over The Hills", the crime is robbery, and the man is sent away to prison for a decade, where he waits impatiently for freedom and return (and the unfaithful wife waits also).
However, to my eyes the big difference between the two songs is the fourth line of "Over The Hills". He's accused of robbery because his pistol was found, presumably at the scene of the crime. (Maybe they found the pistol somewhere else, but that interpretation doesn't make much sense to me.)
"The Long Black Veil" is a song about a miscarriage of justice; "Over The Hills" is about a man who was framed for robbery, probably by the jealous best friend with whose wife he was sleeping.
However, "Over The Hills" is almost a cover of "The Long Black Veil" (written by Lefty Frizzell in 1959, and covered by almost everybody since then: Johnny Cash, Dave Matthews, The Chieftains...). I say 'almost' because the music and lyrics are, in fact, completely different; and because I have no idea whether one inspired the other, or whether it's a case of independent invention (or somewhere in the middle). Either way, the stories told are similar enough that I cannot hear one without thinking of the other.
Let's start with the older song:
The Long Black Veil
Ten years ago on a cold dark night,
someone was killed 'neath the town hall lights.
There were few at the scene, but they all agreed,
that the slayer who ran looked a lot like me.
Chorus ~ She walks these hills, in a long black veil.
She visits my grave, when the night winds wail.
Nobody knows, nobody sees,
Nobody knows, but me
The Judge said son, what is your alibi,
if you were somewhere else, then you won't have to die.
I spoke not a word, though it meant my life,
for i'd been in the arms of my best friends wife.
Chorus*
Now the scaffold is high, and eternity's near.
She stood in the crowd, and shed not a tear.
But some times at night, when the cold wind moans
In a long black veil, she cries over my bones
Chorus ~ She walks these hills, in a long black veil.
When the cold winds blow, and the night winds wail.
Nobody knows, nobody sees.
Nobody knows, but me.
Over the Hills (and Far Away)
They came for him one winter's night.
Arrested, he was bound.
They said there'd been a robbery,
his pistol had been found.
They marched him to the station house,
he waited till the dawn.
And as they led him to the dock,
he knew that he'd been wronged.
"You stand accused of robbery,"
he heard the bailiff say.
He knew without an alibi,
tomorrow's light would mourn his freedom.
Over the hills and far away,
for ten long years he'll count the days.
Over the mountains and the seas,
a prisoner's life for him there'll be.
He knew that it would cost him dear,
but yet he dare not say,
Just where he'd been that fateful night,
a secret it must stay.
He had to fight back tears of rage.
His heart beat like a drum.
For with the wife of his best friend,
he spent his final night of freedom.
Over the hills and far away,
he swears he will return one day.
Far from the mountains and the seas,
back in her arms again he'll be.
Over the hills and far away.
Over the hills and,
over the hills and,
over the hills and far away.
Each night within his prison cell,
he looks out through the bars.
He reads the letters that she wrote.
One day he'll know the taste of freedom.
Over the hills and far away,
she prays he will return one day.
As sure as the rivers reach the seas,
back in his arms again she'll be.
Over the hills and far away,
he swears he will return one day.
As sure as the river reach the seas,
back in his arms is where she'll be.
Over the hills and far away,
she prays he will return one day.
As sure as the rivers reach the sea,
back in her arms is where he'll be.
Over the hills,over the hills and far away.
Over the hills,over the hills and far away
Okay, so... the premise, in both cases, is a man who is accused of a crime and can't speak in his defense because he was cuckolding his best friend at the time. In "The long Black Veil", the crime is murder and the man is hung for it, leaving his friend's wife to mourn in secret. In "Over The Hills", the crime is robbery, and the man is sent away to prison for a decade, where he waits impatiently for freedom and return (and the unfaithful wife waits also).
However, to my eyes the big difference between the two songs is the fourth line of "Over The Hills". He's accused of robbery because his pistol was found, presumably at the scene of the crime. (Maybe they found the pistol somewhere else, but that interpretation doesn't make much sense to me.)
"The Long Black Veil" is a song about a miscarriage of justice; "Over The Hills" is about a man who was framed for robbery, probably by the jealous best friend with whose wife he was sleeping.
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