Singing in the rain

Ah… what a gloomy day it is in Sydney today. The weather’s been funny – one day it will be hot as hell, then the next cold and wet. It’s almost like we’ve turned into Melbourne!

It’s been a while since I last wrote about music lyrics (here and here) so today I’d like to write about one particular lyric from a song called ‘A little fall of rain’ from the musical ‘Les Misérables‘.

Éponine:
Don’t you fret, M’sieur Marius
I don’t feel any pain
A little fall of rain
Can hardly hurt me now
You’re here, that’s all I need to know
And you will keep me safe
And you will keep me close
And rain will make the flowers grow.

Long story short: Éponine loves Marius, Marius loves Cossette, Éponine dies to save Marius – your typical love triangle slash unrequited love scenario.

The beauty here is in the lyric ‘A little fall of rain / Can hardly hurt me now’. On the surface, one could take it to mean that because she’s dying, Éponine is simply saying that Marius’s efforts to keep the rain off her is unnecessary, because all that matters is that he’s holding her. But I like to think that ‘rain’ is Éponine’s metaphor for his tears – in that moment, she comes to the bittersweet realisation that he’s not crying for her because he loves her, and because she’s dying, it no longer ‘hurts’ her to know it. She’s comforted by the knowledge that because of what she did for him, she will forever have a special place in his heart.

F*** what I said, it don’t mean s*** now

Some of you may be quite surprised to know that I take a very liberal stance when it comes to swearing. It’s a difficult topic to write about, considering that most of you will probably disagree with my point of view. But really, ask any high school-aged person what the f-word is and I’d say that all but the most prudish would be able to tell you (and even then, the prudes probably know but just can’t bring themselves to say it). In and of itself, that proves nothing. But you’ll find that as these words get more and more accepted into the general lexicon, their offensive value will begin to diminish. There are many words in general use today that wouldn’t have passed the mouths of any except the most filthy, vile dregs of society a few centuries ago.

Swear words have meaning. Sometimes, it is just more convenient to use a swear word rather than a longer word or phrase. For example, “bitch” is a word that is fast becoming widely accepted. Most people now wouldn’t bat an eyelid if they hear it (even radio and TV don’t “bleep” it out any more), and few would be able to think of an alternative way to describe a vindictive woman other than to call her a bitch. Of course, to say it to her face would be offensive, because people may not accept or recognise their own personality flaws. The point here is, swear words lose their potency over time, and what we find offensive now may not be in the (near) future.

Swear words convey the extremes of emotion. When was the last time that you felt “bummer” was an appropriately satisfying utterance for when you stubbed your toe against something so hard that it bleeds? It is an extreme situation requiring a suitably emotive response. Most would probably use a euphemism such as “shite” or “fudge” but it is essentially said with the same spirit, so should it be considered any less offensive? The great thing about language is that words can have intensity, eg. excellent => good => average => mediocre => poor. Why shouldn’t we use words of high intensity for intense situations? Being able to use the full spectrum of language only helps to colour the world that we live in.

Of course, where would we be without a song? Today’s post comes to you courtesy of the heart-broken Eamon, and his song “Fuck it (don’t want you back)”:

[chorus]
Fuck what I said, it don’t mean shit now
Fuck the presents might as well throw ‘em out
Fuck all the kisses, they didn’t mean jack
Fuck you you ho, don’t want you back

How much less would the impact of this be, if instead he had used these lyrics:

[chorus]
Ignore what I said, it don’t mean naught now
Forget the presents might as well throw ‘em out
Stuff all the kisses, they didn’t mean much
No way you tramp, don’t want you back

My Immortal

It’s ironic, but most of my favourite songs don’t usually have anything to do with the music. Instead, I’m usually captivated by the song’s lyrics (which explains why I hate heavy metal, since the lyrics of a typical metal song usually goes something like “aarrrrrrrrrr grrrrraaaaah argh rrrrrrrrrrr arrrrrrr!!!!”). One song that has recently been added to my collection of favourites is “My Immortal” by Evanescence. It goes like this:

[verse 1:]
I’m so tired of being here
Suppressed by all of my childish fears
And if you have to leave
I wish that you would just leave
Because your presence still lingers here
And it won’t leave me alone

[pre-chorus:]
These wounds won’t seem to heal
This pain is just too real
There’s just too much that time cannot erase

[chorus:]
When you cried I’d wipe away all of your tears
When you’d scream I’d fight away all of your fears
And I’ve held your hand through all of these years
But you still have all of me

[verse 2:]
You used to captivate me
By your resonating light
But now I’m bound by the life you left behind
Your face it haunts my once pleasant dreams
Your voice it chased away all the sanity in me

[pre-chorus]

[chorus]

[bridge:]
I’ve tried so hard to tell myself that you’re gone
And though you’re still with me
I’ve been alone all along

[chorus]

Most people think this song is about a loved one who passed away, but I believe another possibility is that the singer is singing about somebody who has been in a coma for a long time. The meaning of the song then changes from agonizing over a lost love, to someone who is torn by the fact that she is still committed to this person (maybe they were married), but is becoming increasingly unsatisfied with giving her love but never receiving any back. Now she’s contemplating leaving, but is having trouble reconciling it in her mind as it would be a betrayal of the love they used to share. This conjures up some very strong mental images for me (I nearly lost my brother to a car accident once) and Evanescence singer Amy Lee’s divine voice helps complete this tragic picture.

—-

Another band whose lyrics irked me until recently, was Garbage and their song “Cherry Lips”. It just kinda changes gender after the first verse, and although this shouldn’t be surprising given that there is another song on the same album called “Androgyny”, I was still curious as to whether it was talking about two people or one person (who would have to be a cross-dresser). I finally found out today that the song was written for, and about author “JT Leroy” who grew up as a, you guessed it… transvestite.