In the rash of recent recruiting decommitments I suddenly had lyrics from the Pixies pop into my head:
While very pop and somewhat sing-songy compared to other Pixies cuts, the song actually has a pretty dark meaning, when you consider the background of the song:
In 1989, Thompson told NME, “It’s about winos and hobos traveling on the trains, who die in the California Earthquake, peeing their pants. Before earthquakes, everything gets very calm—animals stop talking and, birds stop chirping, and there’s no wind. It’s very ominous. I’ve been through a few earthquakes, actually, ’cause I grew up in California. I was only in one big one, in 1971. I was very young, and I slept through it. I’ve been awake through lots of small ones at school and at home. It’s very exciting actually—a very comical thing. It’s like the earth is shaking, and what can you do? Nothing.”
Here comes your man
Here comes your man
Here comes your man
Big shake on the box car moving
Big shake to the land that’s falling down
Is a wind makes a palm stop blowing
A big, big stone fall and break my crown
Additionally, the band hated it and rejected the song from its inception, requesting it be left off of albums which later was included with a change in their production agency in 1989. This would likely explain why it appears the lead singer is not singing at all in the video. When Arsenio Hall requested the band to make a live appearance and play the song on his show, they agreed to appear only if they could sing something else. Hall declined the invitation at that point.
Come to think of it, this song could rightly represent the state of recruiting as we know it – a foreshadowing of the downfall of something through a seismic rift in the world of college football. I just wonder if the birds are quiet now because they’re sensing doom, or because it’s about to happen down the road.
CKS will end up with as good a class as he can sign. If the class isn’t ranked first it will be due to an insufficient number of available spots.
With respect to the music, if Charles Thompson (“Black Francis”) and Joey Santiago had been satisfied being songwriters for more telegenic and/or charismatic folks their songs would be household names. The depth of their catalog can be matched with anyone, save Dylan.
I actually hear some REM in Here “Comes Your Man” which is more pop than Francis would like. So I am not surprised at their dislike of the song. Kurt Cobain claims to have been heavily influenced by th Pixies. They are a band that was not very commercially successful but influenced later bands. The bassist had a bit of a falling out with Frances and fromed the Breeders. I saw the Breeders at Lollapalooza ’94. Amazing that was 30 years ago.
If you listen to Pixies first two full albums and then Nirvana’s, at times it feels like straight theft. It’s different having Cobain as a front man vs. the winner of the “dude least likely to get laid at a Star Trek convention” award in 1988.
Thanks for sharing this story, I hadn’t heard it before.
As for the college football landscape, it would take a lot more change to ruin my fandom. As long as Georgia is playing against mostly good teams and most of its rivals on Saturdays, I’ll be watching. Will it be worse if we play Auburn every other year, of course. But rooting for the alma mater and beating your rivals in the greatest sport around seemingly cannot ever feel like doom to me….but I’ve been wrong before!
The Senator would have loved this. Gotdam hippies.
Why is Ben Affleck playing drums?
I freakin loved this band. Saw them at the Roxy in Buckhead touring for Doolittle. Hell of a show.
Fun fact. I have been to California many times, but the only earthquakes I have felt were when I was in Atlanta.