i don't think it means what you think it means, part 2

Let me quote the second verse of “Dead Flowers” by the Rolling Stones.

Well, when you’re sitting back In your rose pink Cadillac Making bets on Kentucky derby day I’ll be in my basement room With a needle and a spoon And another girl to take my pain away

The Cohen brothers use a version of this song at the end of The Big Lebowski. The first few lines of the song are quite touching: “When you’re sitting there in you’re silk upholstered chair…I hope you won’t see me and my ragged company.” It goes well with what the movie has created. Two Jeffrey Lebowskis – one an upper class business mogul and the other a baby boomer bum – cross paths and butt heads because of their contrasting backgrounds. The common man stands defiant, and the use of this song at the end of the movie looks well warranted at first glance – even though I don’t have the money you do, my friends and I have fun in our own way. Listening further to the second verse, though, we see what this song is really about. It’s a down on his luck drug addict dying in the underground and numbing his pain while life goes on overhead. I wonder if the Cohen brothers knew what they were doing. I never saw Mr. Lebowski as a heroin addict.

This is a trend I’ve seen for years in popular culture. People use songs to add emotional impact to a movie or a commercial. In ninety-nine percent of all cases, the songs people use are taken entirely out of context and botched beyond belief. Think of Microsoft back in the 90’s using “Who Are You” to advertise Windows. This is a song about a man waking up in the drunk tank. Listen closely. It’s not about a computer operating system. Taking songs out of context really bugs me.

Wes Anderson is guilty of this to a certain degree, as well. Rushmore is a very good movie, and the last scene is the clincher for a lot of people. Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray spend the movie fighting for the affection of the same lady. In the end everything works out, and we close on the chorus of “Ooh La La” by Ronnie Wood. “I wish that I knew what I know now when I was younger.” It’s a wonderful song, but it’s taken out of context again. This song is a grandfather warning his grandson about women. “They’ll trap you then they’ll use you before you even know.” This is exactly the opposite of what just happened in the movie. Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray just spent two hours acting like assholes to win the right to get in a woman’s pants. She was a bystander. I think that if she had the choice she would have rather been left alone. She didn’t particularly trap anyone. Using it out of context leaves a nice impression on the end of Rushmore. Only listen to the chorus and it works.

Cameron Crowe did something like this in one of the most famous movie scenes of all time. In Almost Famous there is a scene where the lead guitarist in the band walks out one night and finds his way to a Topeka party. He gets wasted and stoned and makes an ass of himself, and he staggers onto the bus a humiliated and ashamed mess. As the band drives away they listen to “Tiny Dancer” on the radio. Slowly, one by one, each band member begins singing along. One by one, their respective groupies begin singing alone. Soon the entire bus is erupting in song. All the ill deeds are forgiven and the band is back on its feet. It’s really a great scene. The difference between this and something like The Big Lebowski is that this song has everything to do with Almost Famous is about. “Tiny Dancer” was inspired by Bernie Taupin’s wife, who on one of Elton John’s tours was indeed “seamstress for the band.” She was indeed a dancer. Whenever I listen to that song I think of Bernie Taupin’s wife watching each show in the wings, singing along with the words and humming the tunes. She wasn’t a band-aid, but Penny Lane does all of those things in Almost Famous. Cameron Crowe knew exactly what he was doing when he chose “Tiny Dancer” for that scene. It fits perfectly because it isn’t taken out of context. It’s exactly what Cameron Crowe is going for. That sort of attention to detail takes a lot of effort to get it right. That’s the sort of thing I love, because it’s the most powerful.

I’m “that guy” when it comes to song lyrics. I’ve ruined plenty of songs for my friends when I tell them what they’re actually about. Nine times out of ten the true intent of a song’s lyrics is far more powerful and thought-provoking than how it may sound based on one or two lines picked out in a moment’s worth of listening. “Dead Flowers” is a great song, and “Ooh La La” is one that I’m going to learn on guitar as soon as I figure out how to play an E Minor 7. “Tiny Dancer” is no more powerful on its own than either of those songs, but it works the best in its movie context because Cameron Crowe took the time to find a song that actually fits. Every great song is about something. You can really wrap your head around great songs when you understand what they’re about. This means listening to lyrics. I know it’s hard, but listen closely and someday you’ll be able to point out contextual errors to people who may or may not be reading your blog.